Former Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta star Tommie Lee took to Instagram yesterday to share that her 14-year-old daughter Havalli had stolen her Jaguar and had ‘wrecked it’.
She began, “But I’m a bad parent right. This is the type of [stuff] my kid does when I’m out of town working. Steal my cars and wreck them but when I discipline her, I’m wrong.”
In 2019, Tommie almost served time in jail for reportedly assaulting Havalli, who was in middle school at the time. After she pleaded guilty to one count of cruelty to children in the first degree, three counts of simple battery, family violence, and one count of disrupting public school, Tommie was instead sentenced to 10 years, with two years to serve and the rest on probation. The two years was suspended upon completion of a residential recovery program and 12 months of successful aftercare with a psychologist or psychiatrist.
She continued, “Not cute at all. But the law says we can’t discipline our children. Right? So I should just let her endanger her life as well as others because she’s a teenager. Right? Where are all the perfect parents out there? what would y’all perfect [parents] do in this situation? On all probation for being a parent. Now my child thinks she can do anything and if I touch her, I’ll just go to jail.”
Many parents who saw Tommie’s post sympathized with the mom of two and offered their advice. One fan said, “Take the risk of going to jail. I would have beat her.”
Tommie, however, did not appreciate those who advised that she discipline her daughter by beating her. She wrote, “After reviewing some of these remarks, I feel compelled to speak on the fact that I’ve repeatedly thought about this incident and if it had taken a turn for the worse. [Most] of everybody who commented said I should beat my child and spoke as if they knew that that’s where my head was when I mentioned discipline. And to be honest, it wasn’t. My previous run-in with my child that was so publicly scrutinized was the second time I’ve ever had to be physical with her and both times I cried after. If you know me in real life, then you know this to be true.”
Furthermore, she says though a lot of people’s focus was on the car, the F1 Jaguar, her concern was that it “had a 14 year old driving it from Tarzana to Beverly Hills with very little experience. The horsepower on that car with the lack of knowledge being driven by a kid could have left my child dead.”
“This experience has taught me a few things and the main thing is none of us have this parenting [stuff] on lock and unlike you privileged and [people], I’m not a stay-at-home mom. I have to work to provide for my family so that whole you should have been home stuff is a joke to me because if I stay home, I won’t have one. You voiced your opinion and here’s mine. By the time your child reaches middle school, they’re no longer entertained or led by your super parenting skills. They’re being led and influenced by their peers and the defeated internet. Seeing some of these recommendations made me proud of the mother I am cuz y’all tripping. Damn and here I was thinking I’m the bad guy. All in all, I appreciate the more sensible responses and prayers and concerns. We good and to all my super parents that never had any funny [stuff] happen to them and their kids would never disrespect them or try them like that, let me borrow ya pamphlet! I need it!”
Tommie has two kids in all.
