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Courtney Love Trades Blows With Kurt Cobain’s Mom, Admits To OxyContin OD

Singer continues fight to regain custody of her child, Frances Bean Cobain.
By Gil Kaufman, with additional reporting by Jennifer Vineyard

Kurt Cobain, Frances Bean and Courtney Love at the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards
Photo: MTV News

Courtney Love's fight for custody of her 11-year-old daughter, Frances Bean, turned ugly this week, as the troubled rock star engaged in a scuffle on Tuesday with late husband Kurt Cobain's mother outside a Los Angeles courtroom. The skirmish came as Love continues her fight to regain custody of Frances Bean, who was taken by child services a week after the singer's overdose on the prescription painkiller OxyContin earlier this month.

Though Love had initially claimed to have been on the prescription anti-anxiety drug Xanax, she admits in the current issue of People magazine, on newsstands Friday (October 24), that she took an overdose of the painkiller Oxycontin several hours after her arrest for being under the influence of a controlled substance (see "Courtney Love Faces Up To A Year In Jail For Drug Charge"). Hoping to knock herself out, Love took more than 20 milligrams of the drug, a synthetic form of morphine commonly referred to as "hillbilly heroin" (see "All About OxyContin, The Pills Known As 'Killers' ").

She told the magazine that Frances made her some green tea and the pair waited for an ambulance to transport the former Hole leader to the hospital following the overdose. "That's the only time my daughter has ever, ever, ever pitched in on one of my little crises," Love told the magazine. "I made it fun. I said it was going to be gross and I was going to have to make myself throw up but it was going to be okay."

A source close to Love, however, said that because Frances was present during the OD, Department of Children and Family Services became involved, as is procedure (see ).

Due to confidentiality laws, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services could not confirm any information about Love's case, but spokesperson Neil Zanville said, "Hypothetically, if someone is hospitalized or arrested under the influence of drugs and we feel that poses an abusive threat to the safety of a child, we will respond and assess the situation. We will remove that child and place him or her, usually with a relative."

Love reportedly did not cooperate, denying DCFS officials entry into her house on several occasions. So, on October 10, officials went to Frances' school and took her into protective custody, placing her with her grandmother, Cobain's mother, Wendy O'Connor. They also charged Love with abandonment, according to the DCFS report procured by People.

Shortly after Frances was taken away, the source said, Love became distraught, and started leaving frantic phone messages for friends in which she sounded self-destructive, even suicidal. People reports that it was one call in particular — in which Love said that she wanted to throw herself off the Empire State Building — that warranted concern.

"Yes, I was changing my will that week," Love previously told the New York Daily News. "I [also] left a message that was like, 'I want to die, I want to jump off the Empire State Building.' "

A source close to Love told MTV News that there was more than one message, including one in which Love talked about wanting to hang herself. Love told the Daily News that she had been joking, but her friends took her seriously enough to alert authorities. Love was temporarily hospitalized against her will for evaluation, though she left the hospital after only 24 hours, two days shy of the intended 72-hour period. "When someone has a legacy of suicide in their life," the source said, "you don't take comments like that lightly."

After Tuesday's court appearance, during which Love was ordered to move out of her home so that Frances could live there with her nanny and be supervised by Love's stepfather and an aunt, the singer engaged in a tense argument with O'Connor, and according to what her stepfather Frank Rodriguez told People, "there were slaps."

As the custody battle continues, Love will be granted regular visits with her daughter. She is scheduled to be arraigned on the drug charges October 31. Her lawyer said he is considering a court-offered option that would spare Love jail time in exchange for enrollment in treatment and counseling programs.

Citing confidentiality laws, a spokesperson for DCFS was unable to comment on the court proceedings. A spokesperson for Love had no comment.

• Courtney Love
• Hole
• Nirvana

Courtney Love Fighting For Custody Of Daughter Frances Bean

Singer's child put in care of Kurt Cobain's mother in wake of drug arrest.
By Gil Kaufman, with additional reporting by Jennifer Vineyard

Courtney Love
Photo: Image Direct

Two weeks after her arrest on drug charges, Courtney Love was in Los Angeles Juvenile Court on Thursday in an attempt to regain custody of her 11-year-old daughter, Frances Bean Cobain.

The custody battle came in the wake of Love's October 2 arrest and subsequent charge for being under the influence of a controlled substance. Just hours after her arrest, Love was reportedly transported to a Century City hospital by Beverly Hills emergency services for an undisclosed drug overdose (see "Courtney Love Faces Up To A Year In Jail For Drug Charge").

On October 10, officials from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) came to place Frances Bean, the only child from Love's marriage to late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, in the care of Cobain's mother, Wendy O'Connor, according to the New York Daily News and sources close to Love.

Due to confidentiality laws, a DCFS spokesperson could not confirm any information about Love's court proceedings. "Hypothetically, if someone is hospitalized or arrested under the influence of drugs and we feel that poses an abusive threat to the safety of a child, we will respond and assess the situation," spokesperson Neil Zanville said. "We will remove that child and place him or her, usually with a relative."

Love told the Daily News that on the day her daughter was taken away, however, authorities ordered her to undergo a 72-hour evaluation at Pasadena's Las Encinas hospital, citing California Welfare Code 5150, which states, "When any person .. is a danger to others, or to himself or herself ... a peace officer ... or other professional person designated by the county may ... take the person into custody."

The singer apparently did not complete the 72-hour evaluation, and managed to leave the facility after half of her designated stay. According to a source close to her, Love told the evaluation doctors that she was ready to enter rehab, at which point they signed her out of the psych ward so she could change facilities, both of which were housed at the same hospital. The source said that Love, however, kept walking and never entered the rehab facility.

Love's lawyer, William Genego, told MTV News that the city attorney's office has offered the singer the same drug diversion program taken by Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland earlier this year, which would spare her jail time in exchange for rehab and court-ordered counseling. Genego said a decision has not yet been made on whether Love will take that option. He also said that he is considering filing a motion before her October 31 arraignment to have an outside expert re-examine the police's toxicology reports, which are expected soon. If convicted, Love faces a minimum of 90 days and up to a maximum of one year in county jail.  

Frances Bean was born in August of 1992 and taken away from Love and Cobain shortly after in light of the publication of a Vanity Fair article in which Love admitted to using drugs during her pregnancy. The child was returned several months later after a lengthy court battle.

Though they were concerned about Love's well-being, sources close to Love said "there's no need to worry about Frances," as she is frequently in the care of her longtime nanny.   

Spokespeople for Love had no comment.

• Courtney Love
• Hole

Courtney Love Faces Up To A Year In Jail For Drug Charge

Singer was arrested last week outside home of former boyfriend/manager.
By Gil Kaufman, with additional reporting by Jennifer Vineyard

Courtney Love
Photo: JT Leroy

Courtney Love was charged with one misdemeanor count of being under the influence of a controlled substance on Wednesday (October 8), following her arrest last week on drug charges during a bizarre incident outside the home of her ex-boyfriend/manager/producer.

Los Angeles city attorney's office spokesperson Frank Mateljan said Love was found to be "under the influence of a narcotic drug classified as an opiate or cocaine." He said he was not able to specify at press time what the drug was, pending further lab tests.

Love took to the message boards of her Web site to explain her behavior a few days after Thursday's arrest (see "Courtney Love Rushed To Hospital For Drug OD Following Arrest").

"Five words: Don't f--- with a strong sedative," Love wrote Sunday in a posting that contradicted the attorney's office account. "The controlled substance — one f---ing word: Xanax!"

Xanax is a prescription anti-anxiety drug. The singer also made a reference to Ipecac, which is typically administered to induce vomiting when someone has ingested a poison.

"Ipecac or ambulance?," Love wrote. "I lost a day so I couldn't talk."

Love claimed that when a police officer was doing a drug assessment, she informed him she was on prescribed Xanax and that following four breathalyzer tests he "pronounced me on Xanax!"

Mateljan said Love was not found to be in possession of any illegal narcotics, but that field tests and reports from the arresting officers led them to believe that she was on a controlled substance other than, or in addition to, a prescription drug.

The penalty for the misdemeanor charge is a minimum of 90 days up to a maximum of one year in county jail, according to Mateljan. Love is scheduled for arraignment on Friday, though her presence is not required in court at that time.

Just hours after her arrest on Thursday, Love was reportedly transported to a hospital by Beverly Hills emergency medical services for an undisclosed drug overdose.

A spokesperson for the Beverly Hills Police Department would not comment on Love's post and whether it was related to her alleged overdose. "For now, it's an [EMS] issue," Lt. Mitch McCann said. "If there is a police case that ties in at some point, that will be dealt with at that time."

Love was arrested at 2:38 a.m. on Thursday outside the Los Angeles home of a man police identified as a friend of the singer. He had called to report an attempted burglary. Property records show the house is registered to Love's former manager/boyfriend, James Barber, who worked with Love on her upcoming America's Sweetheart solo album. Love suggested in her post that the house belonged to her ("two words, MY house").

Police found Love standing in the middle of the street, where she admitted to officers that she had broken several windows at the home. The person who called to report the burglary did not wish to press charges. Mateljan said the city could have filed additional charges against Love for attempted burglary but decided against pursuing those charges due to the victim's reluctance.

When police suspected that Love was under the influence, they conducted a drug evaluation at the police station and she was booked for a misdemeanor charge of being under the influence of a controlled substance. She was released a short time later on $2,500 bond.

America's Sweetheart, Love's long-in-the-works debut solo album (see "'A Lot Of God And A Lot Of Sex' On Courtney Love Solo Album"), was originally due at the end of this month but was recently postponed until February 10.

• Courtney Love
• Hole