Denise Richards is pulling no punches as she prepares for a bombshell court showdown with her estranged husband Aaron Phypers, and she wants his mother on the stand too.
In what’s shaping up to be one of the most shocking celebrity divorce cases of the year, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, 54, is pushing to turn her temporary restraining order into a permanent one — and she’s not going it alone.
According to TMZ, Denise’s witness list includes Aaron and his 84-year-old mother Patricia Phypers. Why? Because Patricia will reportedly “testify regarding communications with [Denise] regarding abuse perpetrated on [Denise] by [Aaron].” Richards expects Aaron’s mom to be on the stand for an hour.
The court hearing, scheduled for Monday, could see graphic testimony lasting all day. Denise herself anticipates speaking for six hours, while Aaron is expected to testify for four. And this is no he-said-she-said — it’s a full-blown legal battle with photos, witnesses, and jaw-dropping allegations.
In court documents obtained by DailyMail.com, Richards made chilling claims about years of violent abuse, saying:
“Throughout our relationship, Aaron would frequently violently choke me, violently squeeze my head with both hands, tightly squeeze my arms, violently slap me in my face and head, aggressively slam my head into the bathroom towel rack, threaten to kill me, hold me down with his knee on my back to the point where I would have to plead with him to get off me so that he would not kill me and hack into my laptop and phone and download all of my text messages.”
She didn’t stop there. Denise also alleged:
“Aaron regularly threatened to ‘break my jaw’ and would cry, beg me to stay, and promise to get help — none of which ever happened.”
“Aaron has caused me at least three concussions. Aaron has told me that he has left recording devices to record me while I was alone in hotel rooms and at my townhouses.”
The allegations are graphic, serious, and strongly denied by Phypers. In a statement to Daily Mail, he fired back:
“Let me be unequivocally clear: I have never physically or emotionally abused Denise — or anyone.”
“These accusations are completely false and deeply hurtful. Denise and I, like many couples, have faced our share of challenges, but any suggestion of abuse is categorically untrue.”
Meanwhile, an insider close to Phypers added fuel to the fire by calling Denise a “liar,” telling TMZ:
“Why wouldn’t he testify … he’s got nothing to hide … he never laid a hand on her.”
The source also claimed that Phypers filed for divorce after Richards allegedly failed to end a yearlong affair. Phypers filed in July after six years of marriage, citing “irreconcilable differences.”
But the drama doesn’t stop there. Denise has also accused Aaron and his family of trashing their Calabasas mansion, even submitting photos to the court to back it up.
“Aaron and his parents and brother have severely damaged the [home] and left the house in a state of disarray,” she reportedly said, according to Us Weekly.
Photos showed clutter and mess strewn throughout various rooms, while a source close to Phypers fired back that they had actually cleaned the house — not wrecked it.
And in a separate legal request, Denise asked the court to temporarily vacate Aaron and his family from the leased home for just eight hours — so she could retrieve her dogs and belongings, per People.
As Monday’s hearing looms, this case is shaping up to be a scorched-earth legal battle, with reputations, safety, and truth all hanging in the balance.
Stay tuned. This is far from over.
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