The girl who was swapped at birth in a hospital and won a court order barring her biological parents from contacting her says she looks forward to a normal life of school and boys - but no children of her own.
Kimberly Mays, 14, responded Friday to comments by the attorney for her birth parents, Ernest and Regina Twigg, that even when she is an adult they will seek visitation rights to her children as the biological grandparents."I'm not going to have any kids," Kimberly said at a news conference. "I don't want them to go through what I went through."
The Twiggs have been pursuing Kimberly for five years, since the swap at a rural Florida hospital in 1978 came to light.
Circuit Judge Stephen Dakan ruled Wednesday that Bob Mays, who raised Kimberly since the swap, is the girl's legal father. Dakan said the Twiggs have no right to act as her parents or even visit her.
Describing her immediate reaction to the decision, Kimberly said, "I jumped up and down and yelled. I got goose bumps."
"It was a wonderful feeling," her father added, "almost like a cancer was removed from my body."
Kimberly, a blonde, bespectacled girl who wore a white dress and broad smile, thanked her father and his current wife, Darlena, for helping her during the tough times. The ninth-grader also talked about her plans.
"Going to school - boys," she said. "Going to the University of Florida, being a model, helping children."
As for the Twiggs, Kimberly said she just wants them to leave her alone. "I want to get on with my life," she said.
The Twiggs have promised to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, if necessary. Kimberly didn't talk about what would happen if the Twiggs win.
The case began when delivery identification tags were switched, sending Kimberly and another baby girl home with the wrong parents.