Supreme Court

Miss. Court Rules Woman Has Parental Rights in Same-Sex Split

The justices said an earlier ruling that she did not have rights would "would disrupt the familial relationships and expectations of Mississippians who have conceived children" using artificial insemination

Mississippi's Supreme Court ruled Thursday, in a case watched by gay rights activists and groups aiding in vitro fertilization, that a woman does have parental rights to the 6-year-old boy her ex-wife gave birth to when they were married, NBC News reported.

Christina "Chris" Strickland brought the appeal and challenged a lower court decision that she did not have rights and that the anonymous sperm donor did. Strickland ultimately hopes to win 50-50 custody of Zayden Strickland, who bears her last name and was born by Kimberly Day through artificial means when Day and Strickland were married.

The justices found that the original ruling was unworkable and unfair, saying such a standard would "would disrupt the familial relationships and expectations of Mississippians who have conceived children" using artificial insemination.

The original judge had granted Strickland visitation rights, and she pays child support. But Attorney Beth Littrell, who works for the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, said Strickland had a much inferior status to legal parenthood.

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