March 20, 2007— A DNA test was ordered by a Bahamian court judge on Tuesday to determine who is the real father of Anna Nicole Smith's infant daughter, Dannielynn.
Virgie Arthur, the late Playboy playmate's mother, confirmed to ABC News that a test was ordered in a closed court hearing on the Bahamian island of Nassau, though she declined further comment on the day's proceedings.
Larry Birkhead, the man many believe to be the father of the 6-month-old baby, was jubilant as he emerged from the courthouse.
"I feel great,'' he said, adding, "it's been a good day in court for me.''
Howard K. Stern, who is listed as the father of the child on her Bahamian birth certificate, also declined to comment after court.
It remains unclear whether he will comply with the order. Should he challenge the order, the paternity mystery could drag on for another month or more. But if he complies and allows the baby's DNA to be tested, the vexing question of who fathered Smith's baby daughter will finally be answered.
The paternity test is one of a series of legal battles regarding the untimely death last month of Anna Nicole Smith.
There's also the custody fight. Smith's mother Virgie Arthur was in a Bahamian court last week trying to wring custody of the baby away from Stern, whom she says is an unfit father, if a father at all.
And while Bahamian and Florida police have both insisted that their ongoing probe into Smith's death is not a murder investigation, new evidence they turned up was enough to delay a Florida medical examiner from announcing his findings last week. Bahamian police met with Florida investigators last week at the hotel where Smith died.
