Snejana Farberov for Dailymail.Com recently reported how Country singer Sara Evans filed for divorce from former Alabama QB Jay Barker citing ‘inappropriate marital conduct’ last year – four months before he was arrested for ‘trying to run her over with his car’
Born to Fly singer Sara Evans, 50, filed for divorce from her husband, Jay Barker, 49, in August 2021
Evans’ complaint cited irreconcilable differences and ‘inappropriate marital conduct’
On Saturday, Barker was arrested in Nashville for allegedly attempting to hit Evans with his car
Former University of Alabama quarterback was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and released after posting $10,000 bond
Barker released a statement on Sunday, complaining that ‘headlines and quick-to-publish news stories do not adequately capture the full context’
Barker and Evans, who married in 2008, are separated and have been living apart for months
Barker helped guide Alabama to a national title during the 1992 season, culminating with a major upset of favored Miami in the 1993 Sugar Bowl
County singer Sara Evans filed for divorced from her estranged husband, former University of Alabama quarterback Jay Barker, four months before he was arrested in Nashville for allegedly trying to hit her with his car.
Barker, 49, was arrested on Saturday and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon stemming from his suspected attempt to mow down his wife of 12 years.
Barker was placed on a $10,000 bond with a 12-hour hold because it was a domestic violence case. He was released on Saturday night after posting bond.
According to court records obtained by Scoop Nashville, in late August 2021, Evans, 50, filed a complaint seeking to divorce from Barker, citing ‘irreconcilable differences’ and ‘inappropriate martial conduct.’
The documents do not elaborate on the nature of the difference or the marital conduct.
The filing states that Barker had been living separately from Evans in Homewood, Alabama, for the past three months. He and Evans have no children together.
In December, Evans’ divorce attorney petitioned a judge to grant the divorce according to the terms of the couple’s 2008 marriage agreement, under which ‘the actual reasons for divorce shall be kept private to the extent possible’ and ‘neither party will discuss or reveal the terms of the agreement, and the terms and conditions shall remain confidential.’
Barker on Sunday released a statement on his sports radio show’s Instagram page, thanking his supporters, asking for privacy and quoting a passage from the Bible.
‘We all confront challenges in life, and my family and I are facing one now,’ he wrote. ‘Unfortunately, headlines and quick-to-publish news stories do not adequately capture the full context and complex fabric of our lives. I love my family dearly, and at this difficult time, I respectfully ask for privacy for the sake of my family and especially for our children.’
Authorities in Nashville said that police were called to a home at 1.30am on Saturday where Evans had attended a party at a neighbor’s on Norwood Drive.
Evans got in the car of a friend to go across the street, at which time she saw Barker ‘backing up his vehicle at a high rate of speed attempting to hit them but missed.’
Officials said Barker left the area before Evans called the police, but he later came back and talked to authorities.
Evans and another witness told authorities that Barker tried to strike them with his vehicle, at which point he was arrested.
Evans was previously married to Craig Schelske for around 13 years and has three children from that marriage – Avery Jack, 22, Olivia Margaret, 18, and Audrey Elizabeth, 17.
Evans has had country hits including singles such as No Place That Far, Born to Fly, A Real Fine Place to Start and A Little Bit Stronger. She won a CMA award in 2001 for her video for Born to Fly.
Barker has a background in football, having played quarterback at Alabama in the early 90s, and famously upsetting a heavily favored Miami team in the 1993 Sugar Bowl to win a national title.
Later he was picked in the fifth round of the 1995 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, and had brief stints with the New England Patriots and Carolina Panthers before moving on to the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts from 1998 to 2001, and the XFL’s Birmingham Thunderbolts in 2001.
Since 2018, he hosted The Jay Barker Show on 100.9 FM in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Barker is scheduled to appear in court on March 22 in connection with the assault charges.
The police are far more sympathetic to victims of domestic violence of all kinds these days – but if they cannot help contact us for best advice on court orders to protect you. We are very experienced in dealing with divorce, contact us here at Penny Raby & Co if this applies to you.
