Reese Witherspoon Will Be Called To Testify By Ryan Phillippe's Ex-GF Over Assault Claims
By Ryan Naumann on September 3, 2019 at 12:19 PM EDT
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Reese Witherspoon will be called to testify on the stand about her ex-husband Ryan Phillippe, in the assault case brought by his ex-girlfriend, Elsie Hewitt.
According to court documents obtained by The Blast, Phillippe’s ex-girlfriend, Elsie Hewitt, is listing the witnesses she plans to have testify during the October 15 trial.
Hewitt sued Phillippe accusing him of assault. He denies the accusations. They will face off in court next month.
On the list, she names Witherspoon as a witness and expects to grill her during the trial. Phillippe also wants to cross-examine his ex-wife. They scheduled an hour total for Witherspoon to be there.
Hewitt may also try to question the actress about the time she was married to Phillippe.
The Blast
The other witnesses for the trial include Phillippe’s ex-girlfriend Paulina Slagter, whom Hewitt believes also had issues with the actor. Hewitt and Phillippe will also take the stand.
Phillippe has been trying to block Witherspoon from testifying in the case. Last month, the actor rushed to court trying to prevent his ex-wife from being deposed by Hewitt.
Gettyimages | Steve.Granitz/INACTIVE
Phillippe pleaded with the judge to not allow the deposition. He explained his marriage to Witherspoon lasted from 1999 until 2007. He said Hewitt has not explained why she wants to depose Witherspoon. He believed the testimony has no relevance to the case at hand. His lawyer wrote, “Although divorced, they maintain a pleasant relationship with each other and their child. The nature of their marriage and its termination, as well as their ongoing relationship could only be used in this trial for improper purposes.”
He also asked any evidence of prior police reports filed against him, information about dietary supplements and other past relationships not be allowed during the trial.
Gettyimages | Kevin Winter
As The Blast first reported, Elsie Hewitt sued the actor for $1 million accusing him of assaulting her at his Los Angeles home. She claimed after an argument with the actor, she went to his house to get her belongings.
Once she arrived, she claimed Phillippe was extremely agitated, grabbed her upper arm “so tightly that his grip left heavy bruises on her arm” and then “braced his body and violently threw her down his staircase as hard as he could.”
The lawsuit alleged the actor abused drugs like “cocaine, ecstasy, psychedelic mushrooms, and steroids.”
Gettyimages | S. Granitz
Phillippe denied all allegations of assault and accused his ex-girlfriend of trying to extort him with false allegations.
He claimed to have only treated her with “kindness and respect” during their relationship and never physically harmed her.
Phillippe recently lost his bid to keep his ex-girlfriend Paulina Slagter from testifying in the case. Hewitt also shut down the actor’s attempts to block her from obtaining records from LAPD. The actor has tried to block Hewitt from obtaining text messages between him and Witherspoon previously in the case.
