Baby JJ, who spent the first 18 months of his life without any government paperwork to prove his existence, will finally get a birth certificate.
In a D.C. Superior Court virtual hearing Tuesday, Judge Darlene M. Soltys listened as JJ’s parents, Teresa and Jeff Williams, explained how something as simple as getting a birth certificate turned into a nearly two-year ordeal. During that time, city officials said the couple lacked enough evidence to demonstrate JJ was born to them at home. But in less than 10 minutes, Soltys declared that she believed the Williams family.
Soltys told them she would order the D.C. Vital Records Division to register JJ’s birth and issue a birth certificate.
“I’m convinced,” Soltys said. She added, “Thank you very much for all of your documentation, and I’m sorry that you got caught up in bureaucracy, but at least now we can solve your issue.”
The process of getting JJ a birth certificate was complicated by the way he was born: in an inflatable tub in the family’s Southwest Washington living room with no medical assistance. On that day in August 2022, the only people there were Teresa, Jeff and their daughter, Tamar. The family had decided on an unassisted home birth.
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When they applied for his birth certificate, the D.C. Health Department requested documentation, such as a signed statement from the health-care provider or medical institution that examined the baby at birth or a labor and delivery report. But that paperwork did not exist.
Sam Sewell, a licensed and certified professional midwife who has served clients across the D.C. region, previously told The Washington Post that the Williamses’ predicament is unsurprising.
In her experience, the process for obtaining a birth certificate is more straightforward and easier in Maryland and Virginia. D.C. Health argued that the agency has more flexible guidelines than surrounding jurisdictions, but Sewell said the District has a higher burden of proof and more paperwork for parents.
After their application was denied, the family’s only path forward was filing a petition in D.C. Superior Court. They enlisted the help of Melody Webb, an attorney and the executive director of Mother’s Outreach Network, a racial justice and anti-poverty organization, and it worked.
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The court’s decision comes less than three weeks after The Post chronicled the family’s struggle to obtain a birth certificate for their son.
When Soltys told the family her decision, Teresa beamed. Jeff, who was attending virtually from work, looked through his screen at his baby boy.
“He gave me a smile as if to say, ‘Thank you, Dad,’” Jeff said. “That’s all I needed.”
As soon as Teresa logged out of the virtual hearing, she lifted JJ up in the air and told him the news: “Hey! You’re getting a birth certificate!”
His “official” name — once he has documents — will be Jeff Niklaus Williams.
With a birth certificate, Teresa and Jeff can get JJ a Social Security number and a passport. They will no longer worry their family’s SNAP benefits will be revoked. And they’ll know that if they have to go to the hospital, they will have the papers to prove that JJ is theirs.
In her living room, with JJ and Tamar running around her, Teresa breathed a sigh of relief: “It’s finally over.”
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