Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry is fighting back after her ex-husband, actor Olivier Martinez, accused her of abusing their 12-year-old son. Martinez alleges that on Sept. 26 she physically abused the boy by jumping on him and putting her hands around his neck. He is asking the court for sole custody.
A Los Angeles County judge granted a temporary restraining order, which keeps Berry 100 yards from Martinez and their son until a hearing on October 16. The judge restricted her visitation but did not bar her from contacting the boy. At the hearing, the judge will decide whether the order stays in place.
Berry denies the claims. Her attorney, Marina Beck, rejected Martinez's account and pointed to the couple's earlier disputes over their son's care. Beck called the filing "entirely meritless and deliberately misleading." Berry herself sought sole custody two years ago, citing Martinez's behavior toward her son's educational and therapeutic needs.
Martinez wrote that he does not want to permanently sever the relationship between mother and son. The parents have also been ordered into confidential mediation over custody.
Nothing has been proven, and the temporary order is not a final ruling. The case is a reminder for the faith community to keep this family, and especially the child, in prayer as it moves through court.
