Kailyn Lowry’s defamation lawsuit against Teen Mom 2 co-star Briana DeJesus has been dismissed in Briana’s favor. Kailyn and Briana, who starred on 16 And Pregnant seasons 2 and 4, respectively, have been at odds for years. Shortly after Kailyn and her ex-husband, Javi Marroquin, divorced in 2017, Javi and Briana began dating, to the surprise of Kailyn, their other co-workers and Teen Mom fans. This love triangle led to several verbal altercations throughout Teen Mom 2 season 8, with the mothers–along with Briana’s sister Brittany DeJesus–coming close to physical blows at that season’s reunion.
While Kailyn and Briana’s feud died down for a bit after Javi and Briana broke up in 2018, things began to pick up steam once again last year. In 2020, Kailyn was arrested for allegedly punching her ex-boyfriend Chris Lowry; Chris is the father of Kailyn’s two youngest children, Lux and Creed. Months later, Briana claimed that Kailyn’s assault on Chris was not only true but that the 30-year-old allegedly attempted to break into the home of Chris’ mother. Briana, who is known for posting and deleting social media tirades, was sued by Kailyn in June 2021 for defamation based on these comments. Since then, Kailyn and Briana have frequently thrown jabs at one another, with Briana even joining Chris on his podcast, P. T. S. D – Pressure Talks with Single Dads.
After almost a year of fighting in court, Briana announced on April 18 that Kailyn’s lawsuit was dismissed in her favor, simply stating to Celebuzz, “I won.” According to court documents obtained by Us Weekly, the Florida judge who oversaw the case determined that Briana’s statements were “substantially true,” writing, “[Briana] Soto’s statement about ‘breaking and entering’ does not change the gist of the statement that Lowry had been arrested.” Furthermore, the judge noted that “there is insufficient evidence to establish that Soto knew the statement [of breaking and entering] was false at the time it was made.” In the end, the court documents highlighted two main reasons for the lawsuit’s dismissal. Declaring that Kailyn failed to meet the burden of proof as the plaintiff, the judge further reasoned that “the damage to Lowry’s reputation, if any, had already occurred when [Kailyn’s arrest] was publicized by news media.”
Naturally, Briana has been celebrating the lawsuit’s dismissal with several Instagram Stories poking fun at Kailyn and the situation. Sharing an image of her Amazon cart, Briana showed off an incoming order–a handheld mirror, clown makeup and a full-on clown suit–before revealing that the items are for Kailyn with the gift message, “F****** CLOWN! From Briana DeJesus.” On the other hand, Kailyn’s statement on her Instagram Story was short and to the point, with the mom-of-four writing, “While today’s ruling is unfortunate, I have to respect the judge’s decision.” Thanking her lawyers for fighting on her behalf, Kailyn reiterated that Briana’s original statements from last year are “still not true” and that she will continue to “stand by my truth.”
Kailyn and Briana’s lawsuit may be officially over, but that doesn’t mean the drama between these two will end anytime soon. With Teen Mom 2 season 11 currently airing, viewers will no doubt hear more from both mothers over the coming weeks. After everything that just happened, fans are now interested to see if Briana’s package will, in fact, reach Kailyn.
Teen Mom 2 airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. EST on MTV.
Sources: Celebuzz, Us Weekly, Briana DeJesus/Instagram, Kailyn Lowry/Instagram
