Billy Ray Cyrus ' estranged wife Firerose claims the “Achy Breaky Heart” singer, 62, “ambushed” her when she filed for divorce just one day before she underwent double mastectomy surgery.
According to new court documents filed in Tennessee, the 36-year-old Australian singer (born Johanna Rosie Hodges) has accused her ex-husband of “extreme verbal, emotional and psychological abuse” during their marriage, reports People magazine.
Doctors diagnosed the artist, who still goes by the name Firerose Cyrus online, as a carrier of the BRCA1 gene mutation in early 2020 — putting her at high risk of developing breast cancer, the filing reads.
On the doctor's suggestion, she decided to undergo a double mastectomy and reconstruction. Her first surgery was scheduled for May 24.
Billy Ray quietly filed for divorce on May 23, citing irreconcilable differences and improper marital conduct as the reason for the separation. He also requested the court to annul the marriage on grounds of fraud.
Firerose now claims that the final days of their divorce were marked by “chaos” in their home, as Billy Ray put her “into an emotional and psychological prison” which led to “instability” in their marital home.
“When the Wife attempted to express certain concerns, the Husband often referred to her as a ‘selfish bitch’ and constantly accused her of using him,” the documents read. “As the date of the Wife’s major surgery approached, she was afraid to leave the house or seek help of any kind because she feared the Husband would interfere with her surgery or her lengthy recovery at home.”
Firerose alleges in the documents that Billy Ray paid the singer’s health insurance bills after the couple married in October 2023, and was “prepared” to pay for any surgery expenses that weren’t covered.
However, as the date of her scheduled surgery drew closer, she claimed Billy Ray's brother and sister-in-law attempted to force her out of the home she shared with her ex-husband by banging on her bedroom door for hours.
“The wife relied on her husband's promise to pay for her surgery and now the husband has reneged on that promise,” the documents state. “On the day the wife was scheduled for surgery, she was searching for a place to stay and was under significant emotional stress.”
Billy Ray filed an emergency petition seeking a restraining order against Firerose, claiming she charged $96,986.05 to his credit card between May 23 and June 7 in 37 unauthorized charges.
His lawyers also disputed Billy Ray's cheating claims, calling it “untrue.”
“During the divorce proceedings, the parties have to live as per the status quo as during the marriage. The wife shall continue to live in the same manner as she has been living since October 10, 2023, and the husband has no right to sever ties with her,” the documents said.
Cyrus' attorneys responded to his estranged wife's latest filing in a statement provided to Page Six, calling her allegations “particularly misleading and questionable.”
The statement said, “On behalf of our client Billy Ray Cyrus we would like to respond to the Court filing by Johanna Rosie Hodges which was released to the press today. We regret that Ms. Hodges has chosen to litigate this 7 month marriage in the press and has left Mr. Cyrus with no choice but to correct the record.”
“The veracity of the allegations Ms. Hodges makes in her Answer and Counter-Complaint are particularly misleading and questionable given that she begged Mr. Cyrus to forgive her and take her back at the time she filed the Petition to Dissolve their marriage.”
The statement further said, “Two days after Ms. Hodges was required by court order to vacate the residence she had lived in of over 25 years and was allowed to return, when Mr. Cyrus returned to his home, he found a handwritten note from Ms. Hodges professing her love for Mr. Cyrus and her desire to live with him.”
A copy of the alleged handwritten note obtained by Page Six shows Firerose professing her love for the singer, calling him her “hero” and saying she “can’t live without him.”