James Kennedy’s arrest was allegedly not his first time being violent with a woman.
Just months before Kennedy, 32, was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence on Dec. 10, his ex-fiancée Rachel “Raquel” Leviss accused him of violence in a lawsuit.
In a lawsuit filed against her former Vanderpump Rules costars Ariana Madix and Tom Sandoval, along with Bravo and their production companies, Leviss claimed Kennedy exhibited abusive behaviors while she was with him.
“Leviss made her first appearance on the show as the girlfriend of cast member James Kennedy, a DJ prone to violent outbursts and grappling with long-standing substance abuse issues and emotional dysregulation,” reads the lawsuit, which was filed in February 2024 and is still ongoing. “Kennedy would regularly berate Leviss, falsely accuse her of cheating, and act in a generally unhinged manner. Some of this was captured on camera; some was not. Leviss eventually warned Kennedy that she would leave him if he did not stop drinking. However, she soon learned that his despicable behavior was not solely a function of alcohol abuse.”
“At Thanksgiving with Leviss’s family in Arizona, Kennedy erupted at Leviss’s mother and father and kicked her family dog four times in an uncontrollable rage. In 2021, Levis ended their relationship and broke off their engagement. Kennedy’s history of violent and dangerous behavior was well-known by Bravo, Evolution, and the cast,” the suit reads.
“Kennedy once physically assaulted then-cast member Kristin [sic] Doute on camera; the footage, however, never aired,” it continued. “Nor has Kennedy faced any repercussions for his actions — which would otherwise be fireable, at a minimum — due in part to the intervention of his powerful ally, Lisa Vanderpump, who served as his protector.”
PEOPLE has reached out to reps for Vanderpump, Bravo and Evolution for comment.
Shortly after TMZ broke the news of Kennedy’s arrest on Dec. 12, Doute, who dated Kennedy from 2014 until 2015, reacted on her Instagram Stories. Alongside a screenshot of the article, she wrote: “FINALLY.”
Leviss’ lawyers, Mark Geragos and Bryan Freedman, also addressed his arrest in a statement to PEOPLE.
“We are aware of James Kennedy’s recent arrest for domestic violence,” they said. “This news is, unfortunately, not surprising. Rachel’s lawsuit describes, in significant detail, Mr. Kennedy’s long history of erratic, violent behavior and substance abuse. Just as troubling, however, is that NBC and Evolution (the Vanderpump Rules production company), who have known about Mr. Kennedy’s troubling behavior all along, have been engaged in a multi-year cover-up on his behalf. They, too, bear responsibility.”
Prior to the lawsuit, Leviss had also spoken about Kennedy’s violent actions on Vanderpump Rules.
In a February 2020 episode, Kennedy cursed out Leviss over the phone for missing his DJ set, though they made up shortly after. Another episode that aired in March 2020 saw Kennedy sending Leviss texts, where he called her derogatory names and threatened to break up with her after she didn’t answer his calls.
“No girl goes into a relationship thinking they’re going to be verbally abused. It’s scary to me. I don’t ever want to go through this again,” she said, later telling Kennedy, “I’m not going to blame myself for your actions … And if you can’t get your s— together, then we will break up.”
Around 11:30 p.m. on Dec. 10, the Burbank Police Department responded to a call at Kennedy’s Los Angeles home “regarding an argument between a man and a woman,” a police spokesperson told PEOPLE.
“The investigation determined it was a domestic incident, leading to [Kennedy’s] arrest,” the spokesperson said. “[Kennedy] was booked for misdemeanor domestic violence and later posted bail. Formal charges are pending review by the Burbank City Attorney’s office.”
According to TMZ, who was first to break the news, citing a law enforcement source, a witness reportedly saw Kennedy get physical with an unnamed woman, although authorities did not see any injuries when they arrived on the scene. He was released on $20,000 bail, per the outlet.
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It is unclear if the woman was Kennedy’s current girlfriend Ally Lewber, but the pair had been together earlier that night for Kathy Hilton’s annual holiday party. A source told PEOPLE that Kennedy exhibited odd behavior at the event.
“He was acting so erratic, running back and forth to the bar and body-checking people along the way,” the insider claimed of Kennedy. “He appeared inebriated. Spent the evening mostly alone but when he did speak to people, he appeared irritated and rude.”
PEOPLE has reached out to Kennedy and Lewber for comment.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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