Kansas Supreme Court refuses to remove Judge Mattivi from sperm donation case
High Court also opts not to pursue a contempt of court citation
Posted: July 17, 2015
By Tim Hrenchir
THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL
The Kansas Supreme Court has refused a request that it remove Shawnee County District Judge Mary Mattivi from the case involving William Marotta’s donation of sperm in a plastic cup to a Topeka same-sex couple.
State judicial records show the high court, in a five-sentence statement issued June 26, denied motions filed by attorney Charles Baylor, representing Marotta, who asked it to:
■ Reassign the case to a different judge.
■ Issue a citation forcing Mattivi to show cause as to why she shouldn’t be found in contempt of court.
■ Issue a stay of District Court proceedings in the case.
The statement didn’t specify the Supreme Court’s reasons for denying the motions, which Baylor filed June 10.
Baylor contended Mattivi acted in contempt by disobeying instructions the high court gave in June 2014 requiring a “Ross hearing” to be conducted to determine whether genetic testing to determine biological parenthood was in the best interest of the daughter born to Jennifer Schreiner in 2009.
The Supreme Court on June 26 did grant one of Baylor’s motions, which he filed June 17 asking that he be allowed to supplement the motion seeking the contempt citation by providing the court a copy of the transcript from the Ross hearing involved. Still, the June 26 ruling denied the motion seeking the contempt citation.
Mattivi, who had presided over the Ross hearing, issued an order April 24 requiring Marotta to undergo genetic testing to determine whether he is the child’s biological father.
Mattivi on June 26 again ordered Marotta to undergo genetic testing — which he did later that day — while requiring the test results to remain sealed for the time being. She scheduled a status hearing in the case to take place in her court at 11 a.m. Aug. 18.
The Kansas Department for Children and Families since October 2012 has been pursuing the case, in which it is seeking to have Marotta declared the girl’s father so he can be forced to pay child support.
Marotta said he didn’t intend to be the child’s father while agreeing to donate sperm to Schreiner and her same-sex partner, Angela Bauer. Marotta contacted the women after they placed an ad seeking a sperm donor on Craigslist.
Mattivi ruled in January 2014 that Schreiner and Bauer failed to follow a Kansas statute enacted in 1994, which Mattivi said requires a licensed physician to perform artificial insemination in cases involving sperm donors.
Supporters have established a page to raise money to help cover Marotta’s legal costs at
http://www.gofundme.com/kstramplesrights.
As of Friday, $1,190 had been raised.