HALLE FIANCE THE BABY DADDY HALLE BERRY
Witness statements by Halle Berry and the family’s babysitter may figure into the determination by city prosecutors on whether to file a criminal charge against Gabriel Aubry in connection with the fight at Halle Berry's home on Thanksgiving Day, law enforcement personnel familiar with the case said.
Los Angeles police booked Aubry on suspicion of misdemeanor battery in connection with the fight between him and Berry's fiance, Olivier Martinez, at the actress' Hollywood Hills home.
Aubrey said he was the victim of an unprovoked physical attack by Martinez, which he contends was not witnessed in a declaration filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in an unsuccessful attempt to have a judge lift a restraining order that Berry has against him.
But Berry and the babysitter for her daughter Nahla witnessed Aubry initiate a fight by pushing and shoving Martinez, according to the law enforcement personnel, who asked not to be named because the investigation was continuing.
Those witness statements factored into the LAPD’s decision to arrest Aubry. They will also be part of any decision by the Los Angeles city attorney on whether to file charges in the case. Officials with the Los Angeles city attorney’s office said they expect the LAPD to bring them the case sometime next week.
Aubry claims he was actually the victim in the incident and sought unsuccessfully Tuesday to have a judge lift a restraining order Berry has against him. Aubry is seeking his own protective order against Martinez, who Aubry contends threatened to kill him, according to court papers.
Since Aubry and Berry split in 2010, the couple have shared custody of their daughter, Nahla, but in 2011, Berry sought permission to move to Paris with Nahla. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mark A. Juhas denied the request this month, setting the stage for the latest fireworks.
Aubry alleges in court papers that during the Thanksgiving fight, Martinez told him to tell the judge in the custody case that "you’re going to Paris or I’m going to kill you." "You’re going to Paris, you’re going to get your 20 grand a month in child support," Aubry’s declaration quotes Martinez as saying.
Martinez then threatened to kill him unless he told police that he said he initiated the altercation, Aubry's filing says. Aubry also claims that during the fight he suffered a fractured rib, bruises to the face and cuts that required stitches.
In an application for a protective order Thursday, Berry asked a judge that Aubry be ordered to stay 100 yards from her daughter and her fiance. Berry alleged Aubry made “verbal threats, caused physical harm to the child’s mother and Martinez.”
Aubry is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 13.
