A judge on Friday refused to order an emergency DNA test on Anna Nicole Smith’s body as part of a paternity suit involving her infant daughter, but he ordered that the body be preserved until a hearing Feb. 20, attorneys said. Two men are contesting the paternity of 5-month-old Dannielynn, and experts say the custody decision could determine the child’s inheritance. With major legal issues undecided, Smith’s legacy could take years to untangle and could leave the baby girl with millions of dollars or nothing at all. Larry Birkhead, a former boyfriend of Smith, claims he is the father. His attorney Debra Opri requested Friday’s hearing to ask the judge to order that DNA be immediately collected from the Smith, who died Thursday in Florida. "Nothing was granted. Nothing was denied," Opri said after the hearing. She said another hearing had been set for Feb. 20 and the judge had ordered Smith’s preserved until a decision was made. The DNA is needed to connect Smith with Dannielynn "so that no one can switch the babies," Opri said. She also asked the judge to take jurisdiction over the child, reported to be in the Bahamas with family friends of Smith, until her paternity is established. The judge did not rule. Attorney Howard K. Stern, Smith’s most recent companion, is listed on Dannielynn’s birth certificate as her father. If it is determined he is the biological father and if he was legally married to Smith — which has yet to be established — Stern, not Dannielynn, would likely inherit Smith’s estate, experts say. Ron Rale, an attorney for Anna Nicole Smith, decried the push for the test so soon after her death. "It is despicable that we would have an emergency notice and appear right now," Rale said. He said there was no urgency to deal with the issue because his client’s DNA would be irrelevant in determining who fathered the child.
AP
I just hope there is some way Dannielynn can have a normal life because her first 5 months have been anything but that.
