Drake Bell Confirms He Welcomed a Baby With Wife Janet Von Schmeling
Drake Bell is setting the record straight in response to speculation about his personal life.
The former Nickelodeon star, who in late June plead guilty to attempted child endangerment and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles, spoke out on Twitter to confirm that he is not only married to Janet Von Schmeling, but that they are parents to a little boy.
In a June 29 message translated from Spanish, Drake wrote, "In response to various rumors that are incorrect, I have been married for almost three years, and we are blessed to be the parents of a wonderful son. Thank you very much to all my fans around the world for your good wishes."
A day prior, Drake was photographed with Janet and their baby at Disneyland. The outing marked the actor's first public appearance since his legal turmoil made headlines last month. On June 3, Drake was arrested by police in Cleveland, Ohio and charged with one count of attempted endangering children, a fourth-degree felony, and one count of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles, a first-degree misdemeanor.
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At the time of his arrest, he plead not guilty. However, on June 23, the 35-year-old entered a guilty plea on both charges. Drake's attorney told the Associated Press that his reasoning behind the plea will be shared at his July 12 sentencing hearing.
In Drake's indictment, filed on May 21 and obtained by E! News, the actor was accused of allegedly victimizing a 15-year-old girl at a Cleveland nightclub in 2017.
A spokesperson for the prosecutor's office told E! News that a police investigation "revealed that the victim, who had established a relationship with Bell several years prior, attended his concert in December 2017. While there, Bell violated his duty of care and, in doing so, created a risk of harm to the victim. The investigation also revealed that months leading up to the concert, Bell sent the victim inappropriate social media messages."
In October 2018, the girl filed a report with her local police department in Canada regarding the alleged incident involving Drake. Canadian authorities brought the information to Cleveland police, which prompted the investigation.
According to the Associated Press, the girl, who is now an adult, will be allowed to share a victim impact statement at Drake's sentencing. He faces up to two years in prison.
