Monday, November 15th, 2010
Mel Gibson Had To Slap His Girlfriend To Save His Baby, Says Mel
Gibson
[Photo: Getty Images]
Details from Mel Gibson's explosive January fight with baby mama
Oksana Grigorieva have been released – well, his side at least.
In the "Braveheart" star's sworn declaration, dated June 23 and
obtained by TMZ.com, Gibson admitted to slapping his ex-girlfriend
across the face, but denies that he ever punched her.
Grigorieva, 40, claims the actor punched her in the temple and
in the mouth - knocking out two teeth - during the fight that
resulted in a domestic violence investigation by the L.A. County
Sheriff's Department.
However, Gibson, 54, paints a different story about what
happened that night.
The actor claimed Grigorieva grabbed the couple's daughter
Lucia, now 1, out of her bassinet during the heated argument and
screamed, "Stop yelling or you will make her into a retarded
brain-damaged idiot!"
She then allegedly turned and ran about 75 yards with the child
into the dimly lit backyard, near thorny trees. Gibson said he
pleaded with Grigorieva to bring their daughter back inside.
She purportedly agreed but then ran into her older son's room,
where Gibson claimed she "started swinging Lucia erratically in her
arms, jerking her body from side to side to keep Lucia out of my
reach."
Grigorieva's "rapid movements were causing Lucia's little body
to be flung from one side to the other, her head shaking
violently," Gibson alleged, adding that he feared the swift motion
would result in Shaken Baby Syndrome.
As the "hysterical" Russian musician refused to hand the baby
over, Gibson said he slapped Grigorieva "one time with an open hand
in an attempt to bring her back to reality."
"I did not slap her hard, I was just trying to shock her so that
she would stop screaming, continuing shaking Lucia back and forth,"
Gibson stated in the court documents.
He added, "I did not hit Oksana with a closed fist, as she
alleges. I did not ever punch her in the face or in the temple or
anywhere else, not then or at any other time. There was never any
blood on Oksana and none of her teeth were 'broken,' although one
of the false veneers from a tooth apparently did come off, I did
not see that occur at the time."
Photos allegedly taken one day after the couple's fight emerged
in July, showing Grigorieva's face undamaged but with one chipped
veneer and another one missing.
"While I do not believe I handled the situation as well as I
should have, I was worried about the rough way Oksana was shaking
and tossing Lucia around," Gibson added. "My hand never touched any
part of Lucia."
Gibson's story could help in his defense in the domestic
violence case because the actor said he used reasonable force to
protect his child from injury.
Though Grigorieva previously claimed Gibson bruised their child
during the altercation, the pediatrician who examined the baby the
following day saw no evidence of injury, according to TMZ.
Gibson and Grigorieva came face to face last week during a
courtroom showdown over custody and child support.
The troubled actor was ordered to pay Grigorieva $60,000 in back
child support, E! News reported. He allegedly held off on paying
the money until he knew whether he could deduct the $6,000 he
already was coughing up for a house where Grigorieva lives with her
mom and daughter.
Grigorieva was hoping to stop him from having overnight visits
with Lucia, claiming she was concerned that a nanny was the primary
caregiver and Lucia was isolated in her dad's big house. But the
judge said he would address visitation issues at a later date -
possibly next year.
Gibson and Grigorieva are expected back in court Nov. 22.