Two influential Republican congressmen are demanding a hearing on legal conservatories, including the property of popular megastar Britney Spears, in a major break for the #FreeBritney movement.
The substantial assets of the 39-year-old “Ups! … And Did It Again” singer have been under her father’s control since 2008.
Representatives Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) and Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) expressed sympathy for Spears and demanded that House Judicial Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) organize a television investigation.
“Given the constitutional freedoms at stake and the opacity of these agreements, it is up to our committee to convene a hearing to examine whether Americans are unjustly trapped in conservatories,” Gaetz and Jordan write.
“When situations suggest unfair deprivation of these rights by the government, we have an obligation to monitor and explore possible solutions.”
Spears demands to remove his father’s conservatory. In November, a court refused to return control of his property to him, but added a co-curator, the Bessemer Trust, to jointly direct his affairs. The singer’s lawyer in this fight, Sam Ingham, and a lawyer representing his father did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Post.
Singer “I’m a Slave 4 U” battles with her father and the media have become the subject of much public debate this year with the release of the FX / New York Times documentary “Framing Britney Spears” and Hulu.
Gaetz and Jordan, best known for their vehement defense of former President Donald Trump, even cited the left-wing American Civil Liberties Union.
“The ACLU is concerned that individuals” are deprived of virtually all their civil rights through guardianships and conservatories “and has called for the exploration of reforms to ensure that unnecessary conservatories can be terminated so that these individuals can run the his own life “. they write to Nadler.
“Perhaps the most striking example is the case of multiplayer performer artist Britney Spears. Since 2008, Mrs. Spears has been under a court-ordered janitor. The facts and circumstances that led to this agreement remain in dispute, but involve questionable legal grounds and tactics on the part of his father and now Conservative, Jamie Spears. “
Gaetz and Jordan continue: “In court appearances in August and November 2020, Ms. Spears’ attorney testified in court that Ms. Spears was” strongly opposed “to having her father as a conservative.” that he was afraid of his father, and that he would not act publicly again as long as this agreement persisted. Despite these pleas, Mr. Spears remains a conservator of his property. “
Nadler and Jordan write that, “although Mr. Spears stated that he wanted nothing more than to see that Mrs. Spears did not need a conservative,” his attorney admitted in a recent documentary: “Of the cases in which I have participated, no I have seen a conservative who has successfully completed a conservatory. ‘”
Nadler’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gaetz and Jordan proposed a broader review of conservatories beyond the Spears case.
“Ma’am. Spears is not alone. There are countless other Americans unjustly stripped of their
freedoms of others with little resource, ”they write.
“For example, Long Island resident Daniel Gross was forced against his will to make a move after being hospitalized with cellulite while visiting his daughter in Connecticut. In what the judge called a “terrible court abortion,” Mr. Gross was locked up in a Connecticut nursing home for ten months despite his requests for release. “