A TROVE of graphic new photos and text messages show the full horror of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives exes Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen’s bloody fights.
After prosecutors declined to charge Taylor and Dakota with crimes stemming from two alleged domestic violence incidents in February, police have released shocking evidence of both Taylor and Dakota’s injuries.
In new documents from the Draper City Police Department, cops said the allegations of violence were made during the February 22 and 23 incidents at Taylor’s Utah home, with Dakota’s friend making the initial contact with police.
When Dakota, 33, spoke to police, he reported that while in bed with their two-year-old son Ever on February 22, Taylor became angry over past relationships and attacked him.
He claimed she grabbed his face and throat and scratched his neck.
Dakota shared photos of the deep scratches to his neck to police, and bruising on his leg.
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He also provided photos from their 2023 altercation, which resulted in Taylor’s arrest on battery charges.
In those photos, Dakota has a bloody nose and a black eye.
In the February 23 incident, Dakota reported that Taylor, who was preparing for her run as ABC’s The Bachelorette, mounted him, grabbed his throat, and screamed in his face.
He stated she threw his cellphone, which tore a hole into the wall, and followed him to his vehicle, where she continued the assault by kicking the dashboard and hitting him.
Dakota admitted to shoving Taylor off him in the vehicle, which caused her to hit her head on the center console screen.
Taylor, however, claimed Dakota smashed her head into the dashboard.
She shared photos of bruising to her head, neck and arms with cops.
In police bodycam footage obtained by The U.S. Sun, Dakota shows an officer the truck where one of the alleged altercations took place.
Taylor’s baby daddy appears to hold their son in his arms during the conversation.
Taylor and Dakota also submitted text messages they exchanged before and after the alleged domestic violence incidents.
On the afternoon of February 22, Dakota appeared to ask Taylor how her therapy session went in a pleasant exchange.
In an undated screenshot seemingly after the cordial conversation, Taylor claimed her “nose is broken” and “gushing blood.”
Dakota than appeared to ask: “You don’t want to f**k?”
“Fk? My nose won ’t stop [gushing] blood. The fk is wrong with you?” Taylor responded, according to the screenshot.
Dakota then appeared to respond: “Goodbye. F**k your abuse.”
“F**k YOURS,” Taylor responded.
“See ya in court,” Dakota then shot back ominously.
Taylor could have faced the charges of domestic violence assault and commission of domestic violence in the presence of a child after Draper’s initial contact with Dakota.
After police reviewed both of their accounts, they looked at the incident differently.
“With this new information, I believe that Dakota is the primary aggressor of the second incident on the 23rd, and there is limited information for the 22nd but Dakota stated that Taylor had scratched him on that day along with the 23rd.”
At that point in the investigation, on February 25th, Dakota was also facing a domestic violence assault charge.
The police kicked the case over to the city prosecutor for review.
On March 20th the city prosecutor advised the Draper City PD “that neither Taylor or Dakota are credible witnesses, with both their statements being fraught with inconsistencies, such as Dakota’s statement to 911 and Taylor saying she had a bloody nose with no evidence of that being true.”
The city prosecutor believed “Taylor most likely injured Dakota on 02/22 ripping off his necklace and causing the scratch to his neck in the process.”
Meanwhile they believed that “Dakota causing injuries to Taylor on 02/23 while in the truck, because the injuries she sustained do not fit him pushing her off of him.
“The injuries are more consistent with him grabbing her head or neck and shoving her head against the dash, and that both parties are misrepresenting their behavior.”
The city attorney’s office also found inconsistencies with Dakota when he relayed his previous contact with the Department of Children and Family Services.
“Dakota had told [the city attorney] that he had not spoken to DCFS and when [the city attorney] had spoken with DCFS, they confirmed they had spoken to him several times.”
Ultimately, the Draper City Police chose not to press any charges, as did the Salt Lake District Attorney’s Office, where the MomTok star remains on probation stemming from a 2023 incident with Dakota.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or chat at thehotline.org.
