Kehlani has been granted a temporary restraining order against her ex Javaughn Young-White, and court documents reveal allegations traded by the pair in a heated custody battle over their 5-year-old daughter.
The “After Hours” singer on Friday filed her request in Los Angeles County Superior Court two weeks after Young-White filed a petition demanding full custody of their daughter.
The restraining order, which is set to expire at the end of a Sept. 3 hearing, bars Young-White from contacting his ex or daughter, including by phone or email, according to documents reviewed by The Times. The 27-year-old has been ordered to stay at least 100 yards away from Kehlani, the girl, and his daughter’s school or childcare facility.
Kehlani retains full physical and legal custody for the duration of the court-granted order.
“I am seeking orders on an emergency basis,” Kehlani said in a Thursday filing in which she accused Young-White of being “physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive.”
The two-time Grammy nominee cited an incident when Young-White allegedly became enraged and threw a guitar at her when she was pregnant. Young-White, she claimed, later said he felt “trapped” by his daughter’s birth, “and that I had ‘ruined’ his life.”
“When he’s agitated, he cannot stop moving and throws his arms in the air while yelling and screaming at me, often throwing items and calling me horrible names,” she said. “It scares me, and I can imagine it is very upsetting to a small child.”
Kehlani also said that Young-White “self-medicates” with marijuana and psychedelics, often in his daughter’s company.
Citing Young-White’s alleged history of abuse, Commissioner Jeffrey W. Korn in a court order reviewed by The Times said there was a risk of child abduction in the case. As a result, Young-White has been prohibited from traveling with his daughter outside of Los Angeles County, or applying for passports and other travel-related documents. He also cannot possess or purchase firearms and ammunition, per the terms of the restraining order.
For his part, Young-White in a July 24 custody complaint reviewed by The Times claimed that Kehlani had for years been involved with a “cult” that “controls her actions and her behavior, including when it comes to the upbringing of our daughter.” On one occasion, he said, the cult’s leader persuaded Kehlani to keep their daughter away from her father because of a “vision.”
“However, after Respondent’s cult leader’s ‘vision’ about me killing our daughter, Respondent leaves our daughter with random strangers who are also members of the cult,” he said.
Additionally, he said, because Kehlani underwent a home birth “orchestrated by” the cult, his name is not on their daughter’s birth certificate — and Kehlani has repeatedly refused to add it. On top of that, he said, she will not provide him a copy of the birth certificate or his daughter’s Social Security number.
In his filing, Young-White requested that the court establish his paternity, grant him full custody of his daughter, and order Kehlani to provide child support “due to the huge difference in our respective incomes.” He also advised she undergo a psychological exam, claiming she once told him she’d been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
“I am not here to disparage Respondent,” he said. “However, the environment that she has created for her self [sic] is not the type of environment that a child should be living and therefore, I bring myself to the mercy and wisdom of the Court to save my daughter before it is too late.”
Kehlani last week in a since-expired Instagram story said she “strongly den[ies] any claims that I have put my child in harm’s way.”
Representatives for Kehlani and Young-White did not immediately reply Thursday to The Times’ request for comment.
