By Miles Dilworth, Senior Reporter For Dailymail.Com and Sarah Sotoodeh and Adam S. Levy For Dailymail.com 02:09 April 21, 2023, updated 02:37 April 21, 2023
- Von Schmeling, 28, and the actor, 36, initially split in September 2022
- The reason for the separation after four years of marriage is irreconcilable differences
- The couple are parents to one-year-old son Wyatt Bell, for whom Von Schmeling is seeking primary legal and physical custody
Drake Bell’s wife Janet Von Schmeling has filed for divorce from the embattled actor a week after his resurgence after he was reported missing.
Von Schmeling, 28, said in court documents reviewed by TMZ that she and the 36-year-old actor initially split in September 2022.
Von Schmeling said the reason for the split after four years of marriage was irreconcilable differences, the outlet reported.
The couple are parents to one-year-old son Wyatt Bell, for whom Von Schmeling is seeking primary legal and physical custody.
Von Schmeling said she was open to Bell having a visit from her son as part of a divorce settlement.
The latest: Drake Bell’s wife Janet Von Schmeling, 28, has filed for divorce from the embattled actor, 36, a week after the actor resurfaced after being reported missing. The former couple were pictured in LA in February 2017
The news comes a week after the actor took to Twitter on April 13 to express his shock at the widespread news that his family had reported him missing and officials issued a warning that he was missing and at risk.
“You leave your phone in the car and don’t answer it at night and all that?” Bell wrote on Twitter, sporting a face with an accompanying tears of joy emoji.
The Newport Beach, California-born actor was reported missing by his family before he was found by Florida police around 1 p.m. ET on April 13.
The Nickelodeon graduate “raised concern” with family before he was reported missing – and found by police hours later, a source told US Weekly.
The source said, “There has been communication with family members that has caused concern so they are worried about him and looking for him.”
The insider said some of his relatives didn’t even know he was in Florida, where his estranged wife Von Schemling lives with their young son.
Bell was spotted in public with his son during a trip to SeaWorld in Orlando on Tuesday.
A fan told TMZ that he greeted the actor and said he “spoke nice and softly but looked good.”
Von Schmeling cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for the separation after four years of marriage. Pictured in LA in 2017 Bell broke his silence last week after being reported missing and subsequently located by authorities, taking to Twitter on Thursday to express his shock at the widespread news that his family reported him missing. Pictured in NYC in 2019 Safe: Bell was found safe Thursday afternoon, posting a light-hearted tweet in response to the drama suggesting it was all a misunderstanding
The Daytona Beach Police Department previously confirmed, “At this time, we can confirm that law enforcement officers are in contact and Mr. Bell is safe.”
The alarming series of events comes after years of erratic behavior, including multiple arrests for DUI and guilty pleas for attempted endangerment [of] Children and the distribution of substances harmful to young people, for which he received two years probation.
Bell reportedly entered treatment in January weeks after apparently sucking on a balloon for more than thirty minutes outside his home in the front seat of his parked car – with his son in the car.
Shortly thereafter, the star and his wife Von Schmeling, also an actress, separated and the latter moved to Florida with their son Jeremy.
The former child star was then spotted on Friday running errands in his Los Angeles neighborhood and driving to a local vape shop.
He entered the store alone, wearing a black t-shirt and black pants with black sneakers, before exiting a few minutes later with a shopping bag.
In December, DailyMail.com revealed exclusive images of Bell, best known for his roles on Drake & Josh and The Amanda Show, inhaling inflated balloons in the front seat of his car parked outside his Los Angeles home.
Wearing a basketball hat and sunglasses, he was observed inflating and deflating the pink balloon for more than half an hour.
The Daytona Beach Police Department said Bell was last seen driving a gray 2022 BMW near Mainland High School just before 9 p.m. on April 12 before he was relocated. Bell had been sentenced to two years probation and 200 hours of community service for child endangerment. The girl who met him online and attended one of his concerts in Ohio when he was 15 (pictured in his June 2021 mugshot)
The actor was later seen taking his sleeping baby son out of a car seat in the back and carrying him inside. It is unclear what substance was in the balloons.
The incident happened while Bell, born Jared “Drake” Bell, was serving a two-year suspended sentence for endangering a girl’s welfare when she was just 15 years old.
Bell was sentenced to two years probation and 200 hours of community service in July 2021 after pleading guilty to child endangerment charges.
Authorities said a 15-year-old girl attended one of Bell’s concerts in Cleveland in 2017 and contacted Toronto police in October 2018 about sexual assault allegations.
Toronto authorities then forwarded their findings to the Cleveland Police Department, prompting an investigation. They found that Bell and the girl had “formed a relationship” online prior to the concert, during which Bell sent the girl “inappropriate social media messages.”
He was later charged with attempted endangerment of a child for “breaching his duty of care” and putting the victim at risk of harm, said then-Cuyahoga Attorney General Tyler Sinclair.
The victim claimed in her impact statement that she performed oral sex on the star.
“These are crimes that are unforgivable and inexcusable,” she said. “They cannot be taken back. He calculated, he exploited me and sexually abused me. He is a monster and a danger to children.
She added, “I kindly ask you to send a strong message that these crimes are never okay, no matter who a person is.”
“And he can make me look whatever he wants, but he knows exactly what I’m talking about. He is the epitome of evil. I deserve better than being used for his sick desires and using my suffering for his amusement. Jared Drake Bell is a pedophile and that is his legacy.”
In response, Bell said, “I just want to say today that I accept this request because my behavior was wrong.”
He added: “I took this matter very, very seriously. I just want to apologize to her and anyone else who may have been affected by my actions.
During his sentencing, his attorney clarified that he had not been charged with the more serious crimes of sexual assault and pedophilia that the victim alleged in her impact statement.
Bell pleaded guilty to the felonies of attempted child endangerment and a misdemeanor count of distributing harmful substances to minors.
But months later, he tried to downplay his beliefs in an enigmatic Instagram video.
“Most of the news that you’ve heard lately is completely false and false,” he said.
“I know it was very quick for you, but for me it has been a three year thorough investigation of every false claim that has been made. And I’m not telling you the claims are false, but the state of Ohio has proven the claims to be false.
“If these claims were even remotely true, my situation would be very different. I wouldn’t be here at home with my wife and son.’
He added: “But other than that, I’m not perfect and I make mistakes.
“I was replying to a fan whose age I didn’t know, but when I became aware of his age all conversations and communications stopped.”
The I Know singer continued, “This person continued to come to shows and pay for meet and greets while I was unaware that this was the same person I communicated with online and to that I plead guilty.
“They were reckless and irresponsible text messages. I want to clarify that there was no sexual imagery, nothing physical between me and this person.’
Bell starred in Drake and Josh alongside Josh Peck, who played his stepbrother Bell, left, was also a star on The Amanda Show, a sketch-style show starring Amanda Bynes
He added: “I have not been accused of anything physical. I was not charged with distributing their pictures or anything like that. This was exclusively via text messages.
“And when I was presented with a plea as a result of the news, I felt like that’s the best way to get this over with quickly and for everyone involved to be able to move on. And so I can get back to doing what I love, and that’s making music for you.
“I want to thank you, for example, everyone who saw through the lies and researched and looked at my case and saw it for what it was instead of all this media confusion.”
He concluded: “Don’t believe the media right away. It’s a lot of clickbait. Do your own research and come to your own conclusions. I just want to say thank you to everyone who stuck by me. I love you and I will see you soon.’
The former child star was sentenced to four days in prison for drunk driving in 2015, which was his second DUI conviction in six years.