Britney Spears Thought Kids Were Being Abused

Britney Spears Thought Kids Were Being Abused 1/6/08

Britney Spears refused to return her children to her ex-husband Kevin Federline on Thursday night (03Jan08) because she feared her youngest son had become a victim of child abuse.

Spears was involved in a major stand-off with emergency services outside her Beverly Hills, California, mansion on Thursday when she reportedly barricaded herself in the bathroom with one-year-old Jayden James.

But according to British newspaper the Sunday Mirror, Spears was acting in defense of her children, who she believed were being abused while in the care of their father.

A source says, "When the kids arrived, she says Jayden's legs were covered in bruises. He's a toddler and learning to walk so it's not that surprising - but Britney was terrified he was being abused.

"After a few hours Ronnie the bodyguard arrived to take the kids back to Kevin, but she went berserk and refused to hand them over. No one knew what to do and she got more and more stressed about handing the kids back...

"That's when Britney started to panic. She kept the children behind her and told no one to touch them. She demanded to see Kevin and told Ronnie to get him to the house there and then. That was never going to happen..."

Spears was later taken to Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for a mental evaluation, where she remained until Saturday afternoon (05Jan08), when she checked herself out to return home with her father Jamie.

Federline has temporarily been given "sole legal custody and sole physical custody" of the kids following an emergency hearing on Friday (04Jan08). The custody order lasts until 14 January (08).