unwilling dads

From http://www.mlive.com/news/saginawnews/index.ssf?/base/news-24/1189333339167600.xml&coll=9

AMY PAYNE
THE SAGINAW NEWS

The case nicknamed "the Roe vs. Wade for Men" is heading to the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Saginaw Township resident Matt Dubay, a 26-year-old computer programmer for Yeo & Yeo Computer Consulting, sued his his former girlfriend, Lauren Wells, in March 2006 to try to avoid paying child support, saying Wells knew he did not want a child and had assured him that she could not get pregnant.

U.S. District Judge David M. Lawson threw out the case in July 2006, calling it "frivolous" and ruled that Dubay must continue to pay $500 a month for child support.

Dubay is appealing the ruling. Oral arguments will begin at 1:30 p.m. Monday before the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.

The Saginaw News could not reach Dubay or Wells for comment Saturday.

Dubay's Southfield-based attorney, Jeffery A. Cojocar, has said he intends to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, if necessary.

If a pregnant woman can opt out of motherhood through abortion or adoption, a man who causes an unintended pregnancy should have the choice of declining the financial burden of fatherhood, Dubay has said, leading the Long Island, N.Y.-based National Center for Men to dub the lawsuit "the Roe vs. Wade for Men," referring to the 1973 case that legalized abortion.

State courts have ruled that society's interest in ensuring that children receive financial support from two parents outweighs any inequity men might face.

The suit, originally filed in U.S. District Court in Bay City, also names Saginaw County Prosecutor Michael D. Thomas and State Attorney Mike Cox as defendants, as Dubay has claimed Thomas and Cox are upholding a paternity law that is unconstitutional because it requires the father to pay child support even if he did not want the child to be born.

Wells, also a Saginaw Township resident, is raising their 2-year-old daughter, Elisabeth, while working and attending school.

The case gathered national media attention and generated vigorous discussion on the Internet. Phil McGraw -- better known as television psychologist Dr. Phil -- hosted Dubay on his nationally syndicated show in April 2006. McGraw said the problem stems from "young people having sex in uncommitted relationships, where these things haven't been discussed in advance."

So, they knew he didn't want kids, but he apparently didn't do anything to protect from that risk? Two words - Condom or Vasectomy! Otherwise, you play you pay!