Ronnie Ortiz-Magro & Jen Harley’s Toddler Could Be Taken Away If They Reunite After Arrest, Lawyer Explains

View gallery

Ronnie Ortiz-Magro and Jen Harley’s routine has been getting back together, breaking up, repeat — but that pattern could change now. Ronnie, 33, was reportedly arrested on a kidnapping charge after allegedly punching and slapping Jen, 31, chasing her with a knife (with their daughter Ariana Sky, 18 mos., allegedly in his other hand), locking himself inside his AirBnB with Ariana, and eventually being tased by police on early Friday morning, Oct. 4, according to TMZ. After his arrest, Ronnie’s lawyer, Scott E. Leemon, told HollywoodLife, “The reporting of the alleged incident relating to Ronnie Magro yesterday is based upon pure speculation and innuendo. We are currently conducting our own investigation and will have no further comment until that has been concluded.”

However, that leaves fans to wonder — who’ll now look after Ariana, and what’s the fate for Ronnie and Jen’s relationship? After all, Ronnie just declared they have “a strong love for each other” in an EXCLUSIVE interview with HollywoodLife, hours before the arrest. David T. Pisarra, a California family law attorney, answered those questions in an EXCLUSIVE interview with HollywoodLife.

Pisarra thought it’s “absolutely” possible that Ronnie could be charged with child endangerment. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) confirmed that there “was a child at the scene, unharmed,” to HollywoodLife at the address of 72000 block of Woodrow Wilson Drive (the reported sight of Ronnie and Jen’s Airbnb, although the police didn’t mention names). With the potential of a child endangerment charge, “the government may not allow it” if Jen tries to get back together with the Jersey Shore star, Pisarra told us! Going against these wishes could result in Ariana being taken away from both parents, according to the family law attorney.

“It’s conceivable that the Department of Child & Family Services (DCFS) might not let that happen [getting back together],” Pisarra continued, if in fact the events that have been alleged did occur. “DCFS could threaten to take the baby from them if she gets back together with Ron because she’s putting the baby in a dangerous position. They could charge Jen with negligent parenting.” Furthermore, “DCFS could require Jen to get a restraining order against Ronnie to protect herself and the baby from him.”

On the flip side, Jen now has a “phenomenal case for sole custody,” Pisarra told HollywoodLife. “The prior abuse in their relationship is between them alone, but the fact that Ronnie was holding the baby while he’s [allegedly] chasing Jen now involves the kid,” the attorney said. However, Pisarra based his response on the reported details of the arrest — HollywoodLife has reached out to the LAPD to confirm whether or not Ronnie was actually carrying Ariana. Regardless, if Jen decides to pursue a domestic violence restraining order, the attorney told us there are two types. “One is a criminal protective order which she can get really easily in this situation and that’s a very powerful order,” he revealed.

The second type is a “civil domestic restraining order,” obtained in civil court, which “would be even easier because the standard of proof is preponderance of evidence, which is simply 51 percent versus 49 percent,” Pisarra continued. Breaking down those percentages, he explained, “It means it’s more likely than not that abuse happened.” As for how Jen could obtain that specific restraining order — if in fact those alleged events did occur — Pisarra added, “All she has to do is file a declaration that he was [allegedly] chasing her with a knife while he was holding the baby, that she was in fear for her life and the baby’s life. The court will give her a restraining order against him, sole physical custody meaning the baby would be totally in her control, and sole legal custody – at least temporarily – meaning she gets to make all the decisions for the baby.”

And what would Ronnie have to do, if Jen did acquire a civil domestic violence restraining order? “He would be required to stay away from her and the baby, and he could not communicate with her. Three weeks later there would be a hearing about the civil domestic violence restraining order, which could go to a permanent order which classifies him as an abusive person. That would mean he’s a disfavored party as a parent,” Pisarra told HollywoodLife. “That would leave Jen as the presumption of the better parent and the court will give her sole legal and physical control.”

While Ronnie’s prospects for custody aren’t looking too good, according to Pisarra, the attorney didn’t rule out visitation rights. “As far as how they would handle co-parenting time moving forward, there would probably be some sort of supervised visitation in a secured environment so [Ronnie] couldn’t try and kidnap the baby,” he said.

This wasn’t the first act of domestic violence to allegedly occur between Ronnie and Jen. The latter was arrested on a domestic battery charge for allegedly dragging Ronnie with a car in June 2018 — however, Ronnie would later go on to claim that the fight was a misunderstanding in an episode of Jersey Shore Family Vacation. But the shocking headlines returned when Jen was arrested for domestic battery, yet again, in May 2019, in connection to a reported fight that allegedly led Jen to throw an ashtray at Ronnie’s face on New Year’s Eve 2018. In this most recent arrest, the LAPD told HollywoodLife, “I can confirm that officers responded to the 7200 block of Woodrow Wilson Drive around 2:40 a.m. this morning [Oct. 4] for a battery call. Suspect and victim were involved in some type of altercation. Officers had to use a taser to take the suspect into custody. There was no further incident. The suspect was arrested and is currently in the process of being booked.” Ronnie was later released from custody that same day, after his bail was set at $100,000, TMZ reported.