Morris Wortman, Well Known OB-GYN, Dies in Plane Crash
Dr. Morris Wortman, MD, who was accused of ‘fertility fraud’, died Sunday, May 28, in a plane crash. He was 72.
The fatal crash happened in Orleans County. Wortman was a passenger traveling with pilot Earl Luce, age 70, of Brockport in a homemade plane, according to the Orleans County Sheriff's Office.
Police officials say the self-made plane crashed after the wings of the plane detached.
“The preliminary investigation indicates that the wings of the aircraft became detached from the fuselage and fell to the ground landing in an orchard,” Orleans County Sheriff Christopher Bourke said in a press release.
"The fuselage of the aircraft continued west approximately 1000 to 1500 yards before crashing into a pasture behind a residence, "Bourke said.
According to the AP, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) identified the aircraft as a Wittman W-5 Buttercup, which was designed by Steve Wittman in 1938.
Wortman, a doctor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, became Board Certified in OB-GYN 1982. He was Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Genesee Valley Group Health Association. He then opened his own practice, known as the Menstrual Disorders– the first medical practice in the United States devoted to menstrual disorders, according to his website.
As an abortion provider, he was often the target of anti-abortion protesters.
He was later accused of artificially inseminating several area women with his own sperm during the 1980s.
In September 2021, Wortman was sued by Morgan Hellquist, of Geneseo, who came to find that Wortman was her biological father.
Hellquist discovered that Wortman was her donor after DNA genealogy tests revealed she had at least nine half-siblings, according to her medical malpractice suit.
She alleged in the lawsuit that Wortman knew he was her biological father and continued to serve as her OB-GYN. The civil lawsuit is still pending in Monroe County Court.
The plane crash is still under investigation by Orleans County Deputies, National Transportation Safety Board, and the Federal Aviation Administration also.
