Names and faces

LITTLE ROCK — The mother of Modern Family actress Ariel Winter has denied accusations she was physically and emotionally abusive to her 14-year-old daughter and is asking a Los Angeles judge to reject an attempt to strip her of custody. Chrisoula Workman filed an objection to guardianship proceedings for the actress on Thursday and states she would be willing to undergo joint counseling with her daughter if it helped resolve the case. Ariel, who plays Alex Dunphy on the hit ABC series, has been living with her older sister, Shanelle Gray, since early October, when a judge temporarily stripped Workman of custody and ordered her to have no contact with her daughter. The ruling came after attorneys for Gray said in court filings that Ariel has been the subject of ongoing physical and emotional abuse, enduring slaps and insults from her mother. “I have never slapped or hit Ariel,” Workman wrote in a court declaration. “I loveAriel very much and will do whatever is in her best interest.” She called recent family turmoil the result of “a teenager’s rebellion.” Her filing was accompanied by medical records and declarations from stylists and other acquaintances who state they have not seen any signs of abuse by Workman. A hearing on the guardianship is scheduled for Nov. 20. The court has appointed an independent attorney to represent Ariel’s interests. She has been acting since age 7, appearing in several TV series, including ER and Phineas and Ferb, and working in movies such as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Ice Age: The Meltdown and ParaNorman.

Election officials in the Atlanta area are defendingtheir decision to allow singer Usher to bypass long lines and cast his ballot on Election Day, infuriating voters who had to wait. Fulton County election officials told WSB-TV that Usher Raymond IV was escorted to the front of the line to minimize distractions at his Roswell polling place. They said in a statement that poll manager Frank Padula was directed to move Usher through the process as quickly as possible. Fulton County Commissioner Liz Hausmann questioned the decision, saying she can think of only a few people who might deserve such treatment, such as people with disabilities, the elderly and voters with small children.