Emergency hearing called in Spears case

updated 8:28 p.m. ET Feb. 11, 2008

LOS ANGELES - The court commissioner who placed Britney Spears under conservatorship held a closed-door hearing on an unspecified emergency motion Thursday, a day after the troubled pop star was suddenly released from a psychiatric hospital and ended up being pursued through the city by paparazzi.

The motion was brought before Superior Court Commissioner Reva Goetz by the singer’s father, James Spears, and lawyer Andrew Wallet, who is part of the conservatorship, court spokesman Allan Parachini said.

Parachini said that the motion was unopposed but that he could release no details.

“Everything about this matter is sealed,” Parachini said after the hearing.

Present in court were attorneys for James Spears, along with Wallet and a court-appointed attorney for Britney Spears.

The singer was taken to a psychiatric hospital at UCLA Medical Center on Jan. 31 under police escort but was discharged Wednesday over the recommendation of her treating psychiatrist and against the wishes of both her parents.

“We are deeply concerned about our daughter’s safety and vulnerability and we believe her life is presently at risk,” the statement from James and Lynne Spears said. “We ask only that the court’s orders be enforced so that a tragedy may be averted.”

Goetz last week named James Spears as conservator of his 26-year-old daughter and named him and Wallet conservators of her estate. The commissioner has ordered the conservatorship to last until at least Feb. 14.

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Courts place people under conservatorships when it is determined they can no longer care for themselves or their affairs.

Britney Spears’ behavior became increasingly bizarre during the past year after she filed for divorce from Kevin Federline in late 2006. She has since lost visitation rights to their sons, Jayden James, 1, and Sean Preston, 2.

She was briefly hospitalized earlier in January after a custody dispute drew police to her home.

After being released from the hospital Wednesday, she was spotted driving her Mercedes-Benz and followed by paparazzi who zoomed around her in their vehicles. She eventually got out and turned the driving over to an unidentified man.

Each time the car stopped, photographers swarmed it, shooting photos and video. The singer ultimately went into the Beverly Hills Hotel.

The court commissioner who placed Britney Spears under conservatorship held a closed-door hearing after reviewing an unspecified emergency request in the case.

It was not immediately known who brought Thursday’s action, known as an ex-parte motion.

Two attorneys for Spears’ father James — who has been named as her conservator — were in court along with Spears’ court-appointed attorney and an attorney for the conservatorship. A conservatorship is created when a court determines a person can no longer care for his or her own affairs.

The hearing came a day after Spears was suddenly released from a psychiatric hospital, drawing objections from her parents.

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