Taylor Frankie Paul won’t face domestic violence charges
Taylor Frankie Paul wonβt face criminal charges in connection with alleged domestic violence incidents between her and her ex-boyfriend, the Salt Lake County district attorneyβs office said Tuesday.
The embattled βSecret Lives of Mormon Wivesβ starβs cases were reviewed by multiple attorneys due to their high-profile nature, according to the district attorneyβs office.
βAfter reviewing reports and evidence submitted to the Draper Police Department and West Jordan Police Department, the Salt Lake County District Attorneyβs Office has declined to file charges against Taylor Frankie Paul,β the statement reads.
According to the news release, Dakota Mortensen, Paulβs ex and the father of her youngest child, reported several domestic violence incidents, βsome of which occurred more than three years ago.β
βAny incidents of misdemeanor offenses which are alleged to have occurred more than two years ago are barred by the statute of limitations,β the district attorneyβs office wrote, adding that βseveral incidents that were submitted do not rise to the level of criminal offenses.β The remaining incidents lack sufficient evidence to support filing criminal charges, according to the district attorneyβs office.
Mortensen filed a report with the West Jordan Police Department in Utah in February alleging an incident of domestic violence that he said occurred in early to mid-2024. Utahβs Draper Police Department was also looking into a separate incident involving the former couple.
Days before the premiere of Season 22 of βThe Bachelorette,β in which Paul was set to star, a leaked video of a 2023 domestic dispute between Paul and Mortensen circulated online.
That 2023 incident resulted in Paul being arrested. She eventually pleaded guilty in abeyance to aggravated assault, and Paulβs arrest was featured in the first season of βSecret Lives.β
Although the incident had already been addressed publicly and dealt with in court, the leaked video featured previously unseen footage of the dispute. As a result, Paul was hit with a restraining order, she temporarily lost custody of Ever, the 2-year-old son she shares with Mortensen, and ABC pulled βThe Bachelorette.β Production on the hit reality series had already wrapped and the premiere was slated for March 22.
Last week, a Utah judge ruled that Paul can have supervised visits with Ever, until another hearing for a protective order later this month.
The exes are also ordered to appear remotely at a court hearing April 30 to review the merits of Mortensenβs protective order against Paul. Paul has also filed her own protective order against Mortensen, which a Utah judge signed off on last week.
Mortensen sought a protective order after two incidents in February that involved βgrabbing, scratching, shoving, and strikingβ that allegedly left Mortensen with marks on his neck, according to police documents. A judge granted the order last month.