The Charleston County, South Carolina court system has scheduled a hearing on December 17 to address multiple claims filed against Bryan Kestner, one of the producers of the hit Bravo TV series Southern Charm.
Kestner is being sued by his ex-girlfriend, Dawn Price, who lived with him in Charleston, S.C. when Southern Charm began filming – and during the time Kestner was supposed to open a restaurant in the Holy City.
In October 2015, Kestner pleaded guilty in connection with a July 2015 domestic violence incident involving Price.
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Ordinarily this news outlet refrains from identifying victims of abuse, but Price – one of the first people to speak out against the culture of creepiness that surrounds Southern Charm – encouraged us to do so. Around that same time, Price filed a lawsuit against Kestner alleging that he defrauded her out of tens of thousands of dollars in connection with his failed bid to launch the “Generalissimo” restaurant in downtown Charleston.
According to our sources, Price’s cases against Kestner have been consolidated on the docket and will be heard at the same time in December.
Price is seeking the money she is allegedly owed from Kestner – as well as damages from the domestic violence incident.
According to the lawsuit, Kestner engaged in a “pattern of abuse” against her during their relationship – one that “recklessly inflicted severe emotional distress” upon her.
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She requests a jury of her peers to issue a judgment against Kestner (above) “for pain, suffering, impairment and disability; for hurt feelings, anxiety, and extreme emotional distress; as well as punitive and exemplary damages.”
As we noted in our original coverage of this claim, Price is no “pretty face looking for a pay day.”
A successful businesswoman, she recently moved from Florida to California where she recently began dating 27-year-old professional skateboarder Oscar Mezza.
Here is a recent picture of the two lovebirds at the Hollywood Roosevelt in Los Angeles …
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Southern Charm – which has seen its ratings surge in recent years – is obviously no stranger to legal drama. As this news outlet exclusively reported back in September, the show’s former male lead Thomas Ravenel was recently arrested and charged with second degree assault stemming from a 2015 incident involving the former nanny of the two children he has fathered with his former girlfriend and Southern Charm co-star, Kathryn Dennis.
According to Nanny Dawn, who went to police earlier this year with the allegations against Ravenel, he allegedly raped her while she was working for him in January 2015.
News of the investigation into this allegation was exclusively reported by this news outlet back in May. In a follow-up report, we revealed that several key pieces of evidence related to the case – including a cell phone loaded with what one source called “incriminating data” – were in the process of being turned over to detectives.
Also in May, our guest columnist Amy Feinstein published an exclusive interview with Dawn, whose story exploded shortly thereafter – including feature stories in People and The Daily Mail.
In addition to this court case, Ravenel and Dennis are now re-engaged in their bitter custody dispute – and there are several other ancillary actions related to the show reportedly in the works.
In mid-August, Ravenel – who has been the focus of other sexual assault allegations – announced he was quitting the wildly popular Charleston-based reality television show, which just wrapped its fifth season. Shortly after news of his arrest broke, Bravo confirmed he would not be returning for the show’s sixth season.
Last week, a Charleston County magistrate ruled that the office of S.C. ninth circuit solicitor Scarlett Wilson had met the burden of proof necessary to pursue the second degree assault charge against Ravenel in court.
That trial is schedule to begin later this year …
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