Keke Palmer Granted Domestic Violence Restraining Order Against Ex-Boyfriend Darius Jackson

Abbey White
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Keke Palmer is requesting full custody of her son after filing a temporary restraining order against ex-boyfriend Darius Jackson over alleged physical abuse.

The actress and producer filed the order in L.A. Superior Court on Thursday, citing multiple instances of domestic violence and requesting full custody of their 8-month-old son, Leodis Andrellton Jackson, according to documents obtained by The Hollywood Reporter.

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In the filing, Palmer accuses Jackson of abusive behavior as recently as Nov. 5, alleging he trespassed into her home without her knowledge before threatening and physically attacking her. That includes “lunging for my neck, striking me, throwing me over the couch, and stealing my phone when I told him I was going to call the police.” The performer’s filing also includes security camera stills of the alleged attack.

During the alleged incident on Sunday, Palmer says Darius “burst” through her bedroom door around 11 a.m. while she was on the phone with her mother, where he began filming the actress with his phone and demanding to see their son, Leo, who Palmer said was not at home. The actress claims she asked him to leave multiple times and began to escort him out of the house, but he instead sat down in a living room chair and continued his demands to see Leo in order to “take Leo — an eight-month-old baby who is being breast fed — to watch a football game.”

Palmer told Jackson she would call the police if he did not leave and that’s when, she said in the filing, he lunged at her face and neck, knocking her backwards over her couch, stealing her phone and running out of the house. He allegedly attempted to drive away, and in an effort to stop him, Palmer placed garbage and recycling cans in front of his vehicle. In the process, Palmer alleges “he nearly hit me with his car.” After the police arrived, Palmer, one of her sisters who was at her home during the incident, and Jackson were interviewed by police before authorities warned him not to return to the home.

Palmer also provides a detailed recounting of an alleged physical assault on Feb. 13, 2022, “when Darius body slammed me onto the stairs by my neck,” alongside other “many instances of physical violence.” The actress alleged she has been physically abused multiple times by Jackson, including instances of him hitting her in front of their son and grabbing her by the neck.

She also asserts he acted in other physically and emotionally abusive or harassing ways, such as destroying personal property like her diaries and prescription eyeglasses; throwing several items like her belongings into the street and her car keys to prevent her from driving away; spewing profanities about her to their son; and threatening to kill himself with a gun if she left him.

According to the court documents, the duo ended their relationship, which started in June 2021, in October. The filing comes after Jackson garnered a wave of online criticism for responding negatively to a video of Palmer dancing with Usher while being serenaded by the singer during an evening of his Las Vegas residency in July. Jackson went on a public tirade — parts of which have since been deleted from X, formerly known as Twitter — criticizing her in numerous tweets about her outfit while at the concert.

According to the court filing, the alleged incident in February 2022 was also over Palmer’s wardrobe choices, which saw Jackson becoming “enraged” over a photo Palmer took of herself in a bikini to capture the results of a workout while the duo was attending a friend’s party. Palmer alleges that throughout their relationship, Jackson also “love bombed” her, making the actress “feel like I was the most important woman in the world, only to get extremely distant and cold over a perceived insult to him.”

Jackson also allegedly became verbally abusive, including name-calling and accusations of cheating, when she “spoke with one person too long or looked at someone a ‘certain way.'” In one instance reported in the filing, he became “physically rough” while becoming frustrated over their son’s crying during a diaper change. “Given Darius’ uncontrolled, violent outbursts in the past whenever he became jealous, I became seriously concerned he would hurt our son, even if it was just to hurt me,” she said.

The full custody of their son and an order to prevent child abduction were granted on Thursday, along with the restraining order. That includes no contact and stay away orders, alongside an order not to abuse and a fire arms compliance hearing in relation to a hand gun owned by Jackson, according to the filing. A hearing has been set for Dec. 5.

THR has reached out to Palmer’s lawyer for comment.

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