Serving as his own attorney, ex-Gov. Matt Bevin questions son over mistreatment allegations

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Serving as his own attorney, former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin questioned his adopted son Friday over allegations of abandonment and mistreatment in a hearing about the teen’s request for a protective order against his parents.

Jonah Bevin, the adopted son of Matt and Glenna Bevin, said he was mentally and physically abused after being adopted when he was five, relegated to sleeping on the floor in a small cottage on the family property and abandoned in an abusive facility in Jamaica.

At one point growing up, he said, police were called when Matt Bevin came to his workplace and banged on the windows looking for his son.

“I don’t think they are properly qualified to adopt kids,” the 18-year-old said in court about the recently divorced Bevins, who adopted Jonah and a group of three siblings from Ethiopia in 2012.

Jefferson Family Court Judge Angela Johnson issued a temporary emergency protective order earlier this month and started hearing testimony Friday on whether to fully grant it. Currently, the Bevins are barred from contacting or communicating with the teen, who said he fears for his safety.

During the hearing, Jonah acknowledged under questioning from Glenna Bevin’s attorney, Steve Romines, that his concerns are really with Matt Bevin, not her.

Asked if Glenna Bevin had threatened him in any way in the last year, Jonah said she had not.

"The concern is with Matthew,” Jonah said.

Romines had told the judge he planned to call seven witnesses, including other members of the Bevin family. Matt Bevin said he planned to call three witnesses.

The hearing lasted two hours and will resume March 25 with more testimony.

Neither Matt or Glenna Bevin, whose divorce was recently finalized, commented after the hearing.

Jonah’s testimony about growing up in the Bevin household stood in stark contrast to the family values narrative espoused by former Republican governor Matt Bevin during his time in public office. As governor from 2015 to 2019, he promoted adoption and called for improvements in the state's adoption system.

But inside the home, Jonah said he was sexually assaulted by an extended family member when he was ten, that Matt Bevin physically and mentally intimidated him and threatened to euthanize his dog. He claimed Glenna Bevin slapped him, and he was abandoned after being sent to an abusive facility, the Atlantis Leadership Academy.

Matt Bevin also allegedly tried to send him to Ethiopia recently, and when he was hesitant to go, told him his birth mother was alive and he should go find her. Before that, Jonah said he was consistently told his mother was dead.

“We don’t want you in Kentucky,” Jonah claimed his father said, during questioning from the former governor. “Those were your words."

Jonah requested the protective order a short time later.

Matt Bevin, who mostly referred to himself in third person during the questioning, told the judge he would provide text messages that showed the accurate conversations he had with his son about going to Ethiopia. He said he and his son had talked in the past about him traveling back to Ethiopia and that everyone initially believed Jonah's mother was dead.

Under questioning from Romines, the teen admitted he had his own issues, including getting kicked out of school, running away from home repeatedly and getting into fights.

“I made mistakes,” Jonah testified.

Romines pointed out that the Bevins did try to get him into therapy. He quit because he believed the therapist was telling his parents what was said during the sessions.

And Jonah, who is being represented by attorney John Helmers, said under questioning from Romines and Matt Bevin that he has not had much contact with the Bevins recently.

“I have not contacted you,” Matt Bevin told him during his cross-examination of his son.

The former governor also maintained that he helped take care of his son’s dog. When Matt Bevin asked the teen who bought the dog and supplies, Jonah snapped back, “I had to pay you back for everything.”

Jonah was arrested as a juvenile after an altercation with his father, shortly before he was sent to the facility in Jamaica.

In court documents, Jonah claims Matt Bevin said, '"I can take your life" and "I can make your life miserable."'

In a recent interview with WDRB News, Jonah said his parents abandoned him when the facility for "troubled teens" was shut down after allegations of abuse.

He said the abuse there was borderline torture, alleging he was waterboarded and severely beaten.

“At times some of us even had suicidal thoughts and stuff. Yeah it was bad,” he recalled.

Jonah then spent three-and-a-half months in child protective services in Jamaica. He later ended up in Utah, homeless. Now that Jonah is back in Kentucky, he said he wanted to be protected from his parents.