The US Supreme Court has declined to get involved in a custody dispute concerning a child born with a rare and serious heart defect. On Tuesday, Justice Elena Kagan denied an emergency request from McKenna West, an Alaska nurse and surrogate.
Ms West had asked the court to halt a California court order that recognises Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar, a couple from California, as the boy's legal parents.
The couple had reportedly asked Ms West to abort the pregnancy after a scan discovered the baby had hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Ms West refused and travelled to Texas to give birth. Ms West has since argued for custody, claiming the legal parents will not provide necessary medical care due to their previous request for an abortion.
This refusal to intervene by Justice Kagan follows a ruling by the Texas Supreme Court that the month-old child can relocate to a Los Angeles hospital for treatment. The Texas court stated that "sustaining the life of the medically fragile child is the paramount concern in this time-sensitive matter."