Local News

Rapper Vanilla Ice Arrested For Domestic Battery

WELLINGTON (CBS4) ― Rapper Vanilla Ice, whose real name is Robert Van Winkle, made his first South Florida courtroom appearance Friday morning after being arrested on a domestic battery charge.

Judge Nancy Perez granted him a release based on the Palm Beach County 'Supervised Own Recognizance Program' which means he agreed to abide by certain court-ordered rules.

Those rules state he can only have phone contact with his wife and can have third party visitation with his kids through a neighbor named Frank Morales. In addition, he can have a one-time police escort to remove personal items from his home and he must live apart from his wife until the courts make a final decision.

According to a police report from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, the rapper was taken into custody Thursday night at his Wellington home after a fight with his wife. He was held without bond on a simple battery charge until Friday morning's court hearing.

His wife, Laura, reportedly called police saying Van Winkle "struck her" and "kicked her" during an argument but when deputies showed up, she said he only pushed her and she didn't want to give a statement. She said just wanted a divorce.

According to the arrest report, Van Winkle said that he and his wife had been fighting since Wednesday and he claimed that she suffers from bipolar disorder.

There is a 911 tape in the case but it's is considered evidence and will not be released.

This isn't Van Winkle's first run in with the law. The musician spent a night in jail in 2001 after a domestic dispute.

Vanilla Ice sold 15 million copies of the single "Ice, Ice Baby" in 1990.

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