Jon Blistein
Contact Jon Blistein by Email View all posts by Jon Blistein April 7, 2026
Taylor Frankie Paul in May 2025. Araya Doheny/Getty Images Taylor Frankie Paul accused Dakota Mortensen of a “pattern of abusive conduct of coercive control” in a new filing for a protective order against her ex-boyfriend, obtained by Rolling Stone.
Lawyers for the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star submitted the filing Tuesday, April 7, ahead of a scheduled hearing at a Salt Lake City courthouse about custody and visitation arrangements for Paul and Mortensen’s child (stemming from the protective order Mortensen filed against Paul in late March). Paul’s filing contains some of the most detailed allegations of abuse she’s leveled against Mortensen so far.
For instance, the filing details one alleged instance from late February, after Paul allegedly told Mortensen she was ready to end their relationship. Paul claimed that, early in the morning hours of Feb. 22, Mortensen showed up at her house to confront her over the break-up. Paul said she asked Mortensen several times to leave, and while he initially refused, he did eventually go. But Paul claims Mortensen returned and “demanded to again speak with Taylor about their relationship.”
Paul said she agreed to speak with Mortensen outside so as to not wake her three children sleeping inside (including the two-year-old son the pair share, as well as Paul’s kids from another marriage). According to Paul, she got into the front seat of Mortensen’s truck, at which point Mortensen allegedly “drove away despite Taylor’s objections.”
The filing goes on to claim that during their argument Mortensen “assaulted” Paul by “slamming her head against the dashboard of his truck and striking her knee and elbow.”
The timing of this alleged incident in late February means it could be the one Paul brought to Utah police around the same time, when both she and Mortensen made domestic assault allegations against each other. News of the investigation broke a few weeks later, at which point production on Season Five of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives was put on hold (setting the stage for the rest of the scandal that’s unfolded since).
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Additionally, Paul’s new filing claims that Mortensen assaulted her in March 2025, leaving “noticeable bruising on various parts of her body.” It claims that, during the incident, Paul “lost her footing,” and Mortensen “proceeded to kick her while she was on the floor.”
Paul also accused Mortensen of exhibiting “possessive and controlling” behavior after she decided to end their relationship earlier this year. Along with an alleged deluge of text messages, Paul claimed that Mortensen “tattooed [her] initials to the inside of his lip and sent [her] a photo.” She further claimed that Mortensen filed his protective order in late March as part of “an effort to sabotage my career.”
A rep for Paul declined to comment, while a lawyer for Mortensen did not immediately return Rolling Stone‘s request for comment.
