Controversy has followed Taylor Frankie Paul at every turn, and the drama surrounding The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star is only growing more tangled.
Just days before Paul’s divisive season leading The Bachelorette was due to premiere on March 22, ABC pulled the show after a video surfaced that appeared to show her attacking her ex, Dakota Mortensen, in a 2023 incident that led to her arrest.
Not even a week later, the West Jordan Police Department in Utah is reportedly investigating a third allegation of domestic violence, involving Paul and Mortensen. Paul, 31, has not spoken out about the latest allegation, which stems from a 2024 incident.
It comes after authorities confirmed they were investigating a second allegation of domestic assault regarding Paul and Mortensen. The Draper City Police Department said that “allegations have been made in both directions” and “contact was made with involved parties on [February] 24th and 25th” but no charges have been filed yet.
Here’s a closer look at the controversy surrounding Paul and how it has unfolded.
Soft swinging scandal
Paul, a Mormon mom influencer who grew a following of millions on TikTok for her content about her family’s life in Utah, made headlines in May 2022 by announcing her divorce to the world on TikTok Live.
During the announcement, she exposed a “soft swinging” agreement that she and her ex-husband, Tate, had with other MomTok couples that had contributed to the reasons for her divorce from Tate, the father of her two children. The bombshell confession sparked speculation over which influencers had participated in the affairs, and eventually led to the group of women landing their own Hulu reality series.
Volatile relationship with Dakota Mortensen
The first season of SLOMW — which was Hulu’s most-watched unscripted premiere of 2024 — showed Paul beginning a relationship with Mortensen, a recovering addict whom she met on TikTok. The pair’s relationship took a turn after they briefly broke up in December 2022 and got back together a month later.
Then, in February 2023, Paul was arrested and charged with three misdemeanors, including assault, criminal mischief and domestic violence in the presence of a child. Bodycam footage of the arrest, which was included in SLOMW, showed Paul crying and explaining that she had been fighting with Mortensen. In August of that year, she pleaded guilty to a third-degree felony count of aggravated assault, and the other charges against her were dropped.
Paul and Mortensen announced in September that they were pregnant with their first child together, which led to criticism from the Mormon church over Paul having a child with a man she had not married. However, Paul insisted that she was not ready to be married again, and she gave birth to Ever True in March 2024.
The pair ended up breaking up again later that year, and continued to break up and get back together several times before, in September 2025, Paul was named as ABC’s new Bachelorette.
On March 16, Draper police confirmed that there is a “domestic assault investigation” tied to a second alleged incident between Paul and Mortensen in February of this year.
Paul is now being investigated for a third allegation of domestic violence. Authorities told NBC News on March 24 that they received a call from Mortensen in February with allegations of domestic violence against Paul, stemming from a 2024 incident. A police spokesperson said they are reviewing multiple videos connected to the alleged assault to determine details and timelines. While they have yet to speak to Paul directly, investigators have spoken with her attorney and are requesting that Paul either come in for an interview to help corroborate some of the details in Mortensen’s report or submit a written statement.
Bachelorette drama
ABC’s decision to center the new season of The Bachelorette around Paul sparked backlash for several reasons, as some criticized the network’s decision to stray from the tradition of choosing contestants from previous seasons of The Bachelor.
Other critics wondered if it was fair to introduce Paul to 22 potential suitors, knowing about her toxic relationship with Mortensen, and with lingering questions about whether their relationship was really over.
Those concerns were later validated with the news of SLOMW filming pausing due to a “blowup” between Mortensen and Paul. The Draper City Police Department told People that the former couple has both made allegations against each other after an incident between them on February 24 and 25. Draper police told The Independent they would not comment further due to the pending investigation.
During the hiatus, other reports have suggested that Paul’s fellow MomTok members are trying to distance themselves from Paul.
On March 19, ABC’s parent company Disney made the costly decision to cancel Paul’s season after footage of her 2023 dispute with Mortensen was released. “In light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of The Bachelorette at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
Following the release of the violent video, Paul’s representative issued a statement, accusing Mortensen of leaking the video “to distract from his own behavior.”
Mortensen later denied Paul’s claims in a statement of his own, saying: “As anyone who has seen the video will understand, this is a deeply upsetting situation. I am, unfortunately, used to these baseless claims about me and our relationship, which I categorically deny. I am focusing on our son and his safety, and hope that Taylor will do the same.”
Paul’s representative released a second statement, this time addressing the cancellation of The Bachelorette. “Taylor is very grateful for ABC’s support as she prioritizes her family’s safety and security. After years of silently suffering extensive mental and physical abuse as well as threats of retaliation, Taylor is finally gaining the strength to face her accuser and taking steps to ensure that she and her children are protected from any further harm,” her spokesperson said.
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