'He can't be trusted': Christina Ricci wants ex-husband James Heerdegen to submit psychiatric evaluation report in custody battle
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Christina Ricci has recently gotten out of an ugly divorce with her ex-husband James Heerdegen. The 'Wednesday' star is now demanding James Heerdegen to submit a psychiatric evaluation report after she informed the judge that he "cannot be trusted" to speak the truth and he is an "angry, vindictive person." According to the court records, Ricci retaliated against her ex after he allegedly accused her of mentally torturing their son.
“Jimmy cannot be trusted to tell this Court the truth about anything. He is an angry, vindictive person who will only seek to blame others for his problems,” she said. She continued, “Jimmy will repeat over and over again to this court that he does not have a lawyer because this fact somehow excuses him from having to file truthful pleadings.” The two have been arguing back and forth in court on the custody battle since their divorce was settled in December 2022, RadarOnline reported.
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Jimmy cannot be trusted
In the new declaration, the 'Addams Family' star condemns the request by Heerdegen to remove their son's therapist and appoint a social worker. The actress started off by denying Heerdegen’s claim she was using her fortune to attack him in court. “There has been no abuse of the litigation process except by Jimmy,” she said. She accused him of lying to the court about how many unexcused absences their son had taken.
Ricci said that during the past four years, her ex has been represented by four different attorneys. Further, she said their child has had the same therapist for two years and Heerdegen has never had issues before. Now Ricci wants her ex-husband to submit an "independent psychiatric evaluation" before he can visit her overnight.
Judge stripped him of his overnight visits
In the 2022 divorce settlement, court decided that Ricci would have the majority of the physical custody of their son Freddie while they had joint legal custody. Ricci, however, returned to court a few weeks later and urged the suspension of Heerdegen's overnights. According to her, her request was based on a recommendation from the child's therapist.
James accused Ricci of sharing, “details of our marriage that are often fabricated, and certainly inappropriate for a young child to hear.” Ultimately, the judge stripped him of his overnight visits until a future hearing. Several days later, Ricci appeared in court again, claiming her ex was trying to block her from going to Canada to shoot 'Yellowjackets'. At the time, Ricci said, “He is only doing what he can to punish me because he is incapable of being child-centered, which is exactly why he no longer has overnights.” Eventually, the court allowed her to travel with their son despite her ex's objections.