REAL Housewives of New York City star Brynn Whitfield's troubled parents' past has been revealed in court documents exclusively obtained by The U.S. Sun.
During Sunday's episode of RHONY, the stunning reality star broke down in tears while opening up to the cast about not having family in her life.
Brynn, 36, revealed to cameras that she only lived with her parents for the first six months of her life, and then was placed for adoption.
Her maternal grandmother, Darlene Heslin, took care of her and her siblings - brother Daris and sister Trina.
The Real Housewives newbie told castmates that her parents "got into some trouble" and claimed it was "my dad doing all that stuff- and the bad stuff."
Now, The U.S. Sun can exclusively reveal what Brynn was referring to on the Bravo show.
Read More on RHONY
According to court records obtained by The U.S. Sun, Brynn's father, Alton Duane Whitfield of Ann Arbor, Michigan, was in and out of prison from 1978 until the mid-90s.
His various charges over the years included issuing checks without sufficient funds, theft, burglary, retail fraud and possession of a controlled substance.
Brynn's birth father sadly passed away in November 2003.
According to Alton's obituary, he died at 51 years old and "had some struggles early in his life," but eventually "turned his life around."
Most read in Entertainment
The Eastern Michigan University alum had eight children throughout his life, including Brynn and her two siblings.
REAL STRUGGLES
Brynn's mother, Jill Marie Mitchell, experienced similar run-ins with the law during the reality star's childhood.
In fact, the now 58-year-old Michigan native was sentenced to prison months after she had placed Brynn for adoption.
According to a spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Corrections, she was incarcerated in June 1987.
She was later placed in a community corrections center, and then returned to prison in November 1988.
In 1989, she returned to a community corrections center, then placed on parole in 1990 and eventually discharged from parole in 1992.
The charges ranged from violation of the credit card law and checks with insufficient funds to false pretenses/fraud theft.
A relative of Brynn, who wishes to remain anonymous, shed more light on the star's sad past.
"Her mother was young and just couldn't handle [parenting] at the time and wasn't able to give Brynn the life that you should give a child... The circumstances were not good," the relative said.
"I know Jill always loved Brynn, it was just her lifestyle. She just didn't take care of her properly.
"I mean, there maybe was a shortage of food at times. It got to the point where something had to be done."
The young adult at the time placed her children for adoption and then went to prison, the relative claimed.
The U.S. Sun attempted to reach out to Jill for comment and she did not immediately respond to calls.
The U.S. Sun also reached out to Bravo and Brynn.
MOVING ON
After giving her children to Darlene, Brynn's mother, who was a manager of an apartment complex at the time, "hardly ever saw" her daughter.
She started a new life, broke up with her boyfriend Alton after he allegedly "kicked her to the curb," and then married another man.
She welcomed four other children with her current husband, but Brynn was not close to her half-siblings, per the relative.
The relative explained: "As far as I know, Jill's doing all right.
"She hasn't gotten into any more trouble or anything, but the time that elapsed between being with the children [and in prison], it was just too much.
"I think Jill did try to communicate with [the kids], but it just never worked out. They were separated for too long."
The relative continued: "[Brynn and her siblings] already established themselves with [Darlene] and she sent them to good schools, and they had a decent life. They had a good life."
"Bryn was very close to her grandmother. They communicated by phone. And she loved her very much."
Brynn's grandmother sadly died on March 2021 at the age of 81, according to her obituary.
Per the relative, there was no funeral service that reunited the family because it was during Covid times.
CITY GIRL
As far as Brynn's adult years, she become distant from her family after she graduated from Purdue University and went on to pursue her career in New York City and Los Angeles.
The relative believes Brynn's brother Daris lives in South Korea, and has been there since he pursued his career as an English teacher after college.
Meanwhile, her sister remains in Michigan.
Since making her debut on Real Housewives, Brynn's relative has been supporting her from afar.
"Brynn was always sweet. She was always a sweet girl. Very likable, very personable, very well-spoken," the relative shared.
"She's a beautiful girl. She was even approached by a modeling agency when she was in Chicago and she had a portfolio.
"Brynn just enjoyed being free and doing her own thing."
OPENING UP
At the end of Sunday's episode, during "Brynnsgiving" at Sai's $4.7million brownstone, the PR expert talked more about her traumatic childhood.
"We lived in “Section 8 housing. It wasn't a good situation. We were poor as f**k - welfare, food stamps, everything," she revealed to her castmates - including Sai De Silva, Ubah Hassan, Erin Lichy, Jenna Lyons and Jessel Taank - over dinner.
Brynn further claimed she suffered from "abuse and neglect" and "I wasn't picked up for six days, or my diaper wasn’t changed."
Read More on The US Sun
"I think it's fine we talk about how hurt I was because I'm so focused on the fact that the two people that were supposed to love me didn't, or couldn't. Couldn't, not didn't," she later told producers.
New episodes of RHONY air on Sundays at 9pm ET on Bravo.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEZqqupl6YvK57xKernqqklravucSnq2hwZ26FcoCRaKmhp56ueqO%2B2KelZq%2BYnsGntcSlm2aokaeyr8DSZqeroaOku26wwKuiZpuYnrmltM6om2g%3D