After one woman discovered eight unknown siblings following a commercial DNA test, she investigated and learned that her biological father was her mother’s fertility doctor, according to court documents from Marion County, Indiana. Dr. Donald Cline had told his patients he was inseminating them with “fresh sperm” from a medical student or resident.
Now, Cline has entered a plea of not guilty to two charges of obstruction of justice.
“It was unethical, what he did. He was telling his patients one thing and doing another,” the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, told CNN affiliate WXIN.
“This kind of thing happens very rarely, and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine doesn’t keep numbers on it,” said Eleanor Nicoll, a spokeswoman for the society.
Finding half-sisters
About 6% of married women in the United States are unable to get pregnant after a year of unprotected sex, while 12% of women have difficulty getting pregnant or carrying a child to term, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PDF). Between 2006 and 2010, the CDC also found that about 12% of women (7.3 million) or their husbands or partners had used infertility services at some point in their lives.
The Cline case began with one woman and quickly led to her half-sisters.
Jacoba Ballard’s investigation into her identity began when she became curious about her history, the court documents explain.
Similarly, Kristy Killion became interested in her roots when she reached…