Rosie O’Donnell Speaks Out on Daughter Chelsea’s Arrest

Rosie O’Donnell is speaking out on the recent arrest of her eldest daughter, Chelsea Belle O’Donnell, who was recently charged with child neglect and drug possession.

“Chelsea is in the news today – this is a photo from a better time – here is the family comment,” Rosie, 62, wrote on Instagram Saturday, October 19, alongside a picture of Chelsea cradling a newborn baby. “Sadly this is not new for our family – chelsea has struggled with drug addiction for a decade – we r all hopeful she will find her way out of this deadly disease #💔 #love #alanon 10.19.24.”

Chelsea, 27, was jailed in Wisconsin after police carried out a search warrant last month, according to court records viewed by multiple outlets. She was first booked in Marinette County on September 10, where her Amberg home is located, and released later that month after posting a $2,000 bond, jail records show.

According to court documents, Chelsea was charged with multiple felony counts of neglecting a child, possession of methamphetamine and maintaining a drug trafficking place. She was also charged with four misdemeanors, including possession of THC, drug paraphernalia and illegally obtained prescription drugs, as well as disorderly conduct.

The mother of four was later booked into Oconto County Jail on October 11, and is still in custody. She now faces felony counts of possession of methamphetamine, possession of narcotic drugs and bail jumping, plus misdemeanor counts of resisting or obstructing an officer and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to jail records.

She is due to appear in court on November 4 and November 7.

Chelsea has four children: Skylar Rose, 5, Riley, 3, Avery Lynn, 2, and Atlas, 11 months.

She is the daughter of Rosie and her ex-wife Kelli Carpenter, who adopted Chelsea when she was a baby. Rosie has four other children: Parker, 29, Blake, 24, Vivienne, 21, and Dakota, 11.

Rosie has spoken about her up and down relationship with Chelsea in the past, revealing that she reconnected with her once-estranged daughter following her first pregnancy.

“I think with my relationship with my daughter, Chelsea, [the relationship being tested did make it stronger] because we went through some really public troubled times,” Rosie said on The Talk in 2018 of Chelsea moving to Wisconsin to be closer to her biological mother. “She’s doing better now and we’re both communicating with each other. When somebody does something unforgivable to you and you can forgive them and they can forgive you, there’s a kind of grace that descends upon the both of you, within that.”

Chelsea, who has struggled with substance abuse, is “mentally ill,” as Rosie told the Daily Mail in 2017. “[She] has been in and out of hospitals most of her life. Born addicted to heroin. She has had a tough road. She is very sick. She is not capable of truth or reason.”