Kelly Rutherford Won’t Return Her Children To Their Father In Monaco — Here’s Why
Kelly Rutherford, the 46-year-old actress notably known for her role on Gossip Girl, has been embroiled in a custody battle with her ex-husband, Daniel Giersch, since the two split in 2010.
Now, the actress says that since she has safely gotten her children back on U.S. soil, she will not be returning them to their father in Monaco.
Get caught up to speed on Kelly Rutherford’s emotional six-year custody battle http://t.co/E24KJQOk6u pic.twitter.com/WGRFNhbZoG
— People magazine (@people) August 3, 2015
Giersch, a German business professional, is the father of Rutherford’s two children, Hermes, 8, and Helena, 6.
After not being able to see her kids for three years until a judge ordered them to be returned to their mother in May, she was finally able to be reunited with them last month.
“I am over the moon that my children are back in the United States. I haven’t stopped hugging and kissing them,” Rutherford told Us Weekly shortly after they were returned to her.
Rutherford agreed in court to send the children back to their father after having them for a few weeks, but on Thursday, the actress refused to follow through with that plan.
Kelly Rutherford refuses to return her kids to Monaco: They “have a right to remain” in U.S. http://t.co/ymW0fIRlb7 pic.twitter.com/dTT67Tzl6l
— People magazine (@people) August 8, 2015
In 2012, Daniel Giersch apparently agreed in a California court to not keep the children in Monaco and France exclusively and away from their mother. Giersch, however, later reneged on his commitment and continued to keep Hermes and Helena with him in Monaco.
In a statement released by Rutherford, she explains why she will not be sending the children back to their father, due, in part, to his lack of holding up his end of the bargain.
“My ex-husband recently filed for sole custody in Monaco after causing my children to be declared ‘habitual residents’ there, even though he agreed with California in 2012 that the children’s time in France and Monaco would be temporary, and that the children would retain exclusive citizenship and residency in the United States. I trusted my ex-husband’s agreement, and cannot now send them away in light of the legal actions taken in Monaco in violation of that agreement by my ex-husband.”
[Photo via Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images]
