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http://www.centurylink.net/news/read.php?id=18835678&ps=1011&cat=&cps=0&lang=en
SAN DIEGO (AP) Theresa Erickson's reputation as a leading reproductive law specialist eased the concerns of surrogate mothers and intended parents who were desperate to have children.
But prosecutors say that trust also let her lure couples into a baby-selling scam that netted millions of dollars by dealing in genetically desirable babies conceived in Ukraine by anonymous donors and carried by surrogates.
"These were criminals that were creating human life for sale," said surrogacy attorney Andrew Vorzimer, who represented surrogates that helped blow the whistle on the scam. "Many people consider this to be a surrogacy arrangement gone awry. But this was not surrogacy in any shape or form."
Erickson, a 44-year-old attorney, was expected to be sentenced Friday in federal court in San Diego. She could face up to five years in prison.
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In fact, Erickson was working with surrogate Carla Chambers and respected Maryland attorney Hilary Neiman to line up parents for babies that had already been created by sending U.S. surrogates to Ukraine to be implanted with sperm and embryos from anonymous donors, prosecutors say.
Vorzimer said no one knows how many babies were created that way, and important genetic information for the infants may have been lost forever. The surrogates were also unaware of the scam, federal prosecutors say.
"They attempted to create the most marketable baby available, which was blond hair, blue-eyed baby, while simultaneously pulling on the heart strings of intended parents," Vorzimer said. "It defies description the immorality that was involved in this ongoing operation that went on for years."
More at link....
SAN DIEGO (AP) Theresa Erickson's reputation as a leading reproductive law specialist eased the concerns of surrogate mothers and intended parents who were desperate to have children.
But prosecutors say that trust also let her lure couples into a baby-selling scam that netted millions of dollars by dealing in genetically desirable babies conceived in Ukraine by anonymous donors and carried by surrogates.
"These were criminals that were creating human life for sale," said surrogacy attorney Andrew Vorzimer, who represented surrogates that helped blow the whistle on the scam. "Many people consider this to be a surrogacy arrangement gone awry. But this was not surrogacy in any shape or form."
Erickson, a 44-year-old attorney, was expected to be sentenced Friday in federal court in San Diego. She could face up to five years in prison.
------
In fact, Erickson was working with surrogate Carla Chambers and respected Maryland attorney Hilary Neiman to line up parents for babies that had already been created by sending U.S. surrogates to Ukraine to be implanted with sperm and embryos from anonymous donors, prosecutors say.
Vorzimer said no one knows how many babies were created that way, and important genetic information for the infants may have been lost forever. The surrogates were also unaware of the scam, federal prosecutors say.
"They attempted to create the most marketable baby available, which was blond hair, blue-eyed baby, while simultaneously pulling on the heart strings of intended parents," Vorzimer said. "It defies description the immorality that was involved in this ongoing operation that went on for years."
More at link....
