21 Children Taken Into Custody Amid Surrogacy Investigation in California

Twenty-one children are now in the custody of California’s child-welfare system as authorities investigate a disturbing case involving a Los Angeles-area couple suspected of misusing surrogacy arrangements.

Silvia Zhang, 38, and Guojun Xuan, 65, are believed to be the legal parents of the children, most of whom are between one and three years old.

The case came to light in May when a hospital reported that one of their infants had suffered a traumatic head injury, allegedly inflicted by a nanny. The baby was not taken to the hospital until two days after the incident, raising serious concerns about neglect.

Fifteen children were found living in the couple’s Arcadia mansion, and six more were later located elsewhere. Some surrogate mothers have since come forward, saying they were led to believe the couple only wanted one child to complete their family.

They did not know the couple owned a surrogacy agency or were arranging for numerous births simultaneously. Zhang reportedly presented birth certificates, some from outside California, listing her as the biological mother, but investigators are now questioning the authenticity of those documents. The FBI is also involved in the case.

This situation highlights several potential violations of the rights of the child, as outlined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. These include the right to protection from abuse and neglect, the right to health and medical care, and the right to identity.

The delay in seeking medical help for the injured infant points to a failure to provide basic healthcare. Questions around the legality and transparency of the surrogacy arrangements threaten the children’s right to identity and protection from exploitation.

Surrogates like Kayla Elliott from Texas say they were misled during the process and are now seeking legal custody of the children they birthed.

Elliott is currently raising funds to pursue legal action in hopes of being reunited with the baby she carried. Meanwhile, advocacy groups are calling for stricter oversight and clearer regulations around commercial surrogacy to prevent such cases in the future.

This case underscores the urgent need to protect children’s rights in the increasingly complex world of assisted reproduction and to ensure that vulnerable children are not treated as commodities in unregulated fertility arrangements.