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Jamie Spears defends putting her daughter Britney under conservatorship in a rare interview

December 19, 2022

Jamie Spears opens up about the #FreeBritney movement and her daughter’s 13-year-old guardianship. (Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

In her first interview in over a decade, Jamie Spears defends placing her daughter Britney Spears under the 13-year-old guardianship that fueled the #FreeBritney movement, calling her a “super tool” that protected the pop star and her two children, Sean Preston, 17, and Jayden, 16.

the Mail on Sunday released a rare interview with patriarch Spears, 70, her first since the conservatorship ended in November 2021. Speaking to interviewer Daphne Barak, Spears defended her actions, but declined to definitively answer whether the conservatorship , which began in 2008, lasted just as long.

“Not everyone will agree with me,” he told Barak. “It’s been a hell of a time. But I love my daughter with all my heart and soul. Where would Britney be right now without this guardianship? And I don’t know if she’d be alive. I don’t know .

“To protect her, and also to protect the children, guardianship was a great tool. Without it, I don’t think she would have gotten the children back,” he added.

But as recently as September, the “Stronger” singer opened up about being estranged from her two sons with ex-husband Kevin Federline, all of whom criticized her social media activity. The pop star, who recently celebrated her 41st birthday, is also estranged from her father Jamie, who is described as living with his youngest daughter, former Zoe 101 star Jamie Lynn Spears, in rural Louisiana. Although Britney has lambasted her brother on social media – at one point calling him a “scum person” – she recently posted a message congratulating Jamie Lynn, 31, on his appearance on the Fox reality show. Special forces: the toughest test in the world. Jamie, who is described as having suffered health problems in recent years, says he too has lost contact with Britney’s boys, although at one point he claims they “were my granddaughters. closest children.

“I really, really miss my two boys,” he says. “Yeah. You know, we were very, very close. They were about that age where you could start having a good time with them. But they were developing their own minds. God makes things happen for a reason. I don’t “I don’t know what that reason is, but it’s been three tough years without them. The family is a mess. All we can do is keep praying.”

Spears added that he sometimes thinks “boys are used as a pawn”, but said it was up to their father, Federline, to decide if he could see his grandsons. “Boys need to be comfortable,” he noted.

Spears claims that the guardianship was a — Spears says the conservatorship was a “great tool” for the pop star, who called it abusive and controlling. (Photo: VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images)

Britney has described her father as abusive and controlling. But throughout the lengthy interview, the retired Spears maintained that he has his daughter’s best interests at heart. The guardianship, he claimed, allowed him to have physical, if not legal, custody of 50% of his sons, although he or Federline were present during his visits with his children.

“We could take the kids to Europe,” Spears said. “They didn’t miss time with their mother. They didn’t miss time with their father. Not many people knew that. The main goal was to bring Britney back with her children in a comfortable relationship. We did everything in the world with the.”

He also claimed his superstar daughter “was broke” at the time the conservatorship was established.

“She had no money,” Spears said. “The guardianship created a resource where she could recover financially. And, you know, we worked – and she worked – and she recovered financially. … The guardianship allowed the finances to be better.”

Spears also insisted her intervention “made a difference” that benefited her daughter, despite her testimony challenging it.

“My understanding of a guardianship is to help someone get their life back and get back into society, and be able to live a normal life,” he said. “I mean I made a difference. There were a few people behind me who really helped get him to a point where we could help him.”

The public, he claimed, has the wrong idea of what guardianship entails.

“All I can say is that most people have no idea what the truth is,” he continued. “Her attorney has no idea of the truth. The media hasn’t heard the truth. They’ve heard Britney’s allegations.

“I don’t mind taking this beating because I know it’s not true and because I don’t want to start anything else. That my daughter ends up going deeper in the hole than she was “, did he declare.

Although Spears and Federline are now back in touch despite the latter man filing a restraining order in 2019 (now expired) against his former stepfather. Federline also accused Spears of assault and battery, alleging that Jamie kicked down a locked door and “viciously shook” Sean Preston. Spears resigned as curator of her daughter following the incident, citing health concerns.

Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, Spears expressed hope that her family could work out their issues with each other.

“Each individual has a lot of work to do,” he said. “I don’t know if some of them want to do the job or not. It’s going to be a difficult thing, but that’s the goal. Like I said, the family is not in good shape at the moment. . That’s all I can say.

“It’s better, but we have a lot of work to do.”

Britney and her team have yet to respond to Spears’ interview.