Halle Berry has formally denied abusing her 13-year-old son, telling a court in a written declaration that her former husband’s account of a September incident is false and that video she recorded contradicts it.
Nothing in the reporting describes a criminal charge against Berry, an arrest or a police investigation.
The dispute is a custody case in family court between the actress and her ex-husband, Olivier Martinez.
According to the Daily Caller, which drew on reporting by TMZ and People, Martinez filed for sole custody after alleging that Berry physically abused the boy during a heated exchange on Sept. 26. Martinez alleged that Berry became upset that their son was playing video games and put him in a chokehold. His filing described other alleged instances of abuse and included text messages he said Berry sent him afterward.
A court granted Martinez a temporary restraining order.
The Daily Caller reported on Oct. 2, citing TMZ, that the order requires Berry to stay 100 yards from Martinez, limits her time with her son to court-ordered visitation two days a week and every other weekend, bars her from being under the influence of alcohol or other substances in his presence, and sends both parents to confidential mediation.
A hearing is scheduled for Oct. 16, TMZ reported.
Berry answered in a declaration filed Oct. 5, denying that she has ever abused her son physically, emotionally or in any other way, according to People. “I am not a perpetrator of violence. I would never hurt our child,” she stated. She described herself as a victim of domestic violence who helps other victims.
Berry said she submitted video that contradicts Martinez’s version of events, People reported.
In her account, she and her son were roughhousing in play, as they often do, when he became upset on realizing she was recording and pushed her. She said her texts to Martinez reflected her own distress after that moment, not any physical conduct by her toward the boy.
Her filing also said Martinez raised no concerns when both parents attended a meeting at their son’s school on Sept. 30, and that he appeared comfortable with a modified visitation schedule the following week. Berry has asked the court to restore the former couple’s 50/50 custody arrangement.
Both accounts are allegations made in court filings. The reporting describes no ruling on which version is accurate, and the temporary order was reported days before Berry filed her response.
