Britney Spears asks for end to conservatorship in open court
The 39-year-old pop star delivers stunning testimony, telling a judge the conservatorship has been abusive. FOX's Ashley Dvorkin with more
Britney Spears spoke on the record in court on Wednesday for the first time since her conservatorship started in 2008.
The 39-year-old pop star made stunning claims during her remarks to the judge including how she's been blocked from removing her contraceptive in order to have more kids.
She expressed how she wants to get married to her boyfriend, actor Sam Asghari, who she's been dating since 2016.
Spears called the conservatorship "abusive" and said it's left her "traumatized" and "depressed."
BRITNEY SPEARS SAYS SHE'S BLOCKED FROM REMOVING CONTRACEPTION, WANTS TO 'HAVE A BABY'
Neama Rahmani, president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, is not involved in Spears' case but told Fox News Spears' strict conservatorship is "totally abnormal."
"This is totally abnormal because it is very strange for someone who is young, who is successful [to be] in conservatorship. So these things rarely happen," he said in reference to Spears wanting to expand her family.
Britney Spears called her conservatorship ‘abusive’ and said it's left her ‘traumatized’ and ‘depressed.’ (J. Merritt/Getty Images for GLAAD)
"She can't get married unless [the] conservator allows her to get married," he added.
In terms of wanting control of her own reproductive rights, Rahmani explained, "There's no HIPAA violation because [conservators] have complete and total control over medical decisions."
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"It boils down to… if you're in the conservatorship, your conservator needs to decide whether you can have children and if the decision is that you're not going to have children then birth control is appropriate. So [the IUD] is something that is allowed," he said.
But using a contraceptive isn't an issue in the average conservatorship because "people who are under conservatorship, they're usually under it for a stroke, they're in a coma, they have dementia. They're mentally unwell."
Spears asked the court to end her conservatorship on Wednesday. (Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
"Normally you don't have young people like this under conservatorship when you're talking about marriage issues and sexual activity and birth control. So all this is just really strange and rare and uncommon," he expressed.
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"I mean, this whole conservatorship that Britney is under is bizarre. It rarely, if ever happens [at such a young age]. She's a successful performer. She can clearly take care of herself. So the fact that she's under conservatorship period is very strange," he said.
In the Los Angeles courtroom, Spears said she wanted control of her own money and to do simple everyday things like ride in a car with her boyfriend. She said she wanted power over her psychotherapy. And that she wants her life back. "It’s been 13 years and it’s enough," the "Toxic" singer said.
She did acknowledge in a court filing last year that it did have some value when it was first established, saying it "rescued her from a collapse, exploitation by predatory individuals and financial ruin" and made her "able to regain her position as a world-class entertainer."
BRITNEY SPEARS REQUESTS THAT HER CONSERVATORSHIP END: 'I JUST WANT MY LIFE BACK'
The conservatorship began 13 years ago, shortly after she became a mother. Spears began to have very public mental struggles, with media outlets obsessing over each moment. Hordes of paparazzi aggressively followed her every time she left her house, and she no longer seemed able to handle it.
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Spears attacked one cameraman's car with an umbrella. She shaved her head at a salon. She lost custody of her children. When she refused to turn over her boys after a visit, she was hospitalized and put on a psychiatric hold. The conservatorship was put in place within days.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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