Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen reunited in court in Utah for the first time since their legal drama began in February.
According to a live video stream aired by TMZ, the former couple sat with serious expressions during the ongoing proceedings on Thursday, which concern custody of their son, Ever, 2.
They are also currently hashing out details of the dueling protective orders they’ve filed against one another following a spate of alleged domestic violence incidents.
Paul was joined by mother Liann May, stepdad Jeremy May and sister Aspyn May.
During the proceedings, Mortensen’s lawyer claimed the reality personality was “afraid.”
“Why has he put up with this? Why did he wait so long to do anything?” he said during the hearing. “The answer is because he was afraid of the force that would happen against him.”
Mortensen’s lawyer also called his client a male “domestic violence victim” and said he is “coerced either through romantic interest or interests involving his son and with very charismatic tests, and very charismatic personality to come back and rejoin this romantic relationship until it blows up, again.”
Paul’s lawyer, meanwhile, shot back with allegations that Mortensen is trying to “destroy” her.
“He wants to literally destroy her. He was to subject her and her family to a new round of torment,” Paul’s lawyer asserted. “Yes, there are career implications to it. There’s massive embarrassment associated with that.”
According to Us Weekly, Paul’s lawyer also claimed she suffered two miscarriages amid their February confrontation.
“They were going through some challenges, of course, compounded by the fact that my client was dealing with two recent miscarriages,” Paul’s lawyer said.
Reps for Paul and Mortensen did not immediately return Page Six’s requests for comment on Thursday evening.
The public appearance marks the first time they’ve been seen together since news emerged that the pair was facing multiple domestic violence investigations over alleged confrontations, leading up to the cancellation of Paul’s season of “The Bachelorette” in March.
The Draper City Police Department and West Jordan Police Department in Utah opened domestic violence investigations in February, following allegations from both Mortensen and Paul that they’d acted out with violence during a series of alleged confrontations earlier that month.
The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s office declined to file new charges against Paul earlier this month due to an “evidentiary issue” with the investigations led by West Jordan and Draper Police Departments, according to a press release.
The DA’s office claimed that in the West Jordan investigation, “the complainant in these cases reported several incidents – some of which occurred more than three years ago.”
Minor offenses that allegedly occurred more than two years ago are “barred by the statute of limitations,” the statement added.
It also said the allegations against the “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star, 31, “do not rise to the level of criminal offenses.”
“The remaining incidents lack sufficient evidence to support filing criminal charges where the State must be able to prove such allegations beyond a reasonable date. Such incidents lack specificity as to when and what actually occurred or corroboration,” it read.
In March, footage was released of a violent 2023 encounter with Mortensen, in which Paul was seen throwing barstools as her daughter Indy, now 8, sat nearby.
Paul was previously arrested over the 2023 alleged incident, later pleading guilty in abeyance to aggravated assault. The other charges were dropped.
Following the video’s release last month, ABC promptly canceled Paul’s season of “The Bachelorette.
On March 25, news emerged that the reality star was facing a third domestic violence investigation by the West Jordan Police Department, on top of the two investigations being pursued by Draper Police in Utah.
Though new charges won’t be filed, Paul’s custody battle with Mortensen, 33, continues after he petitioned for a restraining order against her — and was granted temporary custody of Ever.
Mortensen has submitted photos of alleged injuries he obtained as a result of their confrontations, with one photo showing what appeared to be a bloodied nose.
Paul — who also shares son Ocean, 5, with ex-husband Tate Paul — was granted supervised visitation with Ever amid concerns about her “volatile” behavior. The arrangement was set to be in effect until today’s hearing.
Paul filed for her own restraining order against Mortensen earlier this month, citing an alleged March 2025 incident in which Mortensen assaulted her, which led to “noticeable bruising on various parts of her body.”
She also claimed, among other things, that she was traumatized after Mortensen “tattooed [her] initials to the inside of his lip and sent [her] a photo” and that Mortensen had stalked her and slammed her head into the dashboard of a truck.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788.
