{"id":38930,"date":"2026-08-11T16:59:56","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T11:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=38930"},"modified":"2026-08-11T16:59:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T11:59:56","slug":"such-a-betrayal-of-trust","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=38930","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Such a betrayal of trust &#8216;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F08%2F137067957.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>A mother got a shocking surprise when a DNA test revealed her son had nine half-siblings, all of whom were genetically connected to her former gynecologist.<\/p>\n<p>Mary Ellen Lukezich sought fertility treatments from Dr. Frederick Dettmann in the early 1980s with her late husband, Thomas Laedtke, after the couple had trouble conceiving a child of their own, ultimately deciding to undergo artificial insemination.<\/p>\n<p>Lukezich recalled Dettmann suggested using a medical student\u2019s donated sperm, owing to the fact that he lived out of state and matched her and her husband\u2019s appearance, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/us-news\/family-alleges-ob-gyn-used-sperm-insemination-instead-agreed-donors-rcna349498\">NBC News<\/a>. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Joseph and Mary Ellen Laedtke discovered through a December 2024 DNA test that he has nine half-siblings who trace back to his mother\u2019s former fertility doctor, Dr. Frederick Dettmann.  <span class=\"credit\">Courtesy Laedtke family<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"anchor-80f77f\">\u201cI was young,\u201d said Lukezich, who is suing the doc. \u201cI so wanted to be a mom that I was going to do anything, and I did whatever he asked me to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She became pregnant and gave birth to her only son, Joe Laedtke, now 43, who took an Ancestry DNA test in December 2024 out of curiosity \u2014 only to find the disturbing and unexpected results.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The family filed suit against Dettmann last week, their lawyer, Al Foeckler, calling the now-retired doctor \u201ca serial predator of women.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">TMJ4<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI got an email from Ancestry, which is the company that I ordered the DNA test from, that I had a half-sister,\u201d Laedtke said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd so when I went into my DNA results and the relationships, I had noticed that there was multiple half-siblings that it had suggested that I was related to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Laedtke only learned he had been conceived from donor sperm when he called his mother with the news. She was stunned to learn that the results indicated Dettman was the donor, Laedtke said he felt \u201cdisgust and disappointment\u201d about the apparent egregious breach of trust by his mother\u2019s doctor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat he did was incomprehensible, and it was such a betrayal of trust that I just want to make sure that if I have the opportunity to hold him accountable for the pain that he caused my mom and the things that he put her through that maybe she didn\u2019t even know at the time,\u201d he told the outlet.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Family sues former OB-GYN, alleging he used his own sperm to impregnate patient\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FV_Rn9FX76s?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI feel like I\u2019ve been raped,\u201d Lukezich said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s not right. And I want other women to feel OK about coming forward with this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Last week <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tmj4.com\/news\/local-news\/in-your-community\/milwaukee-county\/milwaukee-family-sues-former-ob-gyn-alleging-he-used-his-own-sperm-to-impregnate-patient\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the family filed suit against Dettmann<\/a>, and their attorney, Al Foeckler, said numerous women have reached out to him since they disclosed their unusual situation, saying they had problematic interactions of their own with Dettmann dating back to the 1970s.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s encouraging other women who may have been impacted to come forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is no question in my mind that this man was a serial predator of women,\u201d Foeckler told NBC News.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Mary Ellen Lukezich and her late husband, Thomas Laedtke (right) sought fertility treatment in the early 1980s after being unable to conceive on their own. <span class=\"credit\">Courtesy Laedtke family<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The suit does not seek a specific amount of damages and is instead requesting a court determine the amount at the trial.<\/p>\n<p>Dettmann, 91, retired in the 1990s and now lives in Arizona.<\/p>\n<p>His attorney, Sean Gaynor, said in a statement that the former clinician knows of the allegations but is unable to address them because of privacy laws.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe events referenced are alleged to have occurred almost 50 years ago,\u201d Gaynor said. \u201cDr. Dettmann has no independent recollection of the individuals making these allegations and is unaware of any evidence supporting the claims being asserted,\u201d Gaynor told the outlet.<\/p>\n<p>A report filed by the husband of one of Dettmann\u2019s patients in 1985 alleging he had assaulted his wife during a gynecological exam in Wisconsin, however the doctor denied the allegations and the charges were later dismissed because it was \u201ctoo difficult\u201d to prove he had acted inappropriately.<\/p>\n<p>Records show the complaint was reported to the medical licensing board but closed in 1986 after a vote and consideration of the facts.<\/p>\n<p>Whitefish Bay Police Chief Patrick Whitaker told the outlet that any case records would have been destroyed due to the state\u2019s retention laws, and that there is no open investigation into Dettmann with the department.<\/p>\n<p>Gaynor pointed out that Dettmann was \u201cnever sued, disciplined, investigated, had his licensure challenged nor were there any ethical complaints made against him.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A mother got a shocking surprise when a DNA test revealed her son had nine half-siblings, all of whom were genetically connected to her former gynecologist. Mary Ellen Lukezich sought fertility treatments from Dr. Frederick Dettmann in the early 1980s with her late husband, Thomas Laedtke, after the couple had trouble conceiving a child of&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":38931,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/137067957.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38930","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38930","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38930"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38930\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/38931"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}