With her infant grandson clutched tightly in her arms, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert ended her 17-year marriage to Jayson Boebert on Tuesday morning before a magistrate in Grand Junction.
The public portion of the dissolution of marriage hearing was over in minutes, but that came after nearly 40 minutes of negotiations behind closed doors when shouting between the Boeberts, and a baby crying, could be heard through the locked door of the courtroom.
The public part of the uncontested divorce hearing was calm by comparison. Rep. Boebert’s attorney, Annie Le Fleur, said the Boeberts had agreed that the marriage was “irretrievably broken.” Le Fleur also told Mesa County Magistrate Katherine Barnes that her client agreed to forgo child support. Rep. Boebert could have received $1,833.43 a month under the formula the court uses in divorces.
The Boeberts, who have four sons, agreed to a parenting plan that is laid out in a sealed divorce file. Custody arrangements were not discussed in court.
Jayson Boebert appeared without representation. While Lauren Boebert rocked the baby in her arms, her soon to be ex-husband leaned emotionally over the defendant’s table, squeezing his eyes shut, as the magistrate declared that the marriage was dissolved.
Before they left the courtroom, Le Fleur told Jayson Boebert, “You need your grandson.” Lauren Boebert, 36, started to hand the baby over before saying that she would carry him out.
The Boeberts had entered the courtroom separately – Lauren Boebert striding in with the baby and giving the small gathering of reporters and photographers angry looks. Jayson Boebert walked in about 10 minutes later, scowling in a pair of dark sunglasses.
They left the courtroom together with a sheriff’s deputy escorting them. They left in the same black SUV with the grandson in a back seat baby carrier after Jayson Boebert accosted a Daily Mail reporter who was shouting questions at Lauren Boebert. Jayson Boebert marched up to the reporter who was using his phone to record video and stuck his tongue on the lens on his phone.
If not for a September date night seen around the world, the Boeberts’ divorce might have happened with a modicum of fanfare. But this one attracted the London-based Daily Mail, which flew a reporter and photographer from Los Angeles to cover the proceedings. Business Insider also had a team at the hearing.
Lauren Boebert filed for divorce April 25, citing irreconcilable differences and stating at the time that she did not intend to discuss the matter any further “out of respect for our children.”
Boebert, a Republican who is in her second term representing the 3rd Congressional District, recently blamed the difficult divorce she was going through for her behavior at the Buell Theater when, according to theater surveillance footage, she was vaping, being disruptive and mutually groping with a date during a performance of the musical “Beetlejuice.”
She and her date, Aspen bar owner Quinn Gallagher, were kicked out of the theater after nearby patrons complained about Boebert’s behavior. Boebert initially denied the claims of her disruptive behavior and stated she was simply enjoying herself.
But theater cameras captured Boebert vaping, taking pictures, waving her arms, singing along with the performers, groping her date and allowing him to grope her, and ignoring a pregnant woman behind her who asked her to stop vaping.
When they were ejected, Boebert asked theater security personnel, “Do you know who I am?” Cameras showed her raising a middle finger at the staff who escorted her out.
When Boebert later apologized for her behavior, she cited her upcoming divorce as a cause.
“There’s no perfect blueprint for going through a public and difficult divorce, which over the past four months has made for a challenging time for me and my entire family. I’ve tried to handle it with strength and grace as best as I can, but I simply fell short of my values on Sunday. That’s unacceptable and I’m sorry,” Boebert wrote in a statement.
According to her book, “My American Life,” Lauren married Jayson Boebert in 2006 after meeting him while she was working at a Burger King in Rifle. She had dropped out of high school.
Before they married, Jayson had pleaded guilty to public indecency after allegedly exposing himself to two girls who were with Lauren at a Rifle bowling alley. Lauren came to his defense in the book, denying that Jayson had exposed himself.
Since then, Jayson Boebert has been in the news for allegedly threatening neighbors after they complained about his sons for speeding around on an ATV in the Silt subdivision where the Boeberts lived.
Lauren Boebert is facing an election in 2024 that is forecast to be difficult. She was first elected to Congress in 2020 after handily beating incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton in the primary. She narrowly won reelection in 2022, inching past Democratic challenger Adam Frisch by 546 votes. At her election night watch party, she was holding hands and praying with Jayson as the votes showed the race with a razor-thin margin.
The incident at the Buell hasn’t helped her standing in the next election. After the images from the theater fueled headlines far beyond the 3rd District boundaries, some high-profile Republicans began rescinding their previous support for her. Mesa County commissioners Cody Davis and Bobbie Daniel announced recently that they are supporting GOP primary challenger Jeff Hurd, a Grand Junction attorney who is in his first political race. Delta County Commissioner Don Suppes joined them in supporting Hurd this week.
Boebert is also facing GOP primary challengers Russ Andrews, a financial adviser from Carbondale, and Curtis McCrackin, a real estate and construction professional from Delta. On the Democratic side, Frisch is challenging her again and has been outraising her in campaign contributions. Grand Junction Mayor Anna Stout also threw her hat in the ring in August; and former construction worker Adam Withrow from Pueblo is running.
