Way back in late spring, we heard Bethenny Frankel reveal that ex Jason Hoppy was still torturing her, telling her fellow Real Housewives of New York City stars that she was “in hell.”
All year, it seems, Bethenny and Jason have been facing off in court. Bethenny has stated that all that she really wants is zero contact with Jason Hoppy. That’s not really asking a lot.
Today, there was a new development in Jason’s case. Is she going to get what she wants? Well …
Sometimes, Bethenny Frankel can come across as insensitive. But this is a wildly compassionate woman.
Back in August, when Houston was left devastated by Hurricane Harvey — that was several massive natural disasters ago, so we understand if it’s slipped your mind — Bethanny Frankel was one of the celebrities who contributed to relief efforts.
She and her people have worked tirelessly on the devastation left in Florida, on the horrible destruction that has ravaged California in the wake of wildfires, and on Puerto Rico.
Bethenny Frankel, instead of lobbing paper towel rolls at hurricane survivors to “make things fun” or whatever, flew with multiple private jets to unload much-needed supplies, taking part in a massive and worthy operation.
Many fans praised her online and remarked that it’s a sad day when a Real Housewife, no matter how popular, does more to American citizens in the wake of a disaster than the sitting President.
Also, Bethanny’s organization has been handing out cash to survivors in areas where they can then use that cash. Sometimes, supplies aren’t enough.
Oh,a nd remember how Bethenny Frankel might have cancer? She got surgery for that in the middle of all of this.
Because she’s unstoppable, basically.
And Bethenny does not deserve the kind of hell that she’s been in.
Her divorce from Jason Hoppy was nasty, drawn out, and expensive. Normally, even the nastiest divorce is supposed to be the end of things.
But that hasn’t been the case for Bethenny.
Back in late January of this year, Jason Hoppy was arrested for stalking Bethenny Frankel after an incident at their daughter’s school.
You might look at that and say that there are “two sides” or whatever, but a security guard at the school confirmed Bethenny’s account of events.
Five months later, in late June, Jason Hoppy was arraigned on more charges after he allegedly couldn’t stop sending messages.
(It’s believed that he was sending harassing messages to people in Bethanny’s life, though we had to read between the lines a little bit and look up what specific charges meant).
Harassment by proxy is still harassment, folks.
Even when Jason Hoppy was offered a really good deal, he seemed hesitant to accept it — as if he had plans to continue harassing Bethenny Frankel.
Today — Monday, October 23rd — Jason Hoppy’s case has been adjourned while the judge contemplates dismissal.
At the same time, Jason Hoppy has been ordered to stay away from Bethenny Frankel with a 6-month order.
To be clear, “staying away” includes:
-Jason may not contact Bethenny in any capacity, through phone or email or by a third party (so he can’t harass her friends, either)
-Jason must stay away from Bethenny’s home and place(s) of work, obviously
-Jason cannot go to their daughter’s school (Bryn is 7) while Bethenny is present, which makes sense as that’s where all of this started
Violating this six-month order means getting arrested and it would also mean his existing charges not being dismissed.
This is probably a frustrating scenario for Jason, as it appears that he does not like not being able to contact his ex to the point where, well, he’s a defendant in court.
But is it a relief for Bethenny?
Six months is a long time when you’re a kid waiting for your birthday.
For a pair of forty-somethings, six months can go by before you notice. That’s how life experience molds our perception of time, folks.
Will Bethenny somehow be able to extend the order indefinitely? It sometimes strikes us as bizarre that people can’t just go out and get lifelong restraining orders without exceptional circumstances.
Like, “my ex is creepy” should be enough unless it’s somehow burdening your ex, in which case the burden of proof might need to be raised a little.
Anyway, we don’t know what Bethenny’s going to do after these six months are over.
Assuming, of course, that Jason Hoppy can manage to stay out of trouble for that long.