Ariel Winter's Mom Takes Legal Action
The drama continues for Modern Family child star Ariel Winter and her mother, Crystal Workman. In addition to yesterday's emotional statement, Workman has now filed court papers refuting physical abuse claims and opposing her estranged daughter Shanelle's petition for guardianship of the Hollywood minor.
Exclusive Video: Ariel Winter's Mom Speaks
In court papers obtained by ET filed November 8 in L.A. Superior Court, Workman declares in part, "I have loved and cared for Ariel in all her physiological and emotional needs and have always been her caretaker and looked out for her best interests."
Workman claims in the papers that "up until my objection to her relationship with her boyfriend … who is 18 years old, Ariel and I had a great mother-daughter relationship inclusive of the typical mother-daughter banter, which can be challenging during the teenage years."
She adds the claim, "I have never physically abused Ariel. The allegations in the Petition for Guardianship of physical abuse and emotional abuse are totally false."
Related: Modern Family Star Ariel Winter's Domestic Drama
On Wednesday, ET obtained court documents filed by Ariel's older sister Shanelle claiming that Ariel "has been the victim of ongoing physical abuse (slapping, hitting, pushing) and emotional abuse (vile name calling, personal insults about minor and minor's height, attempts to 'sexualize' minor, deprivation of food, etc.) for an extended period of time by the minor's mother..."
According to court documents filed in L.A. Superior Court last month, temporary guardianship of Ariel has been granted to Shanelle, and her mother is not to have any contact with her daughter pending the continued hearing, scheduled for November 20.
Meanwhile, a statement to ET from Ariel's lawyer Amir Pichvai on Friday afternoon said, "Ariel is doing well and she has a lot of people who are loving her and supporting her at this time, and I'm pretty confident that she'll fare well through all of this. She is obviously a very smart and articulate young lady and an accomplished actress."