CINCINNATI – Leah Still's mother cleared up one thing about her claims that Devon Still has not been paying child support.
The Bengals player is not legally obligated to, Channing Smythe told TMZ.
Smythe said the two had a "voluntary agreement" - not a court order - that Still would pay support for Leah while Smythe cared for her in Delaware and Still lived in Cincinnati. She said he stopped paying her because he wanted her and Leah to move to Cincinnati and she refused.
Smythe expressed regret on social media Wednesday night that the letter her attorney sent to the NFL, complaining that Still has not paid support for his daughter since July, went public Wednesday.
WCPO obtained a copy of the letter from Smythe's attorney, Gloria Allred. Read it here or below.
"Nothing was ever supposed to go public …" Smythe posted. "Channing did not put it out to the press. Devon knows what's going on. #THE FACTS. Devon is a great dad. I NEVER SAID HE WASN'T."
Still, posting on social media, said he didn't know who to blame, his ex-girlfriend or her attorney:
Still responded on Instagram by saying, "I don't know who to blame between her and Gloria Allred for lies put out on me. The one thing that I do know is that I'm nowhere near a dead beat. I was raised by two amazing parents, including an outstanding father that showed through his actions with me and my siblings what it meant to be a FATHER."
Smythe said Still is a loving and caring father but she needs money from Still because she can't hold a job while she cares 24/7 for Leah. The 4-year-old was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer last June. She has been getting treatment at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Still flies to be with Leah when she undergoes treatments, like she did Monday, and on weekly football off-days.
In the letter to the NFL, Allred wrote that Smythe has to rely on food stamps, family and friends for food for Leah and herself, that they had to move into a friend's apartment because Smythe can't afford to pay rent, and that she has to borrow a car to take Leah to the hospital for treatments because she doesn't have one.
Allred also wrote that Still and his lawyer have been ducking attempts to serve him with notice that Smythe is seeking a child support order in Delaware, where she recently moved with Leah.
The letter did not say Smythe did not already have a court order - and Still, in a brief written statement Wednesday, did not point that out.
Still's statement said that a newspaper report about his failure to pay support was "untruthful" and he would let Smythe's claims play out in court.
I hope hes trolling
