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In 2002, in the state of Washington, USA, a 26-year-old pregnant single mother of two, juggling unsteady jobs, was worried about how she would take care of her children with a third one on the way. To meet their needs, she decided to apply for welfare benefits. As part of the process, the State Prosecutor’s Office required her and her estranged boyfriend, Jamie Townsend—father of her children—to take a DNA test to prove parenthood and qualify for assistance.
What happened next changed her life forever.
One day in December 2002, she received a call from the Department of Social Services asking her to come in regarding her application. Thinking it was just a minor hurdle, she didn’t expect what came next.
She recalls, “I was taken to an office in the back and asked to sit. Everyone was silent, not saying a word. When they finally settled in, the officer asked me—‘Who are you?’ ‘Where is Lydia Fairchild?’ ‘Whose children are these?’ I laughed, thinking this was a joke.”
But it was no joke. The officers had serious allegations. They claimed that while Jamie’s DNA was a match, Lydia’s DNA did not match her children’s at all.
“I know I carried them. I delivered them. There’s no doubt about that. I’m so confused,” said Lydia. She was adamant that the DNA test was wrong. To rule out lab error, the family was tested three times. All three times, the results showed no genetic match between Lydia and her children.
Still, the officials stood by the results. “We have DNA proof that you are not the mother. If you claim otherwise, prove it in court. This could be a case of welfare fraud or child abduction,” the officers said.
Jamie Townsend, Lydia’s on-and-off boyfriend and father of the children, was just as shocked. “I’m truly confused. We don’t know what will happen. I’m worried the children will be taken away,” he said.
Her father, Rod Fairchild, was torn. “I fully trust my daughter, but I also believe that DNA tests can’t be wrong. I think they’re framing her for something she might have done in the past.”
Her mother, Carol, was utterly shocked when Lydia called to tell her the news. “At first, I thought she was joking. But then I heard her crying—I was stunned. How could this be? I was there when the babies were born. I know they’re her children.”
Lydia was charged with welfare fraud. Authorities suggested she was either raising someone else’s children or part of a surrogacy scheme. Prosecutors even pushed to place the children in foster care until a verdict was reached.
Lydia found support from her mother, Carol, who testified that she was present during all the deliveries, and from her obstetrician, Dr. Leonard Dreisbach, who confirmed in court that he had personally delivered Lydia’s children. Medical records and personal testimonies further backed her claim. Lydia initially represented herself in court, determined to fight.
But how could personal testimony stand against not one, but three separate DNA reports?
At this point, Lydia was nearing the end of her third pregnancy. The judge ordered a court-appointed official to be present as a witness during the birth and to collect DNA samples from both Lydia and the newborn immediately after delivery.
She gave birth to her third child, and the DNA results came in two weeks later—again, no match.
With the third test also coming back negative, suspicion deepened. Authorities now suspected Lydia was acting as a surrogate—a woman who carries a child genetically related to someone else.
Even though she carried and birthed the children, the DNA said otherwise. And no one—not even the lawyers—wanted to go up against the “foolproof” DNA test.
I knew I carried those kids. I birthed them. It felt like I was fighting the whole world and no one was listening to me.
Lydia Fairchild
When no lawyer was willing to represent her, attorney Alan Tindell stepped in. He had something on his mind—a strange case he’d read in the New England Journal of Medicine about a woman named Karen Keegan from Boston, Massachusetts.
Tindell believed Lydia’s case could be similar.
References:
1. The Case of Lydia Fairchild and Her Chimerism (2002). By Alexis Darby (Published: 2021-06-01) -https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/case-lydia-fairchild-and-her-chimerism-2002
2. She's Her Own Twin. By ABC News (August 15, 2006)- https://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/shes-twin/story?id=2315693
3. My Unborn Twin is the Mother of my Children | Chimera: The Twin Inside Me | Only Human - Documentary -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TH2qlVFvKvs
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