Britney Spears is one step closer to freedom after speaking out again in court during a hearing surrounding her conservatorship.
via People:
During a court hearing Wednesday, the 39-year-old singer told Judge Brenda Penny through the phone that would like to press formal charges against Jamie for what she called “conservatorship abuse,” according to CNN.
“I would like to charge my father with conservatorship abuse,” she said in a tearful testimony.
“I want to press charges against my father today,” she told the court. “I want an investigation into my dad.”
At the hearing, Britney also called her conservatorship “f—— cruelty” and alleged that she was living with severe limitations like not being able to drink coffee, saying, “If this is not abuse, I don’t know what is,” according to the outlet.
NBC News reported that Britney said she has been “extremely scared” of her father and that “this conservatorship has allowed my dad to ruin my life.”
In addition to her diet, Britney alleged that her work hours were controlled, which she said meant she was working 70 hours a week, according to the outlet.
“Their goal was to make me feel crazy and I’m not,” she said. “And that’s not OK.”
Following Britney’s testimony, she was granted permission to hire Mathew Rosengart — whose firm has represented the likes of Steven Spielberg, Sean Penn, Ben Affleck and Eddie Vedder — as her attorney to represent her in her conservatorship battle.
Jamie’s legal team did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
The development comes several days after her personal conservator, Jodi Montgomery, filed a petition for the appointment of a guardian ad litem so Britney could choose her own attorney without undergoing “any additional evaluations to determine her capacity,” according to court documents.
In the filing then, Montgomery and her lawyer, Lauriann Wright, said that Britney “unequivocally disagrees” with previous attorney Sam Ingham III’s request that his resignation goes into effect “upon the appointment of new court-appointed counsel.”
During a hearing on June 23, Britney made it clear she wanted to put an end to the conservatorship she’s been under for 13 years without an external evaluation.
“The main reason why I’m here is I want to end the conservatorship without having to be evaluated,” Britney told the court at the time. “I shouldn’t be in a conservatorship if I can work and provide for myself and pay other people. It makes no sense. The laws need to change. I’ve worked since I was 17 years old.”
Since the June 23 hearing, her estate co-conservator Bessemer Trust, her longtime manager Larry Rudolph and Ingham have resigned from their positions.
Britney’s June 23 court hearing was the first time she has publicly spoken about her 13-year conservatorship, which was put in place in 2008 following a period of troubling behavior.
“I’ve never said it openly – I never thought anyone would believe me,” said Britney, who is mom to sons Sean Preston, 15, and Jayden James, 14 (with ex-husband Kevin Federline). “I’m not lying. I just want my life back. It’s been 13 years, and it’s been enough. I want to be able to be heard. I’ve kept this in for so long – it’s not good for my heart.”
“I’ve been so angry and I cry every day. For my sanity … I need to get it off my heart. The anger, all of it,” she added. “The main reason why I’m here today is I want to end the conservatorship without being evaluated.” During the hearing, Spears was not questioned by her conservators’ lawyers.
It would be amazing if Britney ended 2021 a free woman able to tell her own story.
