A childless couple, Amy and Scott Kehoe, used a sperm and egg donor as well as a surrogate named Shelly Baker to have a baby. Shelly gave birth to twins and awarded the Kehoes guardianship, but a month later, the surrogate mother reclaimed the babies. She maintains that Amy’s mental health and criminal record posed too much of a risk.

 

After Shelly's first appearance, the message boards and Dr. Phil's blog, Twitter and Facebook accounts were flooded with thousands of impassioned responses.

 

“Shelly’s excuses were lame, and she was an embarrassment on national TV,” wrote one viewer.

 

“Shelly and Paul are two of the most awful people I’ve ever seen,” another woman said.

 

Paul says he doesn't understand the backlash against his wife. “People on the message boards were portraying Shelly as being a monster,” he says. “We’re going back to Dr. Phil to set the record straight.”

 

Shelly says she was villified on surrogacy forums as well. “After I read some of the surrogates’ responses, all I could do was cry,” she recalls. “One surrogate stated she didn’t care if [the intended parents] were murderers or rapists. We’re doing a job, and we’re to give the babies to the couple. This is more than a job. There are children involved.”