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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 21 May 2019

Judge: Parents of dead West

Point cadet can use his sperm

WEST POINT, N.Y. (AP) —
The parents of a 21-year-
old West Point cadet fatally
injured in a skiing accident
can use his frozen sperm to
produce a child, a judge
This image made from video provided by KWTV-KOTV shows two ruled while noting potential
funnel clouds formed in Crescent, Okla., Monday, May 20, 2019. ethical considerations.
Associated Press Supreme Court Justice
Dangerous storm John Colangelo's ruling,
dated Thursday, gives Peter
Zhu's parents the ability to
sweeps Southern Plains, attempt conception with
a surrogate mother using
spawning tornadoes their late son's sperm. The
judge said Zhu's parents
have not decided whether
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — but the livestock survived. they will try to use it."At this
An intense storm system "The pigs are walking time, the court will place
that weather forecasters around wondering what no restrictions on the use to
labeled "particularly dan- happened to their house," which Peter's parents may
gerous" swept through the she said. Emergency of- ultimately put their son's
Southern Plains Monday, ficials reported a tornado sperm, including its poten-
spawning a few tornadoes near Lucien, in northern tial use for procreative pur-
that caused some dam- Oklahoma, severely dam- poses," Colangelo wrote.
age and a deluge of rain aging a house and de- Zhu, of Concord, California,
but no reports of injuries. stroying a barn. One storm died after a ski accident in In this undated photo provided by the United States Military
The National Weather cell near Crescent, 32 miles February at West Point. His Academy at West Point, N.Y., USMA cadet Peter L. Zhu is shown.
Service had warned that north of Oklahoma City, parents received court per- Associated Press
Monday evening could spawned twin tornadoes. mission to have his sperm
bring perilous weather to a Earlier Monday, school retrieved and frozen at the right to destroy his frozen freak accident," she said.
large swath of western Tex- districts in Oklahoma City, same time he underwent sperm in light of his written "Our pain is something that
as, most of Oklahoma and nearby Norman and else- organ donation surgery, intent that it be stored for no words can describe."
southern Kansas. The storm where in Oklahoma can- but the judge waited until possible future use by his And while Colangelo left
was expected to move celed classes with fore- last week to rule on wheth- longtime girlfriend. the decision of what to do
later Monday into western casts of hail and wind gusts er they could attempt re- Zhu left no written intention with Zhu's sperm up to his
Arkansas. of up to 80 mph (128 kph). production. The sperm is regarding the use of his ge- family, he noted there may
As predicted, some torna- A flood watch was in ef- preserved at a sperm bank. netic material for procre- be other obstacles includ-
does were reported early fect for the greater Okla- Colangelo said he found ation after his death, Colan- ing reluctance of some
Monday evening, although homa City region. Schools no restrictions in state or gelo said. But he said Zhu's doctors to assist for ethical
they were in sparsely pop- in Abilene and elsewhere federal law. He noted that parents testified regarding reasons.
ulated areas. Oklahoma in West Texas sent students few courts have addressed conversations where he Typically, court cases in-
residents were on alert as home early. the issue of posthumous re- talked of his dream of hav- volving posthumous repro-
Monday is the sixth anniver- Tinker Air Force Base near production, but those who ing several children and duction are filed by surviv-
sary of a massive tornado in Oklahoma City moved sev- have addressed it used the the responsibility he felt to ing spouses, not parents.
Moore, south of Oklahoma eral planes to other military decedent's intent as a de- carry on his cultural and But Zhu's case isn't unprec-
City, that killed 24 people. installations in anticipation ciding factor. He cited a family legacy. Zhu's military edented. In 2007, a court in
A tornado struck western of storm damage. Mean- 2008 case where a court advisor at West Point also Iowa authorized recovery
and northern portions of the while, state workers in sev- ordered destruction of a testified that Zhu had stat- of a man's sperm by his par-
southwestern Oklahoma eral Oklahoma counties man's sperm according to ed a goal of having several ents to donate to his fiance
town of Mangum on Mon- were sent home early. his written request during children during mentoring for future procreative use.
day afternoon. Glynadee Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt his lifetime, despite his wid- sessions. In 2009, a Texas woman
Edwards, the Greer County said in a statement that the ow's claim to the sperm as Monica Minzhi Yao, Zhu's got a judge's permission to
emergency management state emergency opera- her property. mother, said Monday that have her 21-year-old son's
director, says some homes tions center was activated He also cited a 1993 case the family wants privacy sperm extracted after his
incurred roof damage and and urged motorists not to where a court held that a and will not comment on death, with the intention of
the high school's agricul- drive around barricades or dead man's estate repre- the case. "We are extreme- hiring a surrogate mother
ture barn was destroyed, into flooded roadways.q sentative didn't have the ly devastated over this to bear her a grandchild.q