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Rosie O’Donnell breaks silence on daughter’s arrest for child neglect and drug possession

Posted on by L. Dreeye

Rosie O’Donnell is speaking out following the arrest of daughter Chelsea Belle O’Donnell. After her eldest was charged with child neglect and drug possession, the comedian took to Instagram to share a statement from her family.

“Chelsea is in the news today – this is a photo from better times – here’s a family commentary,” Rosie, 62, wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of Chelsea and baby on Saturday, October 19. “Unfortunately, this is nothing new to our family – Chelsea has been battling drug addiction for ten years – we all hope that she will find a way out of this deadly disease.” Adding a broken heart emoji, Rosie tagged the hashtags “love” and “Alanon” before finishing with the date of the day. 10/19/24.”

Video from PopCulture.com

Chelsea, 27, was arrested Sept. 10 in Marinette County, Wisconsin, after police executed a search warrant at her home, according to court records obtained by several outlets. She was charged with multiple felonies related to child neglect, possession of methamphetamine and maintaining a drug trafficking place, as well as offenses related to possession of THC, drug paraphernalia and illegally obtained prescription drugs, and disorderly conduct. . She was released later that month after posting $2,000 bail.

Chelsea was booked into the Oconto County Jail on October 11, where she remains in custody. She also now faces charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance and jumping on bail, as well as the offenses of resisting or obstructing a police officer and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Chelsea, mother of 5-year-old Skylar Rose, 3-year-old Riley, 2-year-old Avery Lynn and 11-month-old Atlas, will appear in court on November 4 and 7.

Rosie has spoken openly about Chelsea’s struggles as she adopted her eldest daughter as a baby during the TV presenter’s marriage to ex-wife Kelly Carpenter. (Rosie is also mom to Parker, 29, Blake, 24, Vivienne, 21, and Dakota, 11.)

“Chelsea is mentally ill,” Rosie told the Daily Mail in 2017. “(She) spent most of her life in and out of hospitals. Born addicted to heroin. She had a difficult journey. She is very sick. She is incapable of either truth or reason.”

"Girl from the North Country" Broadway premiere
Rosie O’Donnell poses at the premiere of Bob Dylan’s new musical “The North Country Girl” on Broadway on March 5, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glykas/FilmMagic)

A year later, Rosie spoke about Talk that she and her ex-daughter reunited after Chelsea’s first pregnancy. She said their relationship, tested when Chelsea moved to Wisconsin to be closer to her birth mother, made their bond stronger “because we went through some really difficult times in society.”

“She’s doing better now and we’re both talking to each other,” Rosie said. “When someone does something unforgivable to you, and you can forgive him and he can forgive you, within that a kind of grace comes upon both of you.”