Cher is accused of kidnapping her son from a New York hotel
According to court documents, Cher kidnapped her son last year from a New York hotel where he was staying with his wife. It was the evening of their anniversary.
The allegations in the documents were made by the Hollywood icon’s daughter-in-law and are part of the divorce proceedings between Cher’s younger son Elijah Blue Allman, 47, and Marieangela King, 36, whom Allman married in 2013. Allman filed for divorce in 2013 in November 2021, but a year later, the couple spent nearly two weeks in a New York hotel trying to repair their marriage, according to documents filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court in December and obtained by The Times were checked.
King said in the documents that on the night of their wedding anniversary in November 2022, four men “came into our hotel room and left.” [Allman] from our room.”
In papers filed not long after the alleged incident, King said: “I am unaware of my husband’s welfare or whereabouts at this time. I am very worried and worried about him. One of the four men who took him told me that they had been hired [Allman’s] Mother,” referring to the Oscar, Grammy and Emmy winner.
Representatives for Cher, 77, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Allman’s attorney did not immediately respond Wednesday afternoon.
King could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but her attorney, Regina Ratner, told the Times that her client was still concerned about the health and safety of her estranged husband. After the alleged kidnapping, Allman was taken to a treatment facility and King was not allowed to contact him, court documents said. He was expected to finish his treatment in March.
Cher was reportedly worried about her son’s health and scheduled a procedure after he apparently collapsed at the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Hollywood last year the daily mailwhich first reported the court filings.
“I understand his family’s efforts to ensure he is well,” King continued in court documents, “and I want the best for my husband.”
The main goal of King’s court filing in December was to obtain spousal support and other supports such as housing and health care, as well as to gain access to her own assets and tax records to prepare for possible divorce proceedings, Ratner said in the filing. King said in the documents that Allman owes her $25,000 in outstanding spousal support payments.
The lack of payments, she said, made it difficult for her to find housing, pay legal bills and buy her prescription medications. In August 2022, King said in the filing that Cher asked her to move out of her home with Allman. According to court documents, King was not allowed to “recover all of my belongings” and was not allowed access to other items she had purchased during her marriage to her husband, such as art, antiques and furniture.
Ratner said those concerns about financial support and the ability to access King’s assets have not been addressed. A hearing to set a trial date in the divorce case is scheduled for October, but Ratner said the case has been on hold for months and declined further comment.
“It is imperative that the investigation be complete and our property valued before the trial begins,” King said in the December filing.
Cher and her second husband, Gregg Allman, had Elijah in 1975 during their four-year marriage. She had previously divorced her singing partner Sonny Bono. While she launched a solo career in the 1970s, Cher made regular public appearances with the young Elijah at her side. Elijah later became a recording artist in his own right, fronting the Los Angeles industrial metal band Deadsy.
King, who appears as Queenie, is also a recording artist. In 1997 she founded the pop band King with her four siblings in London.
