Two North Dakota families have filed a lawsuit against Unity Medical Center, alleging that their newborn sons were switched at birth nearly 40 years ago.
The complaint, filed by Kyle Bylin and Jeremy Morrison, states they were the only infants born at the facility within hours of each other on January 28, 1988.
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Hospital staff allegedly mistakenly switched the babies before discharge, causing each to be raised by the other's biological parents.
The discovery came when Bylin took an at-home DNA test during a Christmas gift exchange, which linked him to a biological aunt on a genealogy platform.
Morrison then took his own test, confirming the switch.
The lawsuit targets the hospital for the decades-old error, noting the employment status of the personnel involved at the time.
The complaint says employees who switched the newborns and failed to correct the mistake were acting within their scope of employment.
Unity Medical Center has denied legal responsibility, citing a lack of current evidence, though it does not dispute that a switch occurred.
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The hospital acknowledged the profound impact on the families but noted that nearly 40 years have passed, relevant records no longer exist, and no original delivery team members remain employed there.
Evelyn Newton, who raised Bylin, expressed deep sadness over missing milestones in her biological child's life.
“I feel robbed of the life I should have had with my biological son. You can’t go back and replace 35 years,” she told the Associated Press.
Bylin still possesses the original hospital bracelet that mistakenly identified him. Both men have met their biological parents, describing the meetings as welcoming but awkward.
“We’ve tried to unite as a group and just recognize that no matter what, there’s different ways that this can be socially messy,” Bylin told ABC.
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According to the DNA Diagnostics Center, up to 18 babies a year may go home with the wrong families, though most cases are caught immediately.
