Bill O’Reilly Domestic Violence Claims Go Viral

Bill O’Reilly, a Fox News host, has allegedly been accused of domestic violence. O’Reilly’s divorce reportedly included a 3-year custody battle with his ex-wife. Maureen McPhilmy allegedly claimed that O’Reilly physically assaulted her as the two engaged in a lengthy court battle over the custody of their two children.

The Fox News host said the domestic violence allegations are “100 percent false” during an interview with Politico on Monday. Bill O’Reilly cited a court-ordered confidentiality agreement in the divorce and child custody case when noting that he could not comment further on the domestic violence allegations. “I am going to respect the court-mandated confidentiality put in place to protect my children and will not comment any further,” the Fox News anchor concluded.

Bill O’Reilly and Maureen McPhilmy were granted a divorce in 2011, but the child custody fight did not reportedly conclude until three weeks ago. McPhilmy won the custody battle with O’Reilly.

Gawker cites a source that claims that Bill O’Reilly grabbed McPhilmy by the neck and dragged her down a staircase. The Gawker claims remain unsubstantiated. The report also alleged that O’Reilly also has exhibited “patterns of violence among racial minorities.” The second Gawker claim also remains unverified.

Maureen McPhilmy and Bill O’Reilly were reportedly married for 15 years. McPhilmy and O’Reily allegedly agreed to assign a neutral therapist named Lynne Kulakowski to “arbitrate any potential custodial disputes”

McPhilmy allegedly claimed in court that O’Reilly placed Lynne Kulakowski on his payroll and hired her to “serve as a full-time nanny.” In 2013, a New York appeals court reportedly ruled that hiring of Kulakowski by O’Reilly “could undermine the integrity” of the initial joint custody agreement and granted Maureen McPhilmy sole custody of the children.

An excerpt from the New York Courts website court documents posting, which allegedly pertains to the Bill O’Reilly Maureen McPhilmy custody case revealed details.

“The parties have two children, a daughter, born March 21, 1999, and a son, born September 8, 2003. The parties entered into a separation agreement on April 2, 2010, pursuant to which they agreed to share legal and residential custody of the children on alternating weeks. They also agreed, inter alia, that the children’s therapist would act as a neutral mediator to help them resolve any parenting disputes. The separation agreement (hereinafter the agreement) was incorporated but not merged into the parties’ judgment of divorce dated September 1, 2011.”

The New York Courts website custody case details go on to detail the hiring of a therapist by the father of the minor children.

“On October 19, 2011, the plaintiff (hereinafter the mother) moved, inter alia, to modify the joint custody provisions of the judgment of divorce so as to award her sole custody of the children. In support of her motion, the mother submitted an affidavit wherein she asserted, inter alia, that a change in circumstances warranted a modification of the shared custody arrangement. The mother claimed that the defendant (hereinafter the father) had repeatedly violated conditions of the agreement. The mother further alleged that, after the execution of the agreement, the father had hired the children’s therapist as a full-time employee to perform virtually all of his parental duties. The Supreme Court denied, without a hearing, that branch of the mother’s motion which was to modify the joint custody provisions of the judgment of divorce so as to award her sole custody of [*2]the children, finding that the mother had not alleged a change of circumstances “which would warrant the relief requested.”

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