Krystena Murray, a woman from Savannah, Georgia, is suing Coastal Fertility Specialists after an IVF mix-up led her to give birth to a Black child who isn’t biologically hers. She’s claiming the clinic’s mistake caused her significant emotional and physical distress.
Murray had been trying to conceive for nearly two years through IVF. In December 2023, she gave birth but immediately noticed something was off—the baby didn’t look like her or the sperm donor. A DNA test confirmed that the embryo she carried actually belonged to another couple.
Despite the shock, Murray initially decided to raise the baby as her own. However, when the biological parents filed for custody, Murray chose to surrender the child in May 2024 to avoid a legal battle she felt she couldn’t win.
“I’ve wanted to be a mom my entire life. I loved and cared for him like my own, and I would’ve done anything to keep him. He may not have my genes, but he will always be my son,” Murray told Newsweek.
Her attorney, Adam Wolf, slammed the lack of regulations around fertility clinics, saying, “Coastal Fertility Specialists made a serious mistake, and the consequences are life-altering for Krystena. Sadly, this isn’t the first IVF mix-up I’ve dealt with, and it won’t be the last.”
Coastal Fertility Specialists admitted the error was “unprecedented” and apologized, saying they’ve now put new safeguards in place to avoid future mistakes.
Murray is now seeking over $75,000 in damages, arguing that the clinic’s mistake essentially turned her into an unwilling surrogate.
