Los Angeles- In a sign their divorce is headed for choppy waters, Pamela Bach, the estranged wife of David Hasselhoff filed a petition in Los Angeles Superior Court this week accusing the former Baywatch hunk of roughing her up on at least one occasion and asking for a temporary restraining order against him.
According to court documents obtained by TMZ.com, which had been kept sealed from public view because they contain mental health records, a judge declined the restraining order request based on the domestic violence allegation, but decided it was a good idea to keep the former twosome away from each other for the time being.
Hasselhoff, 53, tied the knot with Bach, 42, in 1989, and they had two daughters, Taylor, now 15, and Hayley, 13.
The Speedo-sporting actor filed for divorce on Jan. 12, citing irreconcilable differences, beating Bach’s own petition by one day. Originally, the split was said to be amicable. Things have apparently soured since then. While no details have been disclosed regarding custody and division of property, TMZ.com reports that the judge granted Hasselhoff temporary custody of one daughter and Bach the other.
Hasselhoff’s publicist, Judy Katz, disputed Bach’s domestic violence allegation. “How can that be if both parents were awarded custody of their children?” Katz said to E! Online, noting that the court file remains sealed. This was Hasselhoff’s second marriage. He was previously hitched to actress Catherine Hickland from 1984 to 1989.
The former Knight Rider star has struggled with personal issues in recent years.
In 2002, he checked into the Betty Ford Clinic in an attempt to get clean and sober, only to fall off the wagon and wind up being treated for alcohol poisoning after a binge at a Palm Springs hotel, an incident he later acknowledged nearly killed him.
He subsequently completed another stint in rehab, but, two years later, in October 2004, he was busted for drunken driving. Hasselhoff pleaded no contest to the DUI charge and was placed on three years’ self-supervised probation.
Now, Hasselhoff’s trying to get his career back on track. He’s set to reprise his role as Michael Knight in a Knight Rider movie slated to start filming this summer and hit theaters in December. He’s also developing a big-screen version of Baywatch.