2021 Petition for Temporary Protective Order Against Current Contestant The Golden Bachelor he resurfaced.
According to documents obtained by PEOPLE, Guy Gansert’s ex-wife Heidi O’Gara filed for a temporary protective order in Reno, Nevada, in October 2021, but dropped it a month later before it was granted.
On October 10, Gansert (who is still competing for the heart of Joan Vassos at The Golden Bachelor) came forward in connection with the submission of a lengthy statement on Instagram.
“I would like to respond to the personal matter articles from 2021,” he began. “This was an unfortunate situation that occurred during an incredibly stressful time for me and my ex-wife and was ultimately resolved when she voluntarily left [sic] denied her request for a protective order. Together we devised a solution that was acceptable to both parties.”
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“My ex-wife and I recently asked the court to seal her request for a protective order because we hoped to preserve our family’s privacy,” he continued, referring to the joint Sept. 30 request to seal the case. “But, I know that with an ex-wife comes responsibility for 34 years and that in that time we raised together and that they are my biggest success and brought me to a very low point in my life and as a result I behaved in a way that was not represents who I am.”
He concluded: “The past few years have forced me to do some deep self-evaluation and I will always continue to work on improving myself. I greatly appreciate The Golden Bachelor and Bachelor Nation as well as my family, who have been extremely supportive during the most difficult moments of my life. I am eternally grateful to them.”
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On Oct. 12, 2021, O’Gara filed for a temporary restraining order for “only 45 days” requesting that Gansert contact her only via email regarding parenting matters, according to an emergency request obtained by PEOPLE.
In the lawsuit, she claimed that beginning in July of that year, she received text messages “trying to reconcile and then became enraged” and later “attempted to physically threaten me.”
On the day she filed for the order, she alleged Gansert put something under her tire after running into her with his sister at the gym. Then he allegedly “made a sign with his hand in the shape of a gun as if he was going to shoot me.”
Guy (left) and Joan from The Golden Bachelor.
Disney/Ricky Middlesworth; Disney/Brian Bowen Smith
O’Gara further claimed that Gansert was “unstable” and told his sister that he “took 10 pills,” the contents of which were unclear to O’Gara.
On Nov. 3, 2021, O’Gara filed a motion to dismiss the request for a protective order, which was never implemented, and a judge granted her request, according to the filing.
In a statement to PEOPLE, O’Gara’s attorney says, “After years of marriage, Guy and I share four amazing children and a new grandchild. Although our divorce was very difficult, in order to protect our family’s privacy and move forward, we have reached a mutual settlement and they chose not to comment on it publicly.”
ABC has not publicly commented on the situation involving Gansert, but a source close to the production did The Golden Bachelor tells PEOPLE that they “learned from Gansert during our vetting process that his ex-wife had filed for a temporary protective order against him following a disagreement.”
The source notes that the production then “confirmed that the request was never approved, as Gansert’s ex-wife voluntarily dropped the request shortly after it was filed. So he was allowed to continue through the casting process.”
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The Golden Bachelor airs Wednesdays at 8:00 PM ET on ABC.
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Source: HIS Education