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Pop Star Usher in Child Custody Battle

On Behalf of | Aug 22, 2013 | Child Custody

Maryland residents may have heard about entertainment icon Usher’s recent trip to the courtroom, and the near-tragic events that precipitated it. Earlier this month, Usher’s 5-year-old son was nearly killed when he apparently became trapped at the bottom of the family’s backyard pool. According to reports, the boy’s arm became stuck in a drain at the bottom of the pool, nearly causing him to drown before he was rescued by a group of people at the scene, including two contractors who were working on the house at the time. The boy was given life-saving CPR and rushed to the hospital, and is now fine except for the injured arm.

While Usher and his family are certainly thankful for the boy’s miraculous rescue, Usher’s ex-wife was not too pleased by the near-death of her son, and filed an emergency primary child custody order to fight for custody of their two children, ages four and five. She claimed that the boys were at risk, and that the pool incident showed negligence on Usher’s part. Usher was not at the house at the time of his son’s near-fatal accident.

The court found in favor of Usher, who will retain his status as the primary caretaker and custodian of the boys. The court found that the pool accident was not indicative of a lack of supervision, and that Usher’s continued primary custody was in the best interests of the children. However, future incidents of this caliber could be grounds for revisiting the child custody order in favor of the mother.

Usher’s child custody dispute has been going on since the couple divorced last year. His ex-wife has publicly stated that she is not done fighting for custody of her children, and may plan to file for another child custody modification in the near future. She also criticized Usher for being too busy to provide the type of care and attention that she feels she is able to give them.

Source: NY Daily News “Usher’s son released from the hospital after near-death pool accident,” Nancy Dillon, August 13, 2013