US gymnastics legend Mary Lou Retton has actually sparked fears for her security after 'disappearing' following her DWI charge in West Virginia last month, the Daily Mail has actually learned.
Concerned family members in the little town of Fairmont revealed they have actually not seen or spoken with the Olympic gold medalist, 57 - who is based in Texas - since her arrest in her home town on May 17.
The absence of interaction is nothing brand-new for the former athlete, according to relatives, who state Retton had not even notified her family that she remained in town before her awkward encounter with police.
Last week, the Daily Mail specifically revealed that Retton was caught 'slurring her words' with a 'screw top' bottle of wine in the passenger seat while she lagged the wheel of her Porsche.
She had pulled over at an AutoZone in Fairmont after being seen 'driving all over the highway'.
Officers noted 'the odor of alcohol' producing from her while she remained in the chauffeur's seat of the vehicle while it was still running, according to court records.
She failed all 3 phases of the standard field sobriety test and was charged in Marion County for 'driving under impact of alcohol, controlled compounds, or drugs'.
An inside source said in the wake of her arrest: 'Her family had no concept she was here at all, they learnt about the arrest when everybody else did.
Mary Lou Retton has actually stimulated worries for her safety as relative say she has 'vanished' because her DWI arrest in West Virginia last month
Retton was the very first American female to win an Olympic specific well-rounded gold when she edged out Romania's Ecaterina Szabo (left) at just 16 years of ages at the 1984 games
'They don't actually talk much, she moved away. She never ever called them to tell them that she was returning, they only discovered after the arrest.
'That's families for you, it's not her best decision. Families are like that, there wasn't a falling out - they just have not spoken in a while'.
Now it appears Retton has gone totally to ground, without any indication of her at her household home in Fairmont or her main house, her or commercial property in Texas.
Exclusive Daily Mail photos show her $550,000 home in Boerne, Kendall County, looking deserted, with bundles and leaflets cluttering the deck.
Neighbors say they have not seen her at the residential or commercial property in the previous two weeks, including that Retton mainly keeps to herself in the gated substance.
After Daily Mail reached out to her daughters on Thursday, her attorney Edmund J. Rollo released a declaration on Tuesday, saying the star remained in 'excellent spirits.'
'She is extremely pleased of all of the support she has gotten,' he included. 'Mary Lou will issue a declaration at the appropriate time. Until then, please respect her personal privacy.'
The retired Olympian has actually invested much of her life between West Virginia and Texas, where she has been based because 2012.
She was wed to Texas Longhorns quarterback-turned-real estate developer Shannon Kelly, with whom she shares daughters Shayla, 30, McKenna, 28, Skyla, 24, and Emma, 23, from 1990 to 2018.
According to social networks, Retton and her four children have a very close relationship, though she has not appeared in her kids's Instagram posts in a minimum of 6 months.
Retton, who has 4 children, Skyla, 24, Emma, turning 23, Shayla, 30, and McKenna, 28, has not been seen or heard from by her loved ones in her home town in West Virginia considering that her arrest on May 17, insiders informed DailyMail.com
Retton spoke openly about her terrifying health battle after she was hospitalized in October 2023 with a rare kind of pneumonia
Now it appears Retton has actually gone totally to ground, with no sign of her at her household home in Fairmont or her post-divorce residential or commercial property and main home in Texas (pictured) last Thursday
And while her member of the family in West Virginia have shared their shock at her arrest, Retton's children have actually remained tight lipped over the incident, declining to speak with the Daily Mail.
But they have actually been publishing cryptic inspirational religious posts describing life and mistakes as 'God's will' on their social media.
Her youngest child Emma, is set to get married later on this month in Dallas, though it's uncertain if the gymnastics legend will participate in.
Family members are supposedly concerned about the arrest, though were 'unaware' of any factor or issues as to why Retton might have driven the 1,500 mile cross country journey from Texas to West Virginia.
Her older brother Donnie, 59, passed away in December of last year, with an obituary mentioning there was 'no visitation or funeral services'.
Court records reveal that an attorney representing Retton appeared alone at a hearing on May 27, to submit a movement for discovery.
Officers noted throughout her arrest that she had a 'screw leading container of wine' that remained in the guest seat of her cars and truck when they approached her.
She failed all three phases of the standard field sobriety test, and refused a roadside preliminary breath test, along with a secondary chemical test of her blood.
Olympic heroine Mary Lou Retton's stunning downfall revealed in damning full police report
Retton was charged in Marion County for 'driving under influence of alcohol, managed compounds, or drugs,' according to the West Virginia Magistrate Court system.
She was launched after personally posting a $1,500 bond. Representatives for Retton are yet to attend to the arrest.
A lawyer representing Retton based in Morgantown, West Virginia, did not immediately react to a demand for remark by the Daily Mail.
Best known for getting 2 best 10 scores at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics weeks after a knee operation, Retton has battled more health issues over the last few years.
The decorated gymnast had problem with pneumonia in 2023, which led her daughter to create a crowdfunding page to help pay installing healthcare facility bills, raising $200,000 in simply a day.
But the family quickly drew criticism after declining to clarify where the contributions would be going, while Retton's claim to not have insurance coverage was also doubted by some.
'They didn't should have that,' Retton stated in May when inquired about the backlash her children received.
'They were simply attempting to take care of me. I don't care about the cynics. There are trolls all over. It's what makes us America. Everybody's got an opinion, but it is what it is.'
While there was a happy ending for Retton in 2023, medical professionals briefly feared for her life as her children delivered what they believed would be their last goodbye to their mother.
Retton's child, Shayla Schrepfer, 30, was identified out and about in Texas, however declined to comment on her mom's arrest or location
Retton positioning with her child McKenna Kelley at the NCAA champions in 2019. The former gymnast was 'slurring her words' when she pulled over into an AutoZone in Fairmont, West Virginia
Retton married Texas Longhorns quarterback-turned-real estate designer Shannon Kelley (center) in Houston, Texas in 1990. They separated in 2018
Even now, Retton fears she will never appropriately recover from the damage to her lungs.
'It's been really hard,' she said in a psychological interview with People in 2024. 'My lungs are so scarred. It will be a life time of healing.
'My physicality was the only thing I had and it was removed from me. It's awkward.'
Retton thinks she recovered from the terrifying ordeal as 'God wasn't all set' for her yet, despite confessing that she is very lucky to still live.
'Girl, I need to be dead,' she added. 'The doctors informed them [daughters] to come to state their goodbyes.
'They prayed over me, and McKenna stated, 'Mommy, it's OK, you can go.'
'I didn't have much of a relationship with my mom, however I can't picture what that was like, to enjoy their mom on her deathbed.'
Her heath problems come after DailyMail.com revealed that she was also expected to collect around $2million more in compensation after a legal spat with the maker of her 2 metal hip replacements.
Mary Lou Retton ended up being the very first American female to win an individual all-around gold medal at the 1984 Olympic Games. The now-retired gymnast was left defending her life in hospital with a rare type of pneumonia in late 2023, triggering her children established a SpotFund account that raised $500,000 in donations
In 2015, the mom-of-four drew criticism after declaring to have no health insurance coverage and asking for financial backing from the public when she was struck down with a rare type of pneumonia, despite having gotten a $2million settlement from her divorce
The revelations cast more doubt on why the five-time gold medal winner had no medical insurance when she was overruled with an unusual kind of pneumonia and why her household resorted to pleading for money online to bail her out.
Court papers submitted in Houston that showed she had a little fortune following her divorce from Shannon Kelley.
The residential or commercial property division accepted by the court showed that Retton received cash and residential or commercial property worth $1,950,597 as she and Kelley split their properties down the middle after 28 years of marriage.
Not consisted of because figure were the earnings from the sale of two homes, one in Houston and the other in Fairmont, West Virginia, which again were to be split 50/50.
Nor were the profits from a lawsuit in which she took legal action against Indiana-based medical business Biomet Recovery over two hip replacements that failed.
It is not known how much she received but others who sued the business in comparable circumstances got around $2million each.
Retton discovered instantaneous popularity as a 16-year-old when she won her medals at the 1984 Los Angeles video games.
She became the very first American woman to win an Olympic private all-around gold when she edged out Romania's Ecaterina Szabo.
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US Gymnast Mary Lou Retton's Family Issue Worrying Update After Arrest
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