LOS ANGELES — A housekeeper for Britney Spears has accused the pop icon of striking her during a dispute Monday morning at the star's Southern California home, according to the Ventura County Sheriff's Office.
The employee claims that Spears, who has been embroiled in a court battle over ending her conservatorship, confronted her when she returned to the house. Spears allegedly slapped the housekeeper's phone out of the woman's hands.
The housekeeper initially called deputies to the house, and then went to a sheriff's station to file a report. The employee was not hurt.
Deputies attempted to get in touch with Spears, but she would not speak with them, the sheriff's office said. The sheriff’s office will forward the results of its investigation to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office for potential consideration of misdemeanor battery charges.
Spears' lawyer Mathew Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor, called the allegation "sensational tabloid fodder."
"This is ... nothing more than an overblown alleged misdemeanor involving a ‘he said she said’ about a cell phone, with no striking and obviously no injury whatsoever," Rosengart said in an email statement. "Anyone can make an accusation. This should have been closed immediately."
Spears, 39, is attempting to remove her father, James "Jamie" Spears, from her conservatorship, saying last year that she refuses to perform while he retains control over her in any capacity. She told Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny during her June 23 testimony that her father ruined her life and “loved” to hear her in pain while he exerted his power over her.
Spears alleged that her conservatorship was “abusive” and that if she didn’t comply with the demands of her father or management, she was told she would not be able to see her children.
In a response to the petition to remove him, Jamie Spears indicated that he would be “willing to step down when the time is right, but the transition needs to be orderly and include a resolution of matters.” But he still contested his removal, arguing there was no urgent need for his removal and urged the court not to make a decision based on “false allegations.”
Diana Dasrath and Alicia Victoria Lozano reported from Los Angeles, and Doha Madani from New York.
