Karen Banks, 33, is taking a local Chevron Gas Station in Park City, Utah to Civil court this week in an effort to prove to her husband she did not commit infidelity. Mrs. Banks claims the uncleaned public toilet seat at the gas station caused her to become pregnant. Which in turn lead to the demise of her marriage.
Mrs. Banks is suing her husband for defamation and for unlawful divorce. Mrs. Banks and her lawyer are hoping a testimony from the gas station clerk will alleviate suspicions of infidelity. The judge has already noted in the preliminary hearing he was not impressed by the case presented by Mrs. Banks’ lawyers.
Quick Background
Banks and her husband had just had a child back in September. At a gathering in June, a medical professional and family friend apparently mentioned how improbable the eye color was for the child given the eyes of the two parents.
This immediately sent Karen’s husband into a sense of doubt. According to statements he already had prior suspicions of multiple affairs.
The husband of Karen Banks took a paternity test and within 9 hours it was determined he was without a doubt not the father of the child.
He has had documents presented to the court hinting at multiple affairs. The Judge declared Karen Banks the adulterer (thus making her name public), and allowed the divorce to go through on the basis of infidelity.
Infidelity Is A Legal Matter?
In Utah, apparently it is a big one. And without evidence of an affair it can be tough to finish a divorce.
As a divorce lawyer, I’m regularly asked about how adultery affects divorce. In Utah, adultery (infidelity) is one of the statutory grounds for divorce. Incompatibility, gross neglect of duty, extreme cruelty, and habitual drunkenness are also grounds for divorce in Utah. None of these grounds are more legally significant than any of the others – they will all suffice to allow the court to find that there are grounds to terminate the marriage. – Ascent Law
The Legal Strategy For Mrs. Banks
Karen Banks maintains her husband is fabricating the entire story to get out of raising the child. Mrs. Banks and her lawyer are demanding that Mr. Banks retake the test.
Karen Banks believes she accidentally conceived the child of a stranger off a stray sperm cell on a Chevron gas station. She claims to have used the men’s bathroom that day.
Mrs. Banks legal team claims they have video footage proving she did in fact enter the men’s room at Chevron around the time of conception.
They also have a gas station attendee who is willing to testify that the toilet rims were not regularly cleaned. Got to be careful out there…
“It is soul crushing.” Karen Banks explained to a Today’s Five reporter. “To find out that you had conceived the child of a stranger in a gas station by accident is horrific to me, but instead of compassion I have been given a ‘scarlett letter’ in the town that used to respect me. I will not stand for this.”
Can A Public Toilet Seat Actually Get You Pregnant
Short answer: Yes, but it is unlikely.
“Although it is extremely unlikely that a woman could get pregnant from a public toilet seat, the possibility exists. Sperm is alive as long as it is moist. Once it dries up, it is no longer a threat. Anytime live sperm comes in contact with the vagina there is a chance pregnancy could occur. So for pregnancy to occur there would have to be live sperm on the toilet seat, it would have to enter the woman’s vagina and that woman would have to be extremely fertile. A lot needs to be happen but it is possible.” – Source
An author at Metro put it a little more elegantly-
“Let’s assume that someone has masturbated on a toilet seat and left it there without cleaning up. Rude, but this is the situation. You go into the loo, innocently trying to have a wee, and accidentally miss the hole in the seat, instead placing yourself on the seat itself.”
“In doing so, your vulva comes into contact with the sperm left by the person before you. Think about how unrealistic this situation is for starters. You can almost completely discount it ever happening to you, but again, it’s not totally impossible.” – Source
In Conclusion – Pregnant From The Public Toilet Seat?
I don’t know… I’m just really happy I’m not the husband here. It’s unfortunate because if Mrs. Banks is telling the truth, she was given a “scarlett letter” so to speak in a town with arguably archaic marriage laws.
However the odds point to one conclusion. Karen Banks might belong to the streets.
