The Real Housewives of Orange County’s Gina Kirschenheiter broke down in tears during the Bravo show’s season 14 reunion on Thursday, December 26, as she described estranged husband Matt Kirschenheiter’s alleged abuse.
Gina, 35, had previously claimed that Matt, also 35, attacked her on June 22, after she had wrapped filming on season 14 and after the couple — who share daughter Sienna, 5, and sons Nicholas, 7, and Luca, 4 — had agreed to reconcile.
“He just was like a different person,” she explained on the show on Thursday. “I was really scared. I ran out of the house, and I rang my neighbor’s doorbell, and I was banging on the door. And he dragged me back in the house.”
Tearing up, she went on, “A lot of the neighbors heard. They all called the police and then the cops came, they arrested him. It was scary. It was really scary.”
The reality star elaborated on the incident in June when she filed for a restraining order against Matt, whom she married in 2010 and split from in 2018.
“Around 2:00 a.m., I awoke to the sound of someone pounding on my door and repeatedly ringing the doorbell. I went downstairs and checked the door, but no one was there,” she wrote in court documents. “[Matthew] had somehow gotten into my house and was furious. He told me his phone died and he had to walk home, and that he had been at my door for an hour.”
She went on: “He threw me on the couch and threw some of the furniture around. I was scared and tried to get up, but he threw me down on the couch again. He was so angry; he was profusely sweating from head to toe. I was terrified. [Matthew] was screaming in my face saying he was going to f—king kill me. He ripped my bra strap off, then took a pillow and hit me on the side of the head with it hard. My ears rang. I begged him to stop … to calm down … but he kept hitting me.”
Gina claimed she then tried to get help from a neighbor before Matt allegedly dragged her back to the house. “His eyes were black and nothing I said could bring him back to reality,” she said. “Even when I was begging and pleading with him to stop because our children were home too, it had no effect on him.”
In September, Matt was charged with domestic violence, facing two felony counts. Kimberly Edds, a spokesperson for the Orange County District Attorney, told Us Weekly at the time that Matt will face a maximum sentence of four years and eight months in state prison if he’s found guilty. Matt pleaded not guilty to all charges in September.
According to The Blast, Gina and Matt finalized their divorce in August but will stay legally married until Tuesday, December 31.
In November, Gina exclusively opened up to Us about her “rough” year and her optimism for 2020 now that she’s moving on with new boyfriend Travis Mullen. “I’ve had a year, I’ve had a year, I know everybody refers to it as a season, but it’s been a year,” she said at the time. “[In 2020] we are manifesting good life decisions. We are manifesting good luck and love in the love life.”
