California Parents Sue After Mistakenly Getting Another Couple’s Embryo

A California couple has filed a lawsuit after they received a different couple’s embryo during their in vitro fertilization process.

As reported by The Associated Press and the New York Times, Daphna and Alexander Cardinale filed a lawsuit Monday in Los Angeles accusing the California Center for Reproductive Health (CCRH) and its owner, Dr. Eliran Mor, of medical malpractice, breach of contract, negligence, and fraud over the alleged mix-up.

The couple are demanding a jury trial and are seeking unspecified damages.

Following IVF, Daphna gave birth to a baby girl on September 24, 2019. However, she and Alexander immediately had suspicions because of the girl’s darker complexion.

Despite this, the two fell in love with the girl and raised her for several months until they learned on Christmas Eve that per DNA tests, the baby was not their biological daughter.

“I was overwhelmed by feelings of fear, betrayal, anger and heartbreak,” Daphna said during a news conference on Monday with her husband. “I was robbed of the ability to carry my own child. I never had the opportunity to grow and bond with her during pregnancy, to feel her kick.”

The two other parents involved in the alleged mix-up, who wish to remain anonymous and are also represented by the Cardinales’ attorney Adam Wolf, plan to file a similar lawsuit in the coming days.

The AP says the babies were swapped back in January 2020 — three months after the infants were born a week apart.

The New York Times says the Cardinales first met their biological daughter Zoe on New Year’s Eve and decided to keep her name. They had taken custody of her about two weeks later.

During the press conference, Daphna said the most upsetting aspect of the ordeal was breaking the news to the couple’s other daughter, now 7.

“How do you explain that to a 5-year-old?” she said.

With regard to how the event has affected their lives, Alexander, a recording artist, says he was dropped by Atlantic Records after he could not promote his “then-hot” music single.

Daphna, a licensed therapist, said she lost most of her patients and was prescribed antidepressants after she had contemplated suicide.

Per their lawsuit, the couple said they had also experienced panic attacks.

“It was torture that shook me to my core and forever changed who I am,” Daphna said at the conference. “I was robbed of the ability to carry my own child.”

Daphna and Alexander also said they continue to keep in touch with the girl that Daphna gave birth to, along with her biological parents, who live near them in the Los Angeles area.

When asked for comment by the AP and the Times, representatives for the center did not immediately respond to requests for comments.