Warning: If you haven't seen the documentary, this article contains spoilers and some material that may be upsetting. In a voiceover near the end, "Donald" says, "Was there a sexual connotation to it? While the story Our Father depicts is relatively unique, the violation of a persons ability to choose the circumstances under which they become pregnant, and the lack of legal protection of that ability, are not. In Our Father, a new Netflix documentary, director Lucie Jourdan interviews many of Cline's biological children, who describe both the trauma of discovering their hidden lineage and the. Unfortunately, the answer is as shocking as the documentary itself. Can you help? Nonetheless, Our Father doles out a stinging serving of Netflix justice, laying bare the renowned physician's practice of deceptively inseminating patients with his own sperm, the result being the birth of 94 children and counting. "This led to an identity crisis," Woock tells PEOPLE. Indiana women sue Netflix for outing them as disgraced Indy fertility doctor's 'secret children' Dr. Donald Cline inseminated dozens of women with his own sperm without their knowledge or consent during the 1970s and 1980s. Instead of destroying, you made me realize my self-worth, she says of the doctor in the film. Donald Cline: Netflix Doc Spotlights Fertility Doctor Who Used Own Sperm Crime How a Group of Siblings Uncovered a Fertility Doctor Who Was Serially Impregnating His Own Patients The sibling's. By the time the children of Clines former patients began to uncover the extent of his crimes in 2015, he was well into retirement, living in Indianapolis, Indiana. Directed by Lucie Jordan, 'Our Father' is a compelling true-crime documentary on Netflix. It just completely washes away your identity, Julie Harmon, another sibling, says. Lucie Jourdan makes her directorial documentary debut with the film, which comes from Netflix and Blumhouse Pictures. In 2018, Cline surrendered his license to the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana, who also voted to prohibit him from ever applying to reinstate his license again. It. Effect on Cline's patients and their children. Despite. . Her search led her to a shocking discovery. 2022-09-19 17:04:00 - Paris/France. The Netflix documentary follows the investigation into Dr. Donald Cline after it's uncovered that he inseminated patients with his sperm without her knowledge. As a result, it saw the former doctor fathering at least 50 children throughout the 1970s and '80s. Due to this fact, it preaches procreation and abstention from sterilization and contraception. Dr. Donald Cline is still living as a free man in Indianapolis, Indiana according to a 2019 report from The Atlantic. Cline committed rape, is a legal assertion that was not true, and I wasnt going to put it on paper with my signature, Tim Delaney, who was working in the prosecutors office in 2015, says in the film. "They tell us if they knew back then what they know nowCline would have been removed from his position of authority within the church," reported Fox59. He told us that he would match us with a donor that looked like my husband, said Pierce. Once upon a time, Dr. Donald Clinewho is exposed in the new Netflix documentary, Our Father, which began streaming todaywas considered to be one of the best fertility doctors in Indianapolis. Despite his later admittance and the scale of his actions, nailing down a route to prosecution is difficult. So, were just now finding out that Julie is not yours, Kiesler recalled. Our Father suggests Cline may have been motivated by ideology born of his affiliation with an extremist Christian sect called Quiverfull, which encourages followers to reproduce as prolifically as possible to meet Gods mandate to be fruitful and multiply, and install adherents in positions of power. It starts with Jacoba. The attorney general then conducted an independent DNA test. The lug nuts disappeared off Ballards car one day, she shares in the film. As for why he did what he did, no one knows for sure. She considers this adultery. I wasnt., I was raped 15 times and didnt even know it, former Cline patient Liz White says during her interview, a wrenching counterpoint. Netflix's latest true-crime documentary, "Our Father," centers on the fraudulent fertility practice of . Cline sibling Julie Harmon makes another wild connection, saying Quiverfull, at the time of the siblings' conception, focused on producing more members of the white race. (Alyssa Schukar) By the 1970s, hundreds of doctors were performing . No one in the office? The film explores the real-life story of the disgraced doctor, who . Cline was handed a one-year suspended sentence for the two counts of obstruction of justice, and because state law hadn't specifically prohibited fertility doctors from using their own sperm, no other charges were brought against him. When Will 'Jesus Revolution' Movie Be Streaming? Still, for three decades, Cline helped hundreds of parents who had problems conceiving get pregnant. In 1979, Cline opened his clinic on 2020 West 86th Street in Indianapolis and specialized in reproductive endocrinology & infertility. Jacoba Ballards life changed after she took an at-home DNA test and learned she had seven half-siblings. This is a big one, and the documentary doesn't provide a definitive answer. [2]. The new documentary from the streaming service giant centres around Dr. Donald Cline, a fertility doctor who secretly used his own sperm when inseminating his IVF patients. The interesting documentary film is bound to raise many questions in the viewer's mind regarding Dr. Donald Cline's religious beliefs and the motives behind his heinous actions. After reaching out to her newfound family members and researching the mystery of their shared relation, Ballard and her siblings soon discovered with horror what their parents trusted doctor had done. In Our Father, Ballard draws a link between Cline and Quiverfull, but it's not a strong one. The idea's name originates from Psalm 127, "Children are a heritage of the Lord, and fruit of the womb is his . 215 became effective July 1, 2019. The horrifying documentary focuses on Donald Cline, a fertility doctor who secretly used his own sperm to inseminate dozens of patients in Indianapolis in the '70s and '80s and how his actions upended the lives of his biological children. Jacoba Ballard in Our Father. Cline opened a fertility clinic in Indiana in 1979 and secretly used his own sperm to impregnate women who visited him for artificial insemination, claiming the donations were from medical residents. Cline, who was retired and in his early 80s, was charged with two counts of felony . In 2017, Cline was convicted on two felony counts for obstructing the state attorney general's investigation into the matter. "[13], After a story aired on Fox59, Cline left a voicemail for Ballard contradicting what he had told investigators. He didnt give me a choice.. For Allison Kramer, 47, who also has health issues, it took a long time to accept that she and her twin sister were Clines children. I mean, here she was, this young woman just wanting to have a family like anyone else., In the film, Liz says when she learned that her son shared Clines DNA she felt like I was raped 15 times and I didnt even know it.. His practice was located in Indianapolis, where several patients would consult him regarding . 968, This story has been shared 854 times. Its almost like were like this perfect Aryan clan Most of us have blond hair and blue eyes.. It reads: Establishes a cause of action for civil fertility fraud and provides that a prevailing plaintiff may be awarded: (1) compensatory and punitive damages; or (2) liquidated damages of $10,000. The filmmakers behind Our Father, including director/producer Lucie Jourdan, say they were moved to tell the story of the siblings and their parents in order to help them condemn Clines actions to a broad audience when it became clear the court had failed. Over the next eight years, she found a staggering 94 (and counting) fair-haired brothers and sisters and one man at the root of their sordid family tree. Donald Cline's fertility fraud is the subject of a Netflix documentary titled Our Father which premiered in May 2022. So where is Dr. Don Cline now? Fox59 anchor Angela Ganote investigated her story. Even after taking a 23andMe DNA test and being matched as Ballards half sibling, Kramer couldnt bring herself to believe that she was not the biological daughter of the man she grew up believing was her father, Clines pal Farber. However, it turned out he had a sickening secret. I only donated my own sample nine or 10 times," he said. Quinci LeGardye is a Contributing Culture Editor who covers TV, movies, Korean entertainment, books, and pop culture. From the 1970s through the 1990s, Donald Cline was a renowned fertility specialist in Indiana. The more we destigmatize infertility, combined with technological advances, the less likely it is for a doctor to do this again today.". Magazines, Digital This seems relevant to this article about the life of Don Cline. Dr. Donald Cline has been famous in the media as the fertility doctor who inseminated his sperm into several women without consent. Pierce, along with the nurses and doctors on Clines staff, was under the impression that each donors specimen would only be used a maximum of three times. At the end, it's revealed that there are at least 94 Cline siblings. Hes an elder of the church.. We educated Indianas legislators, got our bill passed, and not going to stop.. [7][8] Cline is now known to have covertly fathered at least 94 offspring. 1,222, This story has been shared 1,076 times. With the growing popularity of at-home DNA test kits, an additional 44 fertility doctors nationwide have also been exposed for committing similar misdeeds. There's no hiding.". An only child who was donor-conceived, she was always curious about whether she had any half siblings. Although devastating, heartbreaking, and unnerving, Our Father . Read on to find out. Dr. Donald Cline As shown in the " Our Father " documentary released in May, Cline was proven to have secretly used his sperm to impregnate dozens of patients at his fertility clinic . The doctor's actions were revealed by one of his children, Jacoba Ballard. "[16], As of May 2022, Cline had paid out more than $1.35 million to settle three civil lawsuits filed by donor children and families. "He's. Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. Following his felony conviction in 2018, Cline surrendered his medical license. In 2017, Dr. Cline pleaded guilty to two felony obstruction of justice charges after falsely denying to state investigators that he had been using his own sperm to inseminate patients. Three more are pending.[9]. The film also shows Ballard explaining how she learned about the Quiverfull movement. Netflix's bombshell new documentary, Our Father, which premiered on May 11, 2022, reveals chilling details about a once renowned fertility doctor, Donald Cline, from Indianapolis. 2023 TIME USA, LLC. Jacoba Ballard, who is featured in Netflix's "Our Father," is one of the many biological children of Dr. Donald Cline, a former fertility doctor who used his own semen to impregnate patients without their knowledge. I dont deny that it was a sexual violation, a talking head states in the trailer. Jacoba Ballard's earnest quest to find her half-siblings turned into . They had hoped an investigation into his medical practices would yield sufficient evidence to bring charges of rape. Another points out the consistency of their shared traits: blond hair and blue eyes, adding: Its almost like this perfect Aryan clan.. Jacoba who felt she didn't belong in her family took a DNA test at the age of 33 in 2014. 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