Anyone remember the Twigg's/Mays baby switch back in the 70's?

[Hyonlyf]

What about the Baby Richard case? Any updates on that one?

 

[C.Ann]

I remember the case but do not recall that they ever discovered how the mixup occurred with the Twigg/Mays babies. Books can be biased depending on the point of view of the author. I hadn't thought about that case in a long time. I think hospitals today are much more careful because of that case and others.

You should read the book - if you can get your hands on it via Amazon.com or half.com..

The investigative portion revealed through sworn testimony that the switch was in fact deliberate - the hospital was sued by both the Twiggs and the Mays - and as a result, went bankrupt and had to close their doors..

I really want to research some of these other cases (possibly get some additional books - like I really need to be spending money on MORE books - LOL ) and see what happened to all of these other children..

After the fiasco with the Marybeth Whitehead - Baby M case - are surrogate mothers even legal anymore?

As for adoption (I'm adopted myself) - they need to enforce much stricter laws so that adoptive parents aren't subjected to bonding with these babies (and the babies bonding with them) only to have to be returned to biological parents simply because they can't make up their minds one way or the other..

 

[Stacerita]

The investigative portion revealed through sworn testimony that the switch was in fact deliberate - the hospital was sued by both the Twiggs and the Mays - and as a result, went bankrupt and had to close their doors..

Who was it that did the switch? An employee from the hospital? A family member?

 

[BeachGirlFLA]

After the fiasco with the Marybeth Whitehead - Baby M case - are surrogate mothers even legal anymore?

Yes, surrogate mothers are definitely still legal. There was a story about one on the local news a few months ago...she has done it (I think) three times, claims she enjoys being pregnant, and gets paid $20,000-$25,000 each time.

 

[amberg@eastlink.ca]

Who was it that did the switch? An employee from the hospital? A family member?

if memory serves me correct from the movie, they showed it was the nurse was who switched them....but that may have been creative license!

 

[EMom]

I could be completely wrong here, because this tidbit is based on memory from way back then.......But I seem to remember that someone at the hospital knew the Mays family and was sympathetic to their long struggle to have a baby. When the Mays baby was born and it was sickly (can't remember how they knew that) and the Twiggs baby was healthy, that someone took it upon themselves to switch the babies so that the Mays would have a healthy baby girl. It was assumed the reasoning was, "The Twiggs have a houseful of kids....more than they need. The Mays have none and probably can't have more, so this is their only chance. The Mays are such a NICE couple, and they want a baby soooo much..." The babies were very similar in appearance and the switch worked. I do seem to remember that one mother....I think Mrs. Twigg....voiced concern at some point early on that the baby might not be the right one, but her worries were dismissed.

Again, that's all from what I remember from years ago and I don't promise it's 100% accurate.

 

[C.Ann]

Who was it that did the switch? An employee from the hospital? A family member?

Yes - it was a nurse - and EMom's analysis is pretty much correct..

 

[Stacerita]

I could be completely wrong here, because this tidbit is based on memory from way back then.......But I seem to remember that someone at the hospital knew the Mays family and was sympathetic to their long struggle to have a baby. When the Mays baby was born and it was sickly (can't remember how they knew that) and the Twiggs baby was healthy, that someone took it upon themselves to switch the babies so that the Mays would have a healthy baby girl. It was assumed the reasoning was, "The Twiggs have a houseful of kids....more than they need. The Mays have none and probably can't have more, so this is their only chance. The Mays are such a NICE couple, and they want a baby soooo much..." The babies were very similar in appearance and the switch worked. I do seem to remember that one mother....I think Mrs. Twigg....voiced concern at some point early on that the baby might not be the right one, but her worries were dismissed.

Again, that's all from what I remember from years ago and I don't promise it's 100% accurate.

Yes - it was a nurse - and EMom's analysis is pretty much correct..

Thank you!

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

What about the Baby Richard case? Any updates on that one?

True story of Baby Richard
Ponte Vedra resident authors book about case that grabbed headlines
By SUSAN BRANDENBURG | Wednesday, July 4

http://staugustine.com/stories/070407/community_4640523.shtml

Translucent glass globes and gleaming metal spheres in soft, shining colors are everywhere in the elegant Ponte Vedra Beach home of Dr. Karen Moriarty. The glittering orbs convey much the same sense of peace and fulfillment that is reflected in the attractive face of the doctor. It has been over a decade since Baby Richard turned her world upside down, but today, Moriarty has come full circle.

"One of the major things that brought back some sense of balance and harmony to my life was writing the true story of the Baby Richard case," said Moriarty, whose book titled "Baby Richard -- A Four-Year-Old Comes Home" describes the daily behind-the-scenes 1990's saga in Chicago of one of America's most controversial and highly publicized child-custody battles -- a battle in which Moriarty played a central role as the psychologist for the child and his biological family.

Moriarty's dramatic account of the four-year battle by Czechoslovakian immigrant Otto Kirchner to regain custody of his son from the couple who had adopted him at birth is in direct contrast to the condemnation of him that defined the case back in the mid-1990's. It ultimately changed adoption laws in several states.

Although it appeared to the public that the biological father of the boy had suddenly appeared on the scene to rip his 4-year-old son from the loving arms of his adoptive parents, the father's court battle for custody actually began before his child was three months old.

One aspect of Moriarty's "rest of the story" is that the adoptive parents, Kim and Jay Warburton, and their attorney had actually coerced Daniela Kirchner, a young, vulnerable, then-single immigrant mother, into signing away rights to her baby without the knowledge or permission of the birth father. For years, beginning when the child was a tiny infant, the conflict between the adoptive parents and the biological parents raged through courts and state legislatures, fueled by intense media coverage of a highly toxic nature against the biological parents.

Battle raged on

Even after the Illinois Supreme Court ruled, on June 16, 1994, in favor of the biological parents, giving them custody of their son, the adoptive parents (with total support from an outraged public) fought the decision and refused to comply. It was in January of 1995, when the Supreme Court issued a writ of habeas corpus instructing the adoptive parents to turn the child over to the Kirchner's "forthwith," that Dr. Karen Moriarty became involved.

"I took the Baby Richard case on a pro bono basis because the parents had no money and needed help in becoming an instant family," said Moriarty, who was asked by the Kirchner's attorney to work with the 4-year-old boy and his parents during the transition period. "My involvement was intense and spanned years," said Moriarty. "It changed my life."

Indeed, from the day of the dramatic televised transfer of the tearful Danny ("Baby Richard") from his adoptive mother into the arms of his birth father, Otto Kirchner, the lives of the Kirchner family and Moriarty were to be forever entwined. "I became part of the collateral damage," writes Moriarty. She was considered to be "on the wrong side" by the public and the media, particularly Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Greene, who wrote literally hundreds of damaging and unfounded "Baby Richard" columns. Moriarty received hate mail and threats, required police surveillance at her home and office, fielded fallout from celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Walters and First Lady Hilary Clinton, and eventually retired early and moved, with her husband, to Florida.

No emotional damage

Despite dire predictions that Danny Kirchner, taken at age 4 from the only parents he had ever known, would suffer irreparable emotional damage, he was "a well-rounded 7th grader" in 2003 when Moriarty published her book, complete with several photographs of the Kirchner family taken through the years. Many of the photos in her book were taken on family vacations at the Moriarty's Ormond Beach condo, and there are chapters that focus on interviews with both birth parents as well as an in-depth interview with a well-adjusted, happy 12-year old named Danny Kirchner.

"The Kirchner's gave me permission to reveal the intimate, undisclosed story that became my book," said Moriarty, who left her 30-year career as a teacher, counselor, school administrator and licensed clinical psychologist to act at no charge as the family's therapist.

Still in contact with the Kirchner family and still being asked to consult occasionally on a contentious custody case (in a Feb. 21, 2007, USA Today article, "Two Families That Love You," she was quoted regarding the landmark Baby Richard case) Moriarty now devotes the majority of her time to traveling with her husband, Robert, also a psychologist and a former college president, and enjoying her home in Sawgrass Players Club. She is also actively involved in the Ponte Vedra Women's Club, Newcomer's Club and other local organizations.

In May, Moriarty contributed five of her books to the Ponte Vedra Beach Library for distribution to all St. John's Libraries.

Movie deal in works

"(The Baby Richard) tragedy is the wrongful breakup of a natural family and the keeping of a child by strangers without right," wrote Illinois Supreme Court Justice James Heiple in his life-changing decision.

"My book is being considered for a movie by an award-winning producer and his actress wife," said Moriarty. "If it happens, it will be great, and if not, the book explains the human and legal aspects of this epic case. Due to a media blitzkrieg that ignored facts in favor of sensationalism, the true story of Baby Richard has never been told -- until now."

 

[mom22belles]

I can't find anything up to date. But it seems 10 years ago Kimberlly herself lost custody of her child after being reported to DCF by one of her Twiggs siblings.


http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20129129,00.html

 

[Hyonlyf]

Thanks for the fact finding!!! Fascinating, yet sad.

 

[Minnie&Nana]

I remember and found this today:

Kimberly Mays (born November 1978) was born in a Wauchula, Florida, hospital and switched at birth with Arlena Twigg, a girl who died at age nine (Aug 1988) of complications following surgery for a heart defect. Mays was the subject of a bitter custody battle in the late 1980s and early 1990s between her biological parents, Ernest and Regina Twigg of Sebring, Florida, and Bob Mays, the man who raised her after she was switched at birth. Though Mays won the right to stay with Bob Mays in a 1993 Florida court proceeding, she later ran away from Bob Mays and moved in with the Twiggs. Her early adulthood was troubled, as she battled marital woes and lost custody of her own child for a time.

The court battle was the subject of a book The Baby Swap Conspiracy by Loretta Schwarz-Nobel.

Kimberly Mays and Arlena Twigg were born within a few days of each other in 1978. Kimberly went home with Bob Mays and his wife, who died a few years later. The Twiggs took home the Mays' biological daughter, whom they named Arlena. The Twiggs learned that Arlena had the wrong blood type to be their biological daughter at age 9. Following Arlena's death, the Twiggs sought information about their biological daughter and located Kimberly Mays. Bob Mays agreed in 1989 to grant the Twiggs visitation rights to Kimberly, but later cut off the visits. The Twiggs sued for increased visitation or custody of Kimberly. A Wauchula, Florida circuit court ruled in 1993 that Kimberly would be allowed to cut off all contacts with her biological family and that Bob Mays was her psychological father.

Wednesday, May 5th 1999, 2:10AM

A Florida woman who was switched at birth, sparking a bizarre and bitter custody battle, lost custody of her son last week.

Kimberly Mays' 21-month-old son, Devin Weeks, was placed in foster care by Florida's Department of Children and Families, the Sun-Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale reported.

Mays, now 20, married Jeremy Weeks in 1997.

The state agency would not release details, citing confidentiality laws. It has authority to remove children from parental custody because of abuse, neglect or abandonment.

Officials did say the reasons for removing the child were not serious enough to warrant the attention the case is now getting.

Mays, 20, was herself the subject of a notorious case when it was discovered she was switched with another baby, Arlena Twigg, shortly after their births in 1978.

Regina and Ernest Twigg discovered in 1988 that Arlena, who died of heart disease, was not their biological daughter.

Robert Mays, who had raised Kimberly from birth, battled for five years with the Twiggs over visitation rights before a judge eventually ruled the Twiggs had no legal right to act as her parents or even to visit her.

Diana Tennis, Mays' attorney, said the young mother did not physically abuse her son.

"Kimberly has already begun doing all the things she has to do to make this a smooth process," Tennis said. "They're doing everything they can to get the family back together."

State officials said that they were "very optimistic" about eventually returning the boy to Mays, but said that the first step in that process setting out a list of requirements for getting him back won't happen until June 3.

Mays and her husband have the right for supervised visits as the case works its way through the system.

Wonder where they all are now....so sad.

 

[Green Tea]

Remember that other tragic baby switching case about 10 years ago? I can't remember the last names, but the girls' first names were Cailey and Rebecca (I remember that because my neices are named that). There was a car accident and a whole family died, and somehow that caused the family to realize the switch. I wonder what ever happened in that case?

This is the one I was thinking of too. I can't believe it was never made into a made for TV movie.

 

[Tinker74]

This is the one I was thinking of too. I can't believe it was never made into a made for TV movie.

Weirdly the Bio father of Rebecca is now married to the Bio aunt of the other girl cailey....The dad and aunt live together with Rebecca..her sister linsey and their own two sons together....Rebeca and linsey were the two girls who lost their parents (bio in linseys case) in the car crash.

Bio dad is called carlton conway and it was when he and his first wife split (Rebbecas bio mom) that the swap was discovered...he denied paternty and they had blood tests.

Somehow he ended up with the daughter and bio mom lost visitation...its a really confusing and amazing read.

 

[C J]

I thought that it was made into a movie. Maybe I'm thinking of something else!

 

[Beachbumpirates]

We live in a western suburb of Chicago and about 1996 or so we were eating out at an Italian restaurant with our then 18 month old DD. We had a waiter who really was very attentive and paid a lot of attention to our DD in her high chair. I knew he looked so familiar but could not place him. His name tag said Otto and this was long before Google. It took a few weeks to figure out it was the father in the Baby Richard case. Small world.

 

[DVCLiz]

The one I was always fascinated with was the Elizabeth Morgan story - remember she went to jail for two years, rather than tell a judge where her parents had taken her little girl who was allegedly being sexually abused during visitation with her father?

Elizabeth Morgan sent her little girl to her parents, who took her to New Zealand and essentially hid out there. They were found but the little girl never did go back to her father.

I found an article that was a 20 year follow up and Elizabeth Morgan and her daughter now live in LA. So interesting...wonder what the truth of that story really was?

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

I googled the Twiggs/Mays case tonight, and this thread popped up.

Barbara Walters is doing an update on this case on "Barbara Walters Presents American Scandals." Not sure when though. The info on FIOS shows episode 1 about JonBenet Ramsey, episode 2 about Kato Kaelin (back for another 15 minutes of fame), and episode 3 about Jean Harris (on 11/16), so at some point after that, there's an episode about the Twiggs/Mays case, with an interview with Kimberly Mays.

 

[Deven T. Weeks]

Hey there. Not sure if anyone here will believe me, but if not, then I can most certainly provide proof of my identity. Also, my name is spelled D-e-v-e-n. Not D-e-v-i-n.

Anyway, I got curious about what's happened to my mother, since I haven't talked to her in like... 16, almost 17 years. I have to say, I'm glad. I am not heartless, I do understand my biological mother, Kimberly, has been through a lot. But I will also say some of it she brought upon herself. She didn't listen to advice and went bankrupt, which was all on her. She abused me as a child, as well as my father, Jeremy. She's also apparently been floating around, and been around the bend too much, as she's had many other kids with different people. I'm quite glad she's out of my life, as I've been raised in a better environment. I'm an adult now, and I do not intend to ever see her or meet her. It's been a serious nuisance just trying to not look at pictures of what she looks like now. She has lost the honor, the privilege of being called my "mother" a long, long time ago. I actually want to give her a piece of my mind, just tell her how I feel, but... I know she's not completely mentally... stable, to put it lightly.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I googled the Twiggs/Mays case tonight, and this thread popped up.

Barbara Walters is doing an update on this case on "Barbara Walters Presents American Scandals." Not sure when though. The info on FIOS shows episode 1 about JonBenet Ramsey, episode 2 about Kato Kaelin (back for another 15 minutes of fame), and episode 3 about Jean Harris (on 11/16), so at some point after that, there's an episode about the Twiggs/Mays case, with an interview with Kimberly Mays.

Hey there. Not sure if anyone here will believe me, but if not, then I can most certainly provide proof of my identity. Also, my name is spelled D-e-v-e-n. Not D-e-v-i-n.

Anyway, I got curious about what's happened to my mother, since I haven't talked to her in like... 16, almost 17 years. I have to say, I'm glad. I am not heartless, I do understand my biological mother, Kimberly, has been through a lot. But I will also say some of it she brought upon herself. She didn't listen to advice and went bankrupt, which was all on her. She abused me as a child, as well as my father, Jeremy. She's also apparently been floating around, and been around the bend too much, as she's had many other kids with different people. I'm quite glad she's out of my life, as I've been raised in a better environment. I'm an adult now, and I do not intend to ever see her or meet her. It's been a serious nuisance just trying to not look at pictures of what she looks like now. She has lost the honor, the privilege of being called my "mother" a long, long time ago. I actually want to give her a piece of my mind, just tell her how I feel, but... I know she's not completely mentally... stable, to put it lightly.

I'll believe you. It looks like you've made the best out of a very rough beginning for you. I'm sorry for the little boy that you were that needed the comfort of stable parents, and wish you the best in whatever you do. As for Kimberly, sometimes it's hard to pull yourself up and feel like you're worth it when adults mess with your head. I still feel sorry for her, but that doesn't mean you need to include that negativity in your life.