Lesbian custody battle comes to Michigan

In a very interesting case that mirrors many aspects of similar situations around the country, the non-biological mother in a lesbian relationship that included children has filed for custody and visitation rights to the children delivered by her former partner. The Detroit Free Press reports:

For 19 years, Renee Harmon says, she and Tammy Davis lived as if they were married.

The two women had joint bank accounts, owned houses and decided to raise children together. Harmon said she even cut the umbilical cords when their daughter and twin boys were born, in 1999 and 2002, after Davis was artificially inseminated.

They broke up in 2008, so the children were roughly 9 and 6 years old at the time. For their entire lives, they had known Harmon as a parent and undoubtedly bonded with them. But now Davis has apparently cut off all contact between Harmon and the children she has parented since their birth, and Harmon wants a court to grant her the same kind of custody and visitation rights a biological parent would automatically have.

The first hearing in that case is March 22 in Wayne County Circuit Court.

And while it’s true that Michigan does not recognize same sex marriages or civil unions, that may not be entirely relevant to the custody or visitation issues in this case. A non-biological parent may still be granted visitation by a court because they’ve had a longstanding relationship with a child. The court is generally tasked with determining what is in the best interests of the child, and it’s unlikely that ripping a child away from a parent they have known their entire life is going to be emotionally healthy for the child.

But Michigan courts have not traditionally been friendly to such arguments and the ban on same-sex marriage may well play heavily regardless of the best interests of the child. This will be a very interesting case to watch.