Woman’s fight to have dead husband’s baby: ‘It’s what he would’ve wanted’

She’d just returned from the fertility specialist when she got the devastating news.

Jennifer Gaffney’s husband, Daniel (38), had suddenly died of a heart attack during a work trip to Australia’s Sunshine Coast.

So Jennifer, an anaesthetist from Queensland, Australia, immediately texted her specialist granting permission for Daniel’s sperm to be extracted and stored, writes ABC News.

Now, more than seven months after his death, the 35-year-old is fighting to gain access to his sperm so she can conceive a second child with her late husband.

“I’ve carefully considered this application to make sure that this isn’t made in response to my grief,” Jennifer wrote in an affidavit filed to the Supreme Court in Brisbane.

“I have firmly formed a view that not only is this what Dan would want, it’s what I want in his absence.”

She argued having another child would be of benefit to the couple’s toddler son, reports Daily Mail. “I also strongly believe that another child will be in the best interests of [our other child].”

After Jennifer’s text to her specialist requesting the sperm be harvested and stored, a Queensland coroner gave “verbal consent” for the sperm to be placed in storage for preservation, writes ABC News.

"We’ve been advised that [court action] is required in this case where the coroner's approval wasn’t reduced to writing within the required timeframe as set out under the relevant legislation," her lawyers said in correspondence submitted to the court.

Jennifer, who’d been with Daniel for 12 years, said while she was “acutely aware” being a single parent would be challenging, she was confident she had the necessary support to manage.

"The biggest reason I have for taking on this challenge is to provide [our son] with a sibling, as I know that it will provide him with the opportunity to form the same friendships and bonds that Dan and I formed and treasured with our own siblings," she wrote in her affidavit.

She added she has the full support of Daniel’s family.

SOURCES: ABC News, Daily Mail, YouTube/ CTV News