A judge denied Britney Spears' request to have her father, James P. Spears, removed from her conservatorship. The Los Angeles Superior Court filed new documents which show that the judge denied the months-old request filed by Britney's lawyer Samuel Ingham III.
The documents stated: “The conservator’s request to suspend James P. Spears immediately upon the appointment of Bessemer Trust Company of California as sole conservator of estate is denied without prejudice,” as reported by Variety.
The new documents are not in response to Britney's explosive 24-minute long testimony this week. Her testimony is the first Britney has publically spoken up about her conservatorship. Even before her testimony, there was widespread support for Britney on social media with the hashtag #FreeBritney trending on Twitter.
In November 2020, Britney's lawyer Ingham III had filed a request to remove the singer's father, stating that she was "afraid of her father". The request also added that his client would refuse to perform again as long as her father handled her career.
Judge Brenda Penny declined the request the. The judge also appointed Bessemer Trust as Britney's co-conservator. The paperwork released today was regarding the judge's approval of the same. While the ruling isn’t in response to Britney's testimony, Variety reported that the document was signed by Judge Penny on 30 June.
They Should Be in Jail: Britney Spears' Testimony
During her testimony, Britney recalled that she was put on very heavy medication which she believes could be detrimental to her health. "Not only did my father not do a goddamn thing, my dad was all for it. Anything that happened to me had to be approved by my dad," she said.
She added that her father had complete control over her finances and life, and she had no privacy. She believes that everyone who played a role in her ordeal, including her father, should be in jail.
Britney said, "I cried on the phone for an hour and he loved every minute of it. The control he had over someone as powerful as me - he loved the control to hurt his own daughter 100,000%"
James Spears has been Britney's co-conspirator since 2008 after the singer's public breakdown. Since 2019, he has been the sole conservator after attorney Andrew Wallet's exit. In September that year, Jodi Montgomery became responsible for Spears' personal well-being, including her health.
This year, Ingham III filed a petition for Jodi to replace James as Britney's conservator.
“Petitioner has requested the resignation of the current conservator of her person, James P. Spears, who temporarily relinquished his powers effective as of September 9, 2019. The within petition requests his replacement by Jodi Pais Montgomery, who has acted as temporary conservator of her person since that date.”Petition filed by Britney Spears' lawyer Ingham III
Jamie Spears and Jodi Montgomery's Response
On 29, Jamie Spears' attorney Vivian Thoreen filed a late response to Ingham III's petition. "Based on her statements to the court, Mr. Spears is concerned that the petition to appoint Jodi Montgomery filed by Ms. Spears’ court-appointed counsel Samuel D. Ingham III does not reflect her wishes," the document states.
During her testimony, Britney also revealed that she wants to have children but can't do so since she isn't allowed to remove her IUD. The documents filed on behalf of father Jamie Spears state that "he is not permitted to nor does he have the opportunity to provide any input into his daughter’s current medical treatment, diagnosis, or therapy."
Jodi's lawyer, in response, released a statement. The statement challenges Jamie's claims, clarifying that he has conservatorship over Britney's estate, which translates to controlling her finances.
"Practically speaking, since everything costs money, no expenditures can happen without going through Mr. Spears and Mr. Spears approving them.”Jodi Montgomery's response
The statement read: "If Britney needs any assistance with either, Ms. Montgomery has and will be there to provide any assistance needed to Britney. Britney’s choice to marry and to start a family have never been impacted by the conservatorship while Ms. Montgomery has been conservator of the person."
In her testimony, last week, Britney did add that she's not happy with Jodi's handling of her conservatorship either, "I’m talking to you today, because I feel again, yes, even Jodi is starting to kind of take it too far with me.”
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