‘Real Housewives’ Sheree dismisses divorce appeal
Lawyers claim Bob Whitfield has squandered his NFL fortune
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Monday, January 12, 2009
Former Atlanta Falcon Bob Whitfield has squandered his fortune and failed to pay child support for his two children for 15 months, his ex-wife’s lawyer said Monday.
For this reason, Sheree Whitfield, a star of the TV reality show “Real Housewives of Atlanta,” dismissed her appeal of the couple’s divorce case that sought alimony from the former football star, her lawyer, Michael Weinstock, said.
Elissa Eubanks / AJC
Sheree Whitfield says Bob Whitfield hasn’t paid child support since the final divorce judgment was signed in October 2007.
“The man hasn’t paid a dime” in child support, Weinstock said. “Mr. Whitfield’s going to have to figure out how to pay the money.”
Weinstock made the claims during arguments before the Georgia Supreme Court in which he and Bob Whitfield’s lawyer, Christopher Olmstead, leveled accusations at one another.
Olmstead argued that Sheree Whitfield, 38, or her lawyers, should pay up to $2,500 in penalties for bringing a frivolous appeal.
“This is an affront to the court,” Olmstead said. “The icing on the cake, the cherry on the sundae” arrived Monday morning when Sheree Whitfield’s lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the appeal, he said.
Weinstock countered that the appeal was filed for legitimate reasons but the issue is now moot because Whitfield is broke.
Whitfield, 37, played for the Falcons for 12 years. He and Sheree Whitfield married in June 2000. Six months later, the Falcons gave their star offensive lineman a then-franchise record $8 million signing bonus.
The couple separated three years later and Sheree Whitfield filed for divorce in 2005.
After a trial, a Fulton County judge awarded Sheree Whitfield custody of the couple’s two children. The judge also ordered Bob Whitfield to pay $2,142 a month in child support, give his ex-wife $775,000 in cash and turn over shares of four NFL retirement accounts.
Bob Whitfield was awarded the family’s $2.4 million, 5,900-square-foot home in Sandy Springs and four other properties, including his “world-class” recording studio.
Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems Inc. is now advertising that it plans to foreclose and sell the spacious Sandy Springs home on the courthouse steps.
Sheree Whitfield initially filed her appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court on grounds she was wrongly denied alimony. While Olmstead wants to “take shots” at her lawyers, his client may ultimately be found in contempt of court, Weinstock said.
To date, Bob Whitfield has paid $425,000 of the court-ordered $775,000 to his ex-wife. But he has not paid any child support since the final divorce judgment was signed in October 2007, Weinstock said.
