He had an estimated 94 children. Through a lawyer, Dr. Cline surrendered his medical license to the state last week, and a state medical board barred him from ever getting a license again. I want laws changed, I want medical professionals to be held accountable, Ms. Ballard said. John Groove has over 20 years of experience specializing in divorce and family law. Through 23andMe and other similar genetic testing websites, three dozen half siblings of those women have been found, said Jacoba Ballard, 38, one of the biological daughters. As a result, several of his patients went on to give birth to sons and daughters, believing their husbands or sperm donors were the biological father. As one person says in Our Father's trailer, "Dr. Cline was the best infertility doctor in Indianapolis." But this image of Cline was destroyed after an investigation found he had used his own sperm to inseminate his patients without their knowledge or consent dozens of times, resulting in his paternity of at least 50 children . I can emphatically say that at no time did I ever use How many children did Dr Donald Cline have? The office did not answer questions as to whether Dr. Cline had been investigated for fraud, but said that Dr. Cline was not being criminally investigated anymore. In 2014, when she was 35 years old, Jacoba took a 23AndMe DNA test and when her results came back as having seven half-siblings, she decided to investigate further. But Cline is now an octogenarian, and he had already retired before his license was taken away. Besides the two kids he had with his wife, Cline has illegitimately fathered at least 94 children, per the documentary. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. Newsweek has everything you need to know. And for the siblings too whose world has been turned upside down. In a recording of a conversation between investigators and Cline which plays out in Our Father, Cline can be heard stating there was no "sexual connotation" to his actions and he did not use his own semen in a "blas" way. Some have become friends and meet for coffee or lunch. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. In the wake of his double conviction, Donald was suspended from practicing medicine for a year and was ordered to pay a fine. The Time Ray Liotta Eviscerated Bradley Cooper. Ricou Browning cause of death: How did Ricou Browning die? Party Name. Hes not dead. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". This means that when assets are divided during the divorce process, the other spouse is legally entitled to half of the value , Admissibility of Recorded Conversations in California Typically, recorded conversations are inadmissible in court as hearsay. Indiana later became the first US state to make it a criminal offence for fertility doctors to use their own sperm without a patients consent. How do I get a copy of my Nebraska birth certificate? Jacoba Ballard in "Our Father." Attorney Generals Office. Dianna Kiesler and her daughter Julie Harmon in Our Father on Netflix, Dr. Donald Cline is Julie Harmon's biological father. Per The Atlantic, the Cline half-siblings now have to face the troubling realities of the situation: What if they accidentally dated their own half-sibling? His children frequently see each other on the street. According to the documentary, Cline may have fathered more than 94 children in the 1970s and 1980s. A Decades-Old Doctor's Secret Leads to New Fertility-Fraud Law. Many of them live within a tight radius of one another in Indiana, and unfortunately close to Cline. How many biological children did Dr. Donald Cline have? In his free time, he enjoys hiking and exploring the beautiful state of Maine. But when Jacoba Ballard, who knew shed been conceived via donor sperm, set out in 2014 to look into her own ancestry, she accidentally stumbled into his dark, deep secretand 94 and counting of her own half-siblings, also fathered by their mothers fertility doctor. His misconduct pertaining to his patients was chronicled extensively in the media. Ballard with her half-siblings, Heather Woock and Carrie Foster, worked with NPR to create a podcast about their lives, called Sick. A judge suspended the former doctor's sentence, though Cline did pay a $500 fine and court costs, which totaled $185. On May 11, 2022, the documentary Our Father dropped on Netflix, effectively horrifying viewers with the story of a fertility doctor who crossed roughly a million lines and ended up biologically fathering nearly 100 babies. Doctor Donald Cline's crimes were brought to light thanks to an investigation by FOX59's Angela Ganote. After receiving his law degree from the University of Maine School of Law, John started his career at a large law firm in Portland. Many of Cline's biological "children" including Jacoba Ballard reached out to . The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". The test showed that their family doctor, Dr. Cline was his biological doctor. Doctors often just chose other doctors they were friends with to be the sperm donors (via The Atlantic). She survives him, along with five daughters, Dr. Beth Klein, Geri Armine-Klein, Dr. As of the Our Father production, there are currently 94 Cline siblings however, its thought that there could be more. It does not store any personal data. The board also voted to prevent Cline from ever applying to have his license reinstated in the future. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. director Lucie Jourdan interviews many of Cline's biological children, . She found the first seven half-siblings after she used a DNA kit, but she suspected there was more to the story; not everyone has tested their genetic ancestry. Donald's fertility fraud continued for various years until police launched an investigation against him due to Jacoba Ballard searching for answers. Jacoba Ballard's earnest quest to find her half-siblings turned into . After she had made contact with her brothers and sisters, they delved deeper into their unusual family tree, unearthing a chilling connection between them and trusted fertility doctor and church elder Donald Cline. How Many Kids Does Donald Cline Have? He was ordered to pay a $500 fine but the one-year jail sentence against him was surprisingly suspended, due to the numerous letters the court . The accusations against He was fined $500, sentenced to a year of probation, and lost his medical license, although hed already been retired for nearly a decade. Dr. Donald Cline, 77, pleaded not guilty Monday to two By Quinci LeGardye. His wife's name is Susie and she has also received gynecological treatment from her husband Donald Cline. Cline was released on his own recognizance. If that figure was not haunting enough, at the end of Our Father on Netflix, a title card suggests this figure could be set to rise. At the same time, donors are respectful of the integrity of the family in which their offspring were raised. Further investigation on genetic testing websites showed DNA links to Dr. Clines relatives, according to the complaint. CBS Indianapolis affiliate WTTV reports that, according to court records, Cline said healso felt that he was helping women because they really wanted a baby.. Unbeknownst to Donald's patients, he used his own sperm to impregnate his clients, which resulted in him fathering dozens of children. "Our Father" is the haunting true-crime documentary on Netflix about disgraced fertility doctor Dr. Donald Cline. "It took a lot of guts and emotion for us to participate in this documentary," Heather tells WH. Im currently working with Ghanafuo.com as a writer. Dr. Donald Cline has been famous in the media as the fertility doctor who inseminated his sperm into several women without consent. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. "I called my mom and I was like, 'Mom, is it possible I have random siblings out there somewhere?'" It brings awareness on this huge platform," Jacoba says of the documentary. Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site! Peter Pogue, his lawyer, said Dr. Cline would continue to defend himself in the appropriate forums but declined to answer further questions. The Associated Press contributed to this report. At the time of his court case, Cline still lived in Indianapolis, as do children he had with his wife and many of those he fathered through insemination. Dr. Donald Cline inseminated dozens of women with his own sperm without their knowledge or consent during the 1970s and 1980s. Peaky Blinders's Cillian Murphy and his wife Yvonne McGuinness keep love life discreet, {{#media.media_details}} {{#media.focal_point}}. As of the time the Netflix doc ceased production, the number was nearly 100. Ill never have that.. In addition to Cline, the documentary claims, there are 44 other doctors who have used their own sperm to impregnate their patients; they, too, were discovered through at-home DNA testing. However, he quickly realized that his passion was for working with individuals going through the difficult process of divorce. Many decades later, Cline's numerous children are finally discovering the horror of just how many kids he actually fathered, reports Netflix. Why Trust Us? As a profession that was often quite secretive in the 1970s, lots of doctors specializing in infertility treatment didn't keep records of their patients. She was matched with seven half-siblings, instantly raising a red flag as the use of the same donor on more than three occasions went against best medical practices. The exact number is not known. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. What if their children then accidentally date their own relatives? These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Dr. Donald Cline is still living as a free man in Indianapolis, Indiana according to a 2019 report from The Atlantic. But it was not illegal then for a doctor to inseminate a patient with his own sperm, and the records needed to prove criminal deception had been destroyed. To two by Quinci LeGardye and he had already retired before his was. I get a copy of my Nebraska birth certificate the time the Netflix doc ceased,! Report from the Atlantic consent plugin the fertility doctor who inseminated his sperm into several women without consent GDPR consent... Of death: how did ricou Browning cause of death: how did ricou Browning cause of death how. Due to Jacoba Ballard & # x27 ; s biological & quot ; children & ;! Sperm into several women without consent children & quot ; children & ;... 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