A Fulton County Superior Court Judge denied Usher Raymond‘s ex-wife’s emergency request for custody Friday afternoon (August 9, 2013).
[READ: Raymond vs. Raymond: Couple Returns to Court for Emergency Hearing…]
Tameka’s attorneys filed for the emergency hearing on Tuesday after one of her sons, Usher Raymond V (aka ‘Cinco’) nearly drowned at her Usher’s home on Monday afternoon.
Several disturbing factors were brought up during the hearing and while I won’t address each and every one of them, I’ll drop a few in this post.
First and foremost, Usher wasn’t at home at the time of the accident and had left the boys in the care of his Aunt Rena, who admitted having a disability stemming from a back injury suffered during a 2007 automobile accident. It was revealed that Baby Usher was stuck under water for almost 4 minutes while Usher’s aunt ran downstairs for help and that 4 year-old Naviyd jumped into the pool unattended to try to save his big brother.
Tameka Raymond broke down on the stand speaking about her concerns for the safety of her children. In tears, after revisiting the frantic 911 call made by Usher’s aunt, Tameka (visibly upset) yelled that it was “total chaos” in her ex-husband’s home during the period her 5 year old son was stuck under water.
One of Tameka’s attorney’s said it best, ‘Lightning doesn’t strike twice and it almost did when Tameka nearly lost a SECOND son to an aquatic accident” while in the care of her ex-husband.
The judge in the case apparently didn’t feel the same…
More details + if you missed the live feed, watch video of entire 3 hour hearing below…
Tameka’s attorney’s agreed, but felt that in light of Usher’s busy schedule, Tameka should be granted the ‘right of first refusal’ in providing care for the children… i.e. the mother should be first on the list to take possession of the kids if the father isn’t available… not a grandmother, an aunt, etc.
In her testimony, Tameka claimed that when Usher called her about Cinco nearly drowning, she was told he had a cut on his arm and was being transported to the hospital.
She stated she wasn’t made aware of the seriousness of the incident until she arrived at the hospital and saw her son being restrained by medical personnel.
VIDEO: Raymond vs. Raymond – Emergency Custody Hearing (8/9/13) Part 1
On Thursday, Raymond posted a picture of the couple’s son in hospital…
Tameka also shared the following caption:
Tameka’s attorneys revealed on the stand that she’d been at the hospital day and night since her 5 year old son was admitted on Monday afternoon and that Usher was no where to be found when Cinco’s heart rate dropped in the middle of the night a few days ago.
Angela Kinley, an attorney on Tameka’s legal team, also noted that the R&B superstar didn’t contact his ex-wife to alert her of the accident until almost an hour after the it occurred.
In his testimony, Usher stated that he merely sought more information about how serious it was and his son’s injuries prior to alerting Tameka.
VIDEO: Raymond vs. Raymond Emergency Custody Hearing (8/9/13) Part 2
Before dismissing the case, Judge Goger said he wasn’t certain anyone really could have done anything to prevent the accident…. but he also admonished Usher and advised him to keep his ex-wife well advised of his whereabouts and who’s taking care of the children when he’s not around.
As of the date of this post, Lil Cinco is still hospitalized due to concerns for his breathing.
According to Usher’s attorney, he has directed doctors to run every test imaginable to ensure that his son is on the road to a full recovery and while Cinco could have been discharged earlier this week, doctors plan to keep him hospitalized until at least Sunday.
Again, this was merely an “emergency” hearing that was requested due to the fact that Cinco will return to Usher’s home when he is released from the hospital.
Tameka and Usher’s actual custody battle (stemming from the modification filed back in May), resumes August 27, 2013 in the same court.