Exclusive
Christina Ricci she says quarantine has been a dangerous period in her home because her husband beat her up several times, and now she fears for her life and that of her son.
The actress filed a request on Wednesday to obtain an injunction against James Heerdegen, who she claims to have started abusing her in December 2019. In her court case, Christina claims he beat her up, spit on her and made pig noises in her face. She says that that incident, during which she suffered several bruises, convinced her that she needed to leave him.
Christina says she told James she wanted a divorce, but that was derailed when COVID-19’s quarantine began in March, and she “found herself trapped in a house with a violent attacker”.
In the documentation, she claims that Heerdegen attacked her twice in June, while she was still locked up … chasing her around the house, trying to stop her from calling 911 after an argument. He supposedly dragged her by the wrists into the yard and threw her over a fire … leaving her injured and cut.
During the second attack, she claims he spit on her and threw coffee and a chair at her – all while her 6-year-old son was watching.
Christina filed several photos into the courtroom, showing injuries that she claims to have suffered at the hands of Heerdegen.
Christina asked for his divorce after these alleged incidents, and his lawyer, Samantha Spector, was in court on Wednesday to file the restraining order.
According to these documents, obtained by TMZ, Christina also fears that Heerdegen’s abuse could become deadly. During a drive in late 2019, she claims that James “said something that made me think that [he] could kill me. He said that the only way to feel sorry for me is if I am broken into small pieces. “
Christina says she immediately hid all the knives in the cabin where they were on vacation.
On Wednesday, the judge issued a domestic violence restraining order … which requires Heerdegen to be within 100 meters of Christina and her son, and not have contact with them.
Christina says that Heerdegen leaves the dog on a leash at the center table in the living room when he is visiting their son – and under the terms of the restraining order he must also stay away from the dog.
Although he has already moved in, Christina wants a formal court order preventing James from returning.
And, there’s this … Christina is afraid that her ex-husband – whom she married in 2013 – will release her private audio and video to “humiliate and embarrass her”, or use them to extort her. She wants the court to stop him from releasing him and force him to hand him over.
Heerdegen’s lawyer, Larry Bakman, tells TMZ that they will file a restraining request against Christina “detailing her abusive behavior fueled by alcohol and substance abuse. Her papers will also include documentation that Ms. Ricci advised the authorities in December 2019 that she did not there have been previous domestic incidents of violence between the couple, jeopardizing their credibility. “
He also says his client “unequivocally denies all allegations of abuse made by Ms. Ricci as having occurred in 2020.”