A 28-year-old woman from Yonkers has taken the bold step of filing a federal lawsuit against DNA Diagnostics Center and Winn Health Labs. Her claim is rooted in the devastating consequences of a faulty paternity test, which she alleges led her to terminate her pregnancy and ultimately resulted in the end of her engagement. In a heartbreaking interview with The New York Post, the woman, who has chosen to remain anonymous, expressed her anguish, stating, My daughter would have been born on the 17th of April These results were the reason why I decided to do what I did.

The series of events began when the woman and her fianc, who had been attempting to conceive for some time, found their relationship strained due to the pressures surrounding fertility issues. Last summer, during a brief separation, she had a single encounter with another man, although she insists that they took precautions to prevent pregnancy. When she later discovered she was pregnant, she felt confident that her fianc was the father of her child.

To eliminate any potential doubts about paternity, the woman discreetly arranged for testing with her former partner. After spending over $1,000 on two inconclusive tests, she sought assistance from DNA Diagnostics Center, a company that touts itself as a global leader in DNA testing. She provided samples at Winn Health Labs, a facility that also functions as a beauty salon, raising serious questions about professionalism, privacy, and the overall environment in which such sensitive tests are conducted.

Craig Phemister, her lawyer, highlighted these concerns, stating, If youre going in to ask for a paternity test, you dont want to do that in front of people getting their hair done. Eventually, the results arrived on Halloween 2024, revealing a chilling 99.99% probability that the other man was indeed the father. Faced with the impending 24-week abortion limit in New York, the woman made the heart-wrenching decision to terminate the pregnancy. I decided to save my marriage, she explained. I thought this was one hundred percent true, she added in her emotional revelation.

However, four months later, on Valentines Day, the shock continued when DNA Diagnostics Center called with the distressing news that there had been an IT error, and the man previously identified as the father was not biologically related to the unborn child. The corrected report indicated a 0% match. By this time, the emotional repercussions were irreparable. Her fianc, devastated by the initial test results and the subsequent decision to terminate the pregnancy, ended their relationship shortly after the results were corrected. You took away the family I could have had, she lamented. The reason I took action was because I believed in these results, she added, reflecting on the deep impact of the situation.

In a statement regarding the incident, DNA Diagnostics Center declined to clarify how the error occurred but emphasized their commitment to maintaining rigorous quality control standards. If any concern is raised, we take immediate action to validate the results and notify customers of any issues, the company asserted.

This is not the first time that DNA Diagnostics Center has faced scrutiny for its testing accuracy. Back in 2018, a Connecticut man named Joel Santiago was incorrectly informed that he was not the father of his daughter, a mistake that was rectified 18 months later. Santiago successfully sued DNA Diagnostics and was awarded a staggering $2.5 million for the emotional distress caused by the labs errors.

Phemister argues that the implications of such errors extend far beyond individual cases. He warned, The same DNA labs are doing testing relied on by court systems. If they make errors and then not discover those errors for months or years, peoples lives are devastated. Now in therapy to cope with the emotional aftermath, the Yonkers woman hopes that her story will raise awareness and prompt accountability within the industry. How many other people did it happen to? she questioned, illustrating her concern for others who may have suffered similarly.