Judge Orders Kelly Rutherford to Return Kids to Father in Monaco

Will Hart/NBC(NEW YORK) — A Manhattan Supreme Court judge Tuesday ordered Kelly Rutherford to return her two children to their father in Monaco.

The ruling came after Rutherford failed to send son Hermes, 8, and daughter Helena, 6, back to Rutherford’s ex-husband, Daniel Giersch, after they spent the summer in New York with the formerGossip Girl star. In a statement over the weekend, Rutherford explained, “I have decided that I cannot lawfully send my children away from the United States to live in a foreign country.”

Rutherford’s refusal landed the case in court, where the judge ruled against Rutherford.  The children are expected to return to their father today.  Giersch’s mother was in court to greet the children Tuesday.

Rutherford’s custody battle has been ongoing since 2012, when a California judge sent the children to live in France with Rutherford’s Giersch, whose U.S. visa had been revoked.  The 46-year-old actress has been trying to bring the children back to the U.S. for years, but neither California nor New York court claimed to have jurisdiction in that case.

“It puts me as a parent in an odd place if no one is taking jurisdiction,” Rutherford told ABC News earlier this week. “How do you put your kids on a plane not knowing what is going to happen?”

Giersch’s legal team fired back over the weekend after Rutherford released her statement. They sent the actress a letter in which they demanded that Rutherford send the children back to Monaco immediately, followed by their petitioning New York County Supreme Court to intervene.

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