A Las Vegas family was left in shambles after a DNA test revealed that the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, who was born through IVF, is not theirs.
A lawsuit filed against the now-defunct Nevada Fertility Cares alleges that Dr. Rachel McConnell MD implanted the wrong embryo into the teen’s mother nearly two decades ago.
The family discovered the error after taking a DNA test from Ancestry.com that showed the young man was not biologically related to either parent.
The teenager’s mother died in 2022 for undisclosed reasons. It is not clear if he had any siblings.
Attorney Robert Murdock, who represents the father in Clark County District Court, saying: “My client had more tears than I had ever seen anyone shed, because what she thought was her daughter, is not.”
A lawsuit filed against Nevada Fertility Cares, a now-closed clinic, alleges that Dr. Rachel McConnell MD (pictured) implanted the wrong embryo in the teen’s mother nearly two decades ago.
According to documents obtained by 8NewsNowthe couple had chosen an Arizona-based egg donor to combine with the father’s sperm.
But the DNA results showed that the implanted embryo was actually from Las Vegas, and not the Arizona one they had chosen.
The lawsuit allegedly claims that it is still unknown what happened to the original embryo and whether it was implanted in another woman.
Murdock asked if the teen’s father could have other children he doesn’t know about: “Because, again, where did that embryo go? Was it implanted in someone else?”
Attorney Robert Murdock, who filed the lawsuit and represents the family in Clark County District Court, said: “My client had more tears than I had ever seen anyone shed, because what he thought was his daughter , it is not.”
The family discovered the error after taking a DNA test from Ancestry.com that showed the young man was not biologically related to either parent.
The lawyer also clarified that the father plans to officially adopt the teenager and that her birth certificate will be modified, but he remains curious to know how the mix-up occurred.
‘In this case, the biological daughter is not his, so he has to adopt her.
“The real goal of this is to figure out what happened, why, and hopefully make sure this is the only bug out there.”
The documents cite negligence and malpractice and call for a jury to decide any culpability and potential damages.
Dr. Rachel McConnell is an obstetrician/gynecologist (OBGYN) and has been certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, according to Daily medical care.
A hearing date has not yet been set.