Erika Jayne revealed during this week’s episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills that she “recently” experienced an abusive relationship.
“Not with any of my husbands,” Erika, 54, clarified during the episode that aired on Thursday, February 19. She told Sutton Stracke and Denise Richards that “no one knows,” adding that “it’s all water under the bridge.”
Erika and Denise, 55, bonded over their past experiences, with both women agreeing that “it’s hard when you’re in it.”
From 1991 to 1996, Erika was married to Thomas Zizzo, with whom she shares son Tommy. She moved on with Tom Girardi, whom she married in 2000. She filed for divorce in November 2020, but the duo are still legally married.
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The conversation came up as Denise claimed that estranged husband Aaron Phypers allegedly “hit me on the side of my head” hours after she underwent surgery.
“That’s when I really knew there’s no hope at ever, ever salvaging this marriage at all,” Denise said.
Us Weekly confirmed in July 2025 that Aaron, 53, filed for divorce from Denise after six years of marriage. She filed a restraining order against him, claiming that Aaron was abusive during their marriage. He has continued to deny her allegations.
Erika explained her past relationship during the dinner with Denise and Sutton, 54, noting that the entire situation was “a lot.”
“It doesn’t really matter with who,” Erika told Sutton. “It happened not too long ago. It had happened more than once, yeah. And then, like, the third time, I was just like, ‘This is not for me.’”
She added, “I’m just going to say one thing, then I’m going to leave it right here. You have no idea how shameful it is to be the mother of a police officer and have to pick up the phone and call 911 and then call your family member and say, ‘I think you should hear this from me first before you hear it from anyone else.’”
Both Denise and Sutton shared their sympathy for Erika.
“Look, it stopped at the right time,” Erika said. “That’s far and away gone and it is what it is. Life goes on.”
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Erika offered more details about the relationship during a confessional interview.
“I met someone and it started out fun. There were no expectations of happily ever after or this is my person or any of that bulls***,” Erika claimed. “It was several months after I met this person that it turned into chaos.”
Erika recalled that she was “incredibly calm” about the entire situation “the first time” there was an incident.
“I put on my best hostage negotiator voice and this person was f***ing mad,” she said. “I was afraid, but I was so numb inside that I almost felt nothing.”
Erika has since moved on with John “Shrek” McPhee, whom she has been dating since July 2025.
“He’s former military, Denise,” Erika said during Thursday’s episode. “He’s former special forces.”
The preview for next week’s episode teases Erika further discussing her past relationship.
“Getting hit or choked, there’s a lot of shame around that,” Erika said through tears in the preview.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
