Cher is speaking up about a recent report that her daughter-in-law accused her of kidnapping.
News broke last month that the estranged wife of Cher’s son Elijah Blue Allman alleged in a court filing that Cher hired four men to kidnap him from a New York City hotel room in November 2022. Cher said this “rumor is not true,” and was related to an intervention for her son’s alleged addictions.
“I’m not suffering from any problem that millions of people in the United States aren’t,” Cher told People in an exclusive cover story published Wednesday. “I’m a mother. This is my job — one way or another, to try to help my children. You do anything for your children.
“Whenever you can help them, you just do it because that’s what being a mother is,” she continued. “But it’s joy, even with heartache — mostly, when you think of your children, you just smile and you love them, and you try to be there for them.”
Allman’s wife, Marieangela King, made the claim in a court filing in December related to their ongoing divorce case, and The Messenger reported last month on the explosive accusation against Cher. Allman had filed for divorce from King in 2021 before trying to patch things up, the woman said in the filing.
King said in the filing that she and Allman decided to spend 12 days in a hotel room together in purported hopes of reconciling — but then the kidnappers arrived.
“I was told by one of the four men who took him that they were hired by petitioner’s mother,” King said in the filing. “Since August 2022, I have been told that I am not allowed to see or speak to [Allman] who is currently in lockdown at a treatment facility.”
Chris Pizzello/Associated Press
King added that the location of this facility was “undisclosed” to her.
Cher told People that Allman’s status is a private family matter. The singer reportedly became concerned after learning he was ejected from West Hollywood’s Chateau Marmont hotel in the fall of 2022.
King also claimed in her filing that Allman “has no access to his phone.” While these are commonly confiscated upon entering rehab facilities, King said she also was stripped of her belongings after Allman was admitted.
King, who alleged in her filing that she was forced to leave the home she previously shared with Allman and wasn’t allowed to gather her things, concluded: “I understand his family’s efforts to make sure he is well and I want what is best for my husband.”
The next court hearing in Allman and King’s divorce is scheduled for Oct. 27 in Los Angeles.
Need help with substance use disorder or mental health issues? In the U.S., call 800-662-HELP (4357) for the SAMHSA National Helpline.