By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Associated Press
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Taylor Frankie Paul, a reality TV star from “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” and the father of her 2-year-old son were ordered Thursday to stay 100 feet (30 meters) away from each other for the next three years as a Utah court commissioner continues to assess custody plans for the child.
Paul has been unable to spend unsupervised time with her son since an April 7 hearing, when Third District Court Commissioner Russell Minas said Paul had a history of volatile behavior directed at her former partner, Dakota Mortensen, while kids were present.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs help, please call the national domestic violence hotline: 1-800-799-7233 in the U.S.
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Minas on Thursday described the pair’s dynamic as “very toxic” before granting Paul and Mortensen’s dueling requests for protective orders against each other. He found that “there’s been violence that occurred both ways between these parties” and urged them to figure out how to function as co-parents to their son, Ever.
“I’m hoping that you’re not people who just thrive on the drama and the conflict,” Minas said. “You’ve got to put your child first and shield the child from this conflict.”
Paul, Mortensen and their families were present in court, but no other cast members from the Hulu reality show attended.
Attorneys offer competing descriptions of fights
Attorneys for Paul and Mortensen offered competing versions of fights between the pair, with each suggesting the other party was the aggressor.
Paul’s attorney Eric Swinyard told the court commissioner that Mortensen is much larger and stronger than Paul — and that when she was faced with physical intimidation from Mortensen during an argument, she responded the same way a lot of people would.
“He said, ‘Hit me,’ and she did,” Swinyard said.
One fight between the two came while Paul was dealing with recent miscarriages, and she felt that Mortensen had been blowing her off while their son was sick.
When Paul lost her footing and fell to the ground, Mortensen kicked her several times in the leg, Swinyard alleged. He submitted to the court photos of her bruises.
Mortensen’s attorney Brent Salazar-Hall said his client was a victim of abuse from Paul, but that she kept luring him back with text messages inviting him over for intimacy.
During one argument, Paul and Mortensen were in a truck and she tried to interfere with his driving by squeezing his face, Salazar-Hall said. In response, Mortensen shoved her away, he said.
Paul’s lawyers said Mortensen slammed her head into the vehicle’s dashboard, causing bruises.
Mortensen had Paul’s initials tattooed on the inside of his lip, which Paul’s attorney pointed to as an example of his possessive nature. Mortensen’s lawyer disagreed with that characterization and said many of the men on the TV show got lip tattoos of their partners’ names in a humorous scene that has not yet aired.
“There seems to be a continuing attraction that they have for each other, whether it’s physical, whether it’s the thrill between the two of them of making themselves celebrities,” Minas said.
“The problem is that the two of them can’t be together in the same place at the same time before it starts to turn violent,” he added.
Violations of the protective orders could result in criminal charges.
Leaked video of fight is one point of contention
Eleven fights between the exes were under examination in their protective order requests. A recently leaked video of one fight from 2023 prompted ABC to make the unprecedented move last month of shelving an already-filmed season of “The Bachelorette” starring Paul. Hulu also paused production of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” and resumed filming last week.
In the video, Paul appeared to punch, kick and throw chairs at Mortensen while her daughter from another relationship watched and cried.
Swinyard alleged that Mortensen leaked that video to the press to ruin Paul’s reality TV career just before her season of “The Bachelorette” was supposed to air.
“Our point with the video is he’s not just trying to come after her for custody. He’s not just trying to seek a protective order. He wants to literally destroy her,” Swinyard said.
Salazar-Hall said Mortensen denies leaking the video.
Just after the fight, Paul was charged with aggravated assault and other offenses, including domestic violence in the presence of a child. The police body camera footage of her arrest was featured in the first season of the Hulu series.
Paul pleaded guilty to an assault charge, which will be reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor if she stays out of legal trouble for a three-year probationary period that ends in August. The other counts were dismissed.
Earlier this month, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office declined to file new charges against Paul in recent fights with Mortensen. Any new charges would have violated Paul’s probation from the 2023 assault.
Custody of their child is at stake
Minas said he would make custody recommendations by May 11. Mortensen has custody in the meantime.
Paul had majority custody of their son before the April 7 hearing.
A protective order in Utah can restrict or eliminate a parent’s ability to see their child. When both parents have protective orders against each other, the court relies heavily on the recommendations of an attorney appointed to investigate the child’s best interests.
Paul and Mortensen’s son had a court-appointed attorney present at Thursday’s hearing to help the commissioner determine the safest arrangement for the boy.
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Associated Press journalist Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho, contributed.