Credit: ABC Press/Disney/Ser Baffo, Faye’s Vision/Cover Images
Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Taylor Frankie Paul submitted pics of bruises and alleged sexts from her ex, Dakota Mortensen, as evidence amid her filing for a counter-restraining order against him.
While Dakota had initially filed a restraining order against her, Taylor showed the alleged evidence in order to push back against his claims.
According to TMZ, who obtained court documents, Taylor and her lawyers filed photos that showed injuries after an alleged assault in May 2025. They also showed pics with bruises on her knee from an alleged assault on February 23 of this year.
Aside from photos, Taylor and her team showed alleged “possessive texts” from Dakota and a screenshot of a message from him asking her to have sex after the incident in February. The texts they submitted were from before the February incident, while the alleged bruises and request to be intimate came after.
The info comes fresh on the heels of Us Weekly reporting that Taylor filed for a counter-restraining order against Dakota.
As court documents in March showed, Dakota was granted a temporary protective order against Taylor. He was also awarded temporary custody of their two-year-old son, Ever.
In March, it was confirmed that Taylor and Dakota were involved in an alleged domestic violence incident in February. A Draper City Police Department spokesperson told US Weekly that there was an open “domestic assault investigation” involving Dakota and Taylor and that allegations had been “made in both directions.”
While both sides denied the allegations against one another, SLOMW ended up pausing production in the wake of the incident. To date, they have not resumed production, and it remains unknown if the show will return.
After news broke of the alleged incident between Taylor and Dakota, video footage from an altercation that led to Taylor being arrested in 2023 was leaked.
In the clip, Taylor was seen chucking barstools in Dakota’s direction, and one of the barstools allegedly hit her daughter.
Taylor ended up being arrested and charged with aggravated assault, domestic violence in the presence of a child, child abuse, and criminal mischief. She pleaded guilty to felony aggravated assault in exchange for the other charges being dismissed.
While Taylor was due to star in an already taped season of The Bachelorette, ABC ended up pulling the plug on it in the wake of the video being released.
“In light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of The Bachelorette at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family,” a Disney Entertainment Television spokesperson told US Weekly at the time.
Taylor’s representative then spoke out to share that they were “very grateful for ABC’s support as she prioritizes her family’s safety and security.”
“After years of silently suffering extensive mental and physical abuse as well as threats of retaliation, Taylor is finally gaining the strength to face her accuser and taking steps to ensure that she and her children are protected from any further harm,” they continued. “There are too many women who are suffering in silence as they survive aggressive, jealous ex-partners who refuse to let them move on with their lives. Taylor has remained silent out of fear of further abuse, retaliation and public shaming. She is currently exploring all of her options, seeking support and preparing to own and share her story.”
Dakota also spoke out, stating, “As anyone who has seen the video will understand, this is a deeply upsetting situation. I am, unfortunately, used to these baseless claims about me and our relationship, which I categorically deny. I am focusing on our son and his safety and hope that Taylor will do the same.”
Taylor and Dakota are in court today for a hearing on the protective order.