Pamela Anderson Lee filed for divorce from Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee Thursday, citing irreconcilable differences. She filed the petition in Los Angeles County Superior Court and asked for legal custody of their children, Brandon, twenty months, and Dylan, seven weeks. The actress also wants her maiden name, Pamela Denise Anderson, back. The petition— her second filing in their almost three-year marriage— did not cite the incident that led to her husband's arrest two days ago.

The Los Angeles district attorney's office has filed a criminal case against the rocker, charging him with one count of child abuse and one count of a firearm violation after an altercation with his wife at their Malibu home. On Tuesday night around 7:45 p.m. Pamela Lee called 911 to report that she and her husband had been arguing and that he attacked her. According to Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Deputy Angie Prewett, deputies arrived to find the former Baywatch babe suffering from minor injuries, including red marks on her back and a broken, bloody, and torn fingernail.

Lee was arrested, and bail was set at $1 million, double the standard amount. The reason? Police found a gun in the Lee home, a violation since Tommy is already on probation for an assault on a photographer. Since it would have cost Lee $100,000 to post the bail bond, he has spent the last two nights in the Malibu's sheriff's station. He was scheduled to be arraigned on Friday at the Malibu Municipal Courthouse, but a judge granted his request to delay the proceeding until Saturday.

Pamela Lee, in a statement released through her publicist, said that both she and son Dylan were victims of domestic violence: "Tommy Lee assaulted and battered Pamela— while she was holding their seven- week- old child, Dylan, and in the presence of their twenty- month- old son, Brandon— causing her and Dylan physical injuries and severe emotional distress and causing Brandon emotional distress. . . . Pamela intends to vigorously cooperate in the prosecution of her husband and is looking to the district attorney and all other appropriate authorities to protect her and her children." Pamela asked for and was granted an emergency protective order against Tommy that prohibits him from contacting her.

The thirty- five- year- old musician pled no contest in January to a misdemeanor battery charge stemming from an assault on lensman Henry Trappler outside the Viper Room, a West Hollywood nightclub, in September of 1996. Trappler suffered a broken pelvis and rib during the incident. Lee was ordered to pay $17,500 restitution, undergo anger- management counseling, and perform 250 hours of community service. He was placed on probation for two years, but was not required to report to a probation officer.

In December, Lee and Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx were arrested for allegedly assaulting a security guard at a concert in Phoenix, Arizona. A preliminary hearing in that case is scheduled for Friday, but because the charge is a misdemeanor, Lee doesn't have to appear in court. Both men have pled not guilty.

The Lees have been married for almost three years. They tied the knot on a beach in Cancun after a four- day courtship, but in November of 1996, Pamela announced her plans to divorce Tommy, claiming he had a drinking problem. They reconciled soon after.

Copyright © 1996 - Y2K+7 Pamwatch All Rights Reserved.