Kelli Ferrell’s ex-husband, Mark Ferrell, was thrown in jail for allegedly failing to pay child support — months after The Real Housewives of Atlanta star hired her costar Phaedra Parks to be her attorney, Us Weekly can exclusively report.
On Monday, December 22, a hearing was held as part of Kelli’s lawsuit against Mark over the unpaid support obligations. (Kelli and Mark, who were married from 2011 to 2022, share three minor kids: Chance, born in 2012, and twins Chasiti and Chelsi, born in 2015.)
At the hearing, the judge determined that Mark was in contempt of court for being in arrears to the tune of $61,992. The judge found that Mark’s failure to pay was willful.
The court ordered Mark to be taken into custody until he pays $31,000 of the debt. Following his release, Mark was instructed to pay $1,000 per month to Kelli until the rest of the balance is paid off. In addition, he was ordered to continue paying his $3,991 per month in child support.
Mark’s rep said that their client had “identified and offered immediate access to $74,000 in escrowed funds from the sale of his home to satisfy the obligation in full. [Mark] has never refused to pay child support.”
The rep continued, “On the contrary, he has made repeated, documented efforts to do so. On two separate occasions, Mr. Ferrell submitted partial child support payments in good faith. In both instances, Kelli and her attorneys rejected the payments and returned the funds, explicitly stating that no payments would be accepted unless the full amount was paid at once.”
Mark’s spokesperson said he offered Kelli the $74,000 from the sale of a home that is being held in escrow at the court. A hearing was set to resolve the issue of the funds in the escrow account.
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“Despite a January 8 hearing already scheduled specifically to resolve the escrow issue, the court ordered [Mark’s] immediate incarceration — three days before Christmas,” the rep said. “Notably, during the proceedings, Kelli Ferrell declined to explain why her legal team has repeatedly refused to cooperate in releasing the escrowed funds, even as she testified to financial hardship and need.”
“Today, a father sits in jail — not because he refused to support his children, but because the path to payment was blocked,” the rep concluded.
As Us first reported, Kelli and Mark have been going back and forth in court ever since their split.
On October 2, Kelli hired her costar Parks, 52, to file a lawsuit against Mark for attempting to block their children from filming RHOA.
“As a mother, my children are a significant portion of my story line. As such, I consented to their participation in The Real Housewives of Atlanta season 17,” Kelli explained in court docs.
At the time, Mark’s lawyer Latoya Francis-Williams told Us, “And as their father, he has every right to protect their privacy and emotional well-being.”
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On December 9, Mark filed a lawsuit against Kelli, claiming she had refused to allow him to exercise his visitation with their kids.
Kelli’s rep told Us, “Kelli finds the claims in her ex’s recent filing both surprising and inaccurate. At no point has she prevented him from seeing their children, and she has consistently complied with court orders while prioritizing their best interests.”
