Gloria Allred: Octuplet Mom Created Dangerous Environment
Gloria Allred: Nadya Suleman is more interested in publicity than kids.
March 26, 2009— -- The attorney for a nursing group that was providing care to some of Nadya Suleman's octuplets said the California mother of 14 created a dangerous environment for her children.
Gloria Allred, the attorney for Angels in Waiting, a nonprofit group of nurses that helped care for Suleman's children, said during a news conference that Suleman appeared more interested in publicity than in caring for her children.
"The babies appear to be treated as props after their feeding. Nadya handed them off to the nurse, Linda, to be cared for while Nadya slept all night," Allred said.
Earlier this week, Suleman fired Angels in Waiting, accusing the group of being unprofessional, spying on her and reporting her to child welfare officials.
Jeff Czech, her attorney, said Suleman will have her nannies trained by nurses from the Kaiser Permanente Bellflower Medical Center, where the octuplets were born Jan. 26.
Four of the eight infants have been discharged from the hospital, according to Kaiser Permanente, and were brought home amid a throng of reporters and onlookers.
"There has not been a step down in care in this household," Czech said Wednesday on the "Dr. Phil Show." "Nadya is a very good mother, a very caring mother."
During a news conference late Wednesday, Czech criticized Allred, calling her a "big cause of the problem."
"She strolled up in her typical suit and briefcase in tow. She walked through all the paparazzi, she gathered up a storm, she stepped into the house and even more people showed up. And when she was asked to leave along with all the other unnecessary persons in the house, and she refused to leave," he said.
The news conferences followed an earlier appearance by Allred, Czech and Linda West-Conforti, the founder of Angels in Waiting, on the "Dr. Phil Show."
West-Conforti said on the show that Suleman did not care about her children, only voluntarily fed them when a film crew was there and spent too much time away from home.
"This woman does not care for these kids, that's my honest opinion," she said.
Last month, Allred asked child welfare officials to investigate whether Suleman could provide a suitable environment for her 14 children. Angels in Waiting also reportedly made three reports to child welfare officials.
A representative for the Orange County Division of Children and Family Services declined to comment, citing state privacy laws.
Czech told The Associated Press that the relationship started badly between Suleman and Angels in Waiting.
"It started out adversarial and never really resolved itself," he said. "Nadya felt that she was being judged wrongfully, and she didn't need it. All it did was make a difficult situation worse."
Record Octuplet Birth Sparks Controversy
When Suleman gave birth to the history-making octuplets in January, a string of controversies soon followed.
Days after news of the multiple birth spread from coast to coast, it came to light that the 33-year-old mother already had six children who were born, like the octuplets, through in vitro fertilization.
Suleman's mother, Angela Suleman, has been vocal about her disapproval.
"It can't go on any longer," she told the AP in January. "She's got six children and no husband. I was brought up the traditional way. I firmly believe in marriage. But she didn't want to get married."
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