Dateline - Kimberly Mays - Switched at Birth

Houstonoilers · ‎01-07-2018

It appears from the content of the show that these two infants were deliberately switched by hospital personnel with the involvement of the family doctor and the mother of the sick infant who was replaced wtih a healthy child - how shameful.

4kitties · ‎03-09-2010

I had forgotten about this story and watched 20/20 last night. It just broke my heart. Kimberly Mays and both of the families have suffered so much from this "switch".

“I heard the sound I had to follow”
In Your Wildest Dreams by Justin Hayward

patbz · ‎03-10-2010

This was a very sad story. Imagine that hospital personnel (whoever they were) took it into their own hands to deliberately switch these babies because (they thought) one family was more deserving than the other. What a mess! I kept thinking this could be avoided now by matching DNA between family and baby during discharge.

PhilaLady1 · ‎03-11-2010

I can't help but think that there was money involved. In my opinion, to believe that the doctor, nurses, or aides, just decided on their own to switch the babies is naive, IMO. Mr. May's first wife, the biological mother, came from a financially well-off and prominent family. Somebody paid to have this done. I hope Kimberly has found some peace;given all that she has been through.

ann1989 · ‎02-24-2019

What I find especially awful is that both sets of parents received over 5 million dollars in a settlement from the hospital yet apparently Kimberely didn't get any of that money because she ended up working for a strip club after getting married and having 6 kids, I believe. I don't remember if her marriage stalled but in any case, she was coerced by her father to tell the court she wanted nothing to do with her biological parents and siblings only to later regret it. Her life ended up a total disaster. Her life was ruined and so unfair that everyone else got wealthy. When they showed her as an adult she was no longer the cute girl with shiny blonde hair and a beautiful complexion, far from it sadly.

sunshine 919 · ‎12-22-2013

@ann1989 wrote:
What I find especially awful is that both sets of parents received over 5 million dollars in a settlement from the hospital yet apparently Kimberely didn't get any of that money because she ended up working for a strip club after getting married and having 6 kids, I believe. I don't remember if her marriage stalled but in any case, she was coerced by her father to tell the court she wanted nothing to do with her biological parents and siblings only to later regret it. Her life ended up a total disaster. Her life was ruined and so unfair that everyone else got wealthy. When they showed her as an adult she was no longer the cute girl with shiny blonde hair and a beautiful complexion, far from it sadly.

I remember this story. The show last night showed that their was more to this story. For instance I was under the impression that the bio baby died as an infant. I was not aware that the twigs had raised the little girl. I believe as well that someone got paid for changing the I D info on those babies. The Mays did have money. I didn't understand when the Mays were divorced how did Mr. Mays get custody. It is truly sad that Kimberly Mays has had such a sad life. Why didn't she get any money something is so night right about this story. Why is she not communicating with bio family. Sometimes during her Barbara Walters special she really seemed ot of it. She went through so much.

It is so odd that looks so happy in pictures with her dad and the twigs. It is hard to know what was going on. She divorced her parents and weeks later she wants to move in with them and then leaves. I guess she should have been in counseling with both sets of parents. Not sure she ever had anyone to talk to.

Moonlady · ‎03-10-2010

Anyone who was under the impression that the biological Mays baby died, never followed the original account(s). It was common knowledge, and reported, that the Twiggs had raised, cared for, saw her (Arlena) through her illnesses, etc., until she died at 9 years of age. That wasn't new information disclosed on Friday's special.

Also, Kimberly Mays DID, in fact, receive a settlement from the hospital--also reported at the time. The poster's assertion that she didn't get a settlement because she'd worked as a stripper is, at best, backwards. She worked as a stripper because she blew through the settlement, having "sold" her monthly annuity payments to one of those companies. (It was HER money and she wanted it THEN lol.) Of course, the company gets "theirs" before they turn over a lump of cash.

The Twiggs, instead, settled for a lump sum, while the bulk of the Robert and Kimberly Mays settlement was in the form of annuities purchased by the hospital.

As for her "marriage," Kimberly Mays has had 6 kids by 4 different men, one of whom was imprisoned for child molestation.

The only certainty in this sordid case, is that someone at the hospital switched those babies. Sadly, that had terrible ramifications for the Twiggs who, in effect, lost two children, and Kimberly who, as someone mentioned, really grew up without a mother.

The pain they have cost us, the evils that never happened.

mousiegirl · ‎03-09-2010

@ann1989 wrote:
What I find especially awful is that both sets of parents received over 5 million dollars in a settlement from the hospital yet apparently Kimberely didn't get any of that money because she ended up working for a strip club after getting married and having 6 kids, I believe. I don't remember if her marriage stalled but in any case, she was coerced by her father to tell the court she wanted nothing to do with her biological parents and siblings only to later regret it. Her life ended up a total disaster. Her life was ruined and so unfair that everyone else got wealthy. When they showed her as an adult she was no longer the cute girl with shiny blonde hair and a beautiful complexion, far from it sadly.

@ann1989 Kimberly did get money from a suit and spent it all, which is why she chose to strip.

mousiegirl · ‎03-09-2010

@sunshine 919 wrote:
@ann1989 wrote:
What I find especially awful is that both sets of parents received over 5 million dollars in a settlement from the hospital yet apparently Kimberely didn't get any of that money because she ended up working for a strip club after getting married and having 6 kids, I believe. I don't remember if her marriage stalled but in any case, she was coerced by her father to tell the court she wanted nothing to do with her biological parents and siblings only to later regret it. Her life ended up a total disaster. Her life was ruined and so unfair that everyone else got wealthy. When they showed her as an adult she was no longer the cute girl with shiny blonde hair and a beautiful complexion, far from it sadly.
I remember this story. The show last night showed that their was more to this story. For instance I was under the impression that the bio baby died as an infant. I was not aware that the twigs had raised the little girl. I believe as well that someone got paid for changing the I D info on those babies. The Mays did have money. I didn't understand when the Mays were divorced how did Mr. Mays get custody. It is truly sad that Kimberly Mays has had such a sad life. Why didn't she get any money something is so night right about this story. Why is she not communicating with bio family. Sometimes during her Barbara Walters special she really seemed ot of it. She went through so much.
It is so odd that looks so happy in pictures with her dad and the twigs. It is hard to know what was going on. She divorced her parents and weeks later she wants to move in with them and then leaves. I guess she should have been in counseling with both sets of parents. Not sure she ever had anyone to talk to.

@sunshine 919 Bob Mayes' wife died before the diovorce, I believe, or she was dying so would not get custody.

mousiegirl · ‎03-09-2010

@Moonlady wrote:
Anyone who was under the impression that the biological Mays baby died, never followed the original account(s). It was common knowledge, and reported, that the Twiggs had raised, cared for, saw her (Arlena) through her illnesses, etc., until she died at 9 years of age. That wasn't new information disclosed on Friday's special.

Also, Kimberly Mays DID, in fact, receive a settlement from the hospital--also reported at the time. The poster's assertion that she didn't get a settlement because she'd worked as a stripper is, at best, backwards. She worked as a stripper because she blew through the settlement, having "sold" her monthly annuity payments to one of those companies. (It was HER money and she wanted it THEN lol.) Of course, the company gets "theirs" before they turn over a lump of cash.

The Twiggs, instead, settled for a lump sum, while the bulk of the Robert and Kimberly Mays settlement was in the form of annuities purchased by the hospital.

As for her "marriage," Kimberly Mays has had 6 kids by 4 different men, one of whom was imprisoned for child molestation.

The only certainty in this sordid case, is that someone at the hospital switched those babies. Sadly, that had terrible ramifications for the Twiggs who, in effect, lost two children, and Kimberly who, as someone mentioned, really grew up without a mother.

@Moonlady It was stated in the show that Arlena died at age thirteen, I believe..