Ex-Wife Asks Court To Bring Warnock in for Questioning in Child Custody Battle

Democrats

Move would allow lawyers to grill Warnock on unpaid child care expenses

Sen. Raphael Warnock (D., Ga.) / Getty Images Alana Goodman • November 15, 2022 4:59 am

Georgia Democratic senator Raphael Warnock’s ex-wife asked a court to bring Warnock in to face questions from her attorneys as part of their contentious child custody battle, according to a court notice filed last week and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

The filing is the first sign of movement in the case since the judge in August filed a sealed temporary custody order and shows that the conflict has not been resolved out of court. Warnock’s ex-wife, Oulèye Ndoye, has accused him in court filings of neglecting to see his children during his custody days and leaving her financially strapped with unpaid child care expenses.

The deposition will allow Ndoye’s lawyers to grill Warnock about these issues under oath in a closed-door deposition, information that could be used as part of a settlement or if the case goes to trial. Ndoye’s lawyers notified Warnock that they plan to question him on Jan. 18, 2023—just days after the Senate is scheduled to open for the next session.

Warnock’s rocky divorce and custody fight have been issues for him in the election. Allegations of neglect were highlighted in Republican political attacks, and Republican challenger Herschel Walker ran ads featuring police footage of Ndoye accusing Warnock of hitting her with his Tesla, a claim the senator denied.

The latest filing could revive attention on the messy legal dispute ahead of the Dec. 6 runoff. Warnock in June asked a judge to seal the full case, arguing that because he is “currently running for reelection” his opponent could use the case to “gain some political advantage,” according to a court motion obtained by the Free Beacon.

Ndoye in February took Warnock to court to revise their custody agreement, asking to move their two young children to Massachusetts while she attends a program at Harvard and for more financial support from Warnock. The couple split in 2020 after four years of marriage.

Ndoye said in her initial complaint that Warnock’s income “substantially increased” since he joined the Senate but that he “refused to reimburse [her] for child care expenses for the children” and “left [her] financially strapped.” She also claimed Warnock left their two children with “various babysitters

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