Elon Musk Too Cowardly to Face Ex-Girlfriend Ashley St. Clair in Courtroom Custody Battle

In a stunning twist that has gripped headlines and ignited controversy, Elon Musk—the billionaire tech mogul behind Tesla, SpaceX, and the now-infamous Department of Government Efficiency—chose not to face the mother of his alleged child, Ashley St. Clair, directly in court. Instead, Musk appeared virtually, beaming into a sealed custody hearing from an undisclosed location, leaving St. Clair to confront the full weight of the legal storm in person.

The courtroom scene, captured exclusively by DailyMail.com, revealed a poised yet visibly determined St. Clair walking the halls of New York Supreme Court with her attorneys, dressed in a conservative outfit that signaled both composure and quiet defiance.

This hearing, which lasted two and a half hours behind closed doors, marks the latest chapter in a volatile saga that has unfolded between Musk and the 26-year-old conservative influencer, who dropped a bombshell on social media earlier this year claiming that Musk is the biological father of her baby boy, born in September.

Her claim sparked a whirlwind of attention—not only due to Musk’s refusal to publicly acknowledge the child, but also because of the dramatic way the situation has escalated since then.

According to court documents and sources close to the case, the relationship between Musk and St. Clair began in May 2023, when Musk allegedly contacted her through a direct message. The pair reportedly conceived their child, known by the initials R.S.C., in January 2024 during a trip to the Caribbean island of Saint Barthélemy.

St. Clair has asserted that Musk pressured her to keep the child a secret and later vanished from both her life and the child’s as discussions around child support became increasingly contentious.

In her lawsuit, filed on February 21, St. Clair alleges that Musk not only ghosted her in the middle of negotiations but also demanded a degree of control that became intolerable. Once she objected to his terms and went public with her story, she claims Musk retaliated by unilaterally cutting her child support payments by more than 60 percent.

This financial gut punch forced St. Clair to sell her $100,000 Tesla Model S, a vehicle she had purchased for the practical purpose of transporting both her toddler and baby in Manhattan.

DailyMail.com’s reporting reveals just how deeply the consequences have affected her. Without Musk’s full financial support and logistical help, St. Clair has been left to raise her children largely alone, relying on a nanny and doing what she can to stay afloat in one of the most expensive cities in the world. She reportedly resides in a rented three-bedroom apartment downtown, where she juggles her responsibilities as a mother with the intense scrutiny that comes from being locked in a legal battle with the world’s richest man.

Despite his absence from the courtroom, Musk’s legal team was present in full force. Dressed in a dark suit jacket, Musk appeared onscreen before Judge Jeffrey Pearlman, while his high-profile attorneys Alyssa Rower and Jennifer Isaacman handled the in-person proceedings.

The court was sealed shortly after the hearing began, due to the highly sensitive nature of the case. Musk’s lawyers had already succeeded in petitioning the court to seal the lawsuit earlier in March, effectively gagging St. Clair from discussing many of the details publicly. For critics, this is another example of Musk using his immense resources to keep his private affairs hidden from public scrutiny.

Observers were quick to point out that Musk’s virtual appearance in court came just hours after he made another bombshell announcement—his resignation from the Trump administration. Having served as the head of DOGE, Musk claimed his temporary stint as a Special Government Employee had come to an end. In a post on his platform X, he thanked President Donald Trump for the opportunity and declared the mission to reduce government waste would continue without him.

But critics argue the timing of his exit was not a coincidence. With a high-profile paternity and custody battle threatening to upend his public image, Musk’s withdrawal from Washington could just as easily be interpreted as a strategic retreat.

Meanwhile, St. Clair remains firm in her pursuit of recognition and support. Speaking to DailyMail.com, she accused Musk of punishing her for speaking out. “That’s his modus operandi, when women speak out,” she said. “You can check the stocks, I’m not the only one who is cleaning up his messes.”

She also revealed that her last attempt to speak directly with Musk—on February 13—was met with silence.

Sources close to the case describe Musk’s behavior as both shocking and deliberate. After initially providing support for the baby, they claim he set specific and often unreasonable conditions for continued assistance, including a demand that she never publicly acknowledge him as the father. Once she resisted that level of control and went to court, he allegedly pulled back his support out of spite.

“He cut the support payments by more than half,” said one source. “It’s a substantial reduction, and he obviously did it as a form of retaliation for her going into court.”

The same source pointed to Musk’s complete lack of involvement since the public revelation of the child’s paternity, suggesting that the billionaire is using financial manipulation as a weapon against the mother of his child.

What makes this situation all the more incendiary is that it’s not the first time Musk has been accused of erratic and retaliatory behavior in his personal relationships. Critics point to a pattern in which women who cross him publicly face consequences—whether it’s public smearing, financial pressure, or being iced out of decision-making entirely.

In St. Clair’s case, the silence, the legal muscle, and the sudden withdrawal of funds have created a toxic environment that even her lawyers seem unwilling to publicly discuss, as they declined to speak to reporters outside the courtroom.

Despite the odds, St. Clair appears determined to fight for what she believes is right for her child. The images of her leaving court, confident and unbowed, contrast sharply with the image of Musk, hidden behind a screen, avoiding face-to-face accountability. For many, this has become a symbolic battle—between immense wealth and individual rights, between secrecy and truth, between the father’s power and the mother’s resolve.

As this custody fight escalates behind closed doors, public opinion continues to swirl. Is Elon Musk a victim of opportunism, or is he weaponizing his fortune to silence and punish the mother of his child? The court may be sealed, but the court of public opinion is wide open—and it is watching closely.

Whatever the outcome of the legal proceedings, the emotional and financial toll on St. Clair is undeniable. From being pressured to keep her baby a secret, to being ghosted and cut off mid-negotiation, to now being forced to liquidate assets just to stay afloat, her story has become a flashpoint in the broader debate over power, parenthood, and accountability in the age of the billionaire.

The richest man in the world may have the best attorneys money can buy, but this case proves one thing: even behind sealed doors, not all truths can be hidden forever. The world is watching, and for Elon Musk, dodging one courtroom may not be enough to escape the consequences of this personal and public reckoning.