Denise Richards has secured a five-year restraining order against her estranged husband, Aaron Phypers, following allegations of sustained physical and emotional abuse during their seven-year marriage.

Phypers, 53, found himself in legal trouble last month when he was arrested outside a Los Angeles courthouse during a hearing for the restraining order. He faces two felony charges related to spousal injury.

The couple returned to court on Friday, where the hearing continued. The judge issued a directive for Phypers to maintain a distance from Richards, cease any threats or harassment, and surrender any firearms to law enforcement.

Additionally, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mark Juhas prohibited Phypers from disseminating or sharing any nude photographs of the 54-year-old star of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.”

Richards attended the hearing in downtown Los Angeles, exuding a stylish aura in a cream-colored knitted top paired with gray, form-fitting pants, brown leather high-heeled boots, and sported freshly manicured pink nails. She was under the protection of a robust, tattooed bodyguard.

The couple came face to face inside the courthouse, with Richards sitting alongside her legal team at one end of a long table, and Phypers, wearing a shabby black jacket over white shirt and blue tie and faded gray jeans, at the other. 

During the two-and-a-half hour hearing, Richards’s attorney Jeff Layfield reiterated her claims of physical abuse, adding that the reality star has ‘hired private security and moved to a gated community’, in fear of her estranged husband. 

Denise Richards was granted a five-year restraining order against her estranged husband Aaron Phypers during a court hearing in Los Angeles on Friday

Phypers filed for divorce from Richards in July, citing ‘irreconcilable differences’, with their date of separation listed as July 4, 2025

Layfield told the court that Phypers also subjected Richards to ‘extreme stress and anxiety’ by sharing nude photos of her with Daily Mail to whom he gave an interview in July (the Daily Mail did not publish the pictures).

Calling the nude photos ‘revenge porn’, Layfield said sharing them with media was ‘not only disturbing Ms Richards’s peace, it was a violation of the penal code and a violation of the temporary restraining order.’

He also argued for the five-year extension, adding: ‘Phypers has repeatedly violated the temporary restraining order. There is no evidence whatsoever that Phypers is going to stop the abuse.

‘Mr Phypers simply does not understand that disseminating nude photos of Ms Richards is abuse.’

Phypers has vehemently denied the allegations and accused Richards of lying, telling the Daily Mail: ‘Let me be unequivocally clear: I have never physically or emotionally abused Denise – or anyone.’

‘These accusations are completely false and deeply hurtful. Denise and I, like many couples, have faced our share of challenges, but any suggestion of abuse is categorically untrue.’

Phypers was ordered to stay away from the actress, stop threatening or harassing her, and to hand over any guns to police

The court hearing was a continuance of the hearing held on October 17 for Richards’s temporary restraining order 

Richards, seen leaving court with her legal team on Friday, has accused her ex of physical abuse and threatening her – which Phypers denies 

In court Friday, Phypers attorney, Michael Finley accused Richards of ‘perjury’ and dismissed three witnesses who corroborated her claims at an earlier hearing, as ‘biased’ or ‘hostile’. 

Addressing Richards’s claim that she’s frightened of Phypers, Finley told the court: ‘She never called the police. If she was really afraid, why would she not want the police called?

‘She never went to a doctor after her alleged injuries, including the alleged concussions…north bruised eye. Why? Because they didn’t happen.’

Pointing out that Richards shares revealing photos of herself on the OnlyFans website and she also did a Playboy layout, Finley said that the reason Phypers took screenshots of nude photos of her and her alleged lover was to ‘have the evidence to prove adultery in order to get a divorce.

‘The idea that my client violated the temporary restraining order willy nilly is ridiculous. She has no fear of him. He’s a good man, not a monster. Ms Richards has no need for a restraining order.’

In issuing the five-year restraining order, Judge Juhas said that he found ‘her peace was disturbed by the photographs.’ 

Richards appeared at the hearing in downtown LA looking stylish in a camel trench coat,  pants, and knee-high brown heeled boots. She was accompanied by a burly, tattooed bodyguard

Phypers swiftly bonded out of the Lost Hills Sheriff¿s Station that same night after satisfying his $200,000 bail, per TMZ; (Phypers and Richards in 2023)

Regarding Richards’ claims of physical abuse and the witnesses whose testimony backed her up, the judge added: ‘I don’t find that Ms Richards and the witnesses sat down together and made the whole thing up.’

In addition to telling Phypers to stay away from Richards, the judge ordered him to return to her any photos and videos that belong to her, not to share any more private pictures, videos or emails of hers, and to return to her a laptop computer she claims he took from her.

It marks the latest episode in an increasingly ugly split that began July 7 when Phypers filed for divorce from Richards after an explosive fight with her during Independence Day weekend over another man he claimed she was cheating on him with.

In an interview in July, Phypers told the Daily Mail that he allegedly learned Richards was cheating on him in April and when he confronted her she had promised to break it off – only for him to catch her lying about another hookup with her alleged lover the following month.

 He claimed his discovery of the May tryst led to a massive argument over the July 4th holiday weekend, during which Richards allegedly smashed his phone.

Just days later, Richards slapped Phypers with a court plea for a domestic violence restraining order against him and despite his denial of all her abuse accusations, Judge Juhas granted the restraining order to run temporarily until Friday when the judge made it permanent.

Richards – who married Phypers in 2018 – included a graphic photo of herself with a black eye in court documents claiming: ‘Throughout our relationship, Aaron would frequently violently choke me, violently squeeze my head with both hands, tightly squeeze my arms, violently slap me in my face and head.’

She also alleged that ‘Aaron regularly threatened to “break my jaw” and would cry, beg me to stay, and promise to get help — none of which ever happened.’

‘Aaron has caused me at least three concussions. He has told me that he left recording devices to record me while I was alone in hotel rooms and at my townhouses.’

The couple’s bitter divorce battle took a dramatic turn October 17 when LA Sheriff’s deputies arrested Phypers outside the LA courtroom where he had shown up for a hearing about Richards’s restraining order against him. 

Phypers, who filed for divorce from Richards in July citing ‘irreconcilable differences’, was released just hours after his arrest. 

He swiftly bonded out of the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station that same night after satisfying his $200,000 bail.

At the time of the arrest, Phypers’s lawyer Michael Finley told the Daily Mail he had not yet seen the criminal complaint but ‘it appears to be the same allegations we’re already fighting, and I think we’re proving it all to be false in the domestic violence case.’ 

‘So, we expect it to also be proven false and for him to be exonerated in this new criminal case.’

Documents later obtained by the Daily Mail revealed Phypers was charged with two felony counts of injuring a spouse and two felony counts of dissuading a witness by force or threat. 

The documents state the two charges of dissuading a witness by force or threat and one of the charges for injuring a spouse allegedly occurred on January 17, 2022. 

The second charge of injuring a spouse allegedly took place on May 3, 2022. 

Finley told the Daily Mail: ‘We feel that it is highly unusual that criminal charges would be brought now over allegations from nearly four years ago. 

‘In our opinion, Denise’s allegations are false, so we expect that the evidence will prove Aaron’s innocence and that he will be exonerated.’

During the October 17 hearing, Phypers’s mother had testified that she saw Richards throw a can opener at her son, prompting the hearing to get contentious. She also said Phypers never abused or threatened Richards.