Britney Spears' father gets temporary control of troubled pop star's welfare

LOS ANGELES -- Throughout the course of Britney Spears' months-long tailspin, one question has lingered with each turn: Why doesn't her family take measures to stop this?

On Friday, they did.

Spears' father, James Spears, was put in charge of the troubled pop star's welfare during a surprise court appearance by him and mother Lynne Spears, a day after their daughter was whisked to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.

Just as Spears' immediate family was taking charge of her life, Sam Lutfi, Spears' sometime manager and friend, was removed from the picture with a restraining order. A message left on Lutfi's cell phone seeking comment was not immediately returned.

Spears was taken early Thursday by paramedics with a heavy police escort to UCLA Medical Center's psychiatric hospital. There was no account or description of the young star's actual condition during the hearing.

It was the second hospitalization this year for the 26-year-old singer, who has exhibited odd behavior since November 2006, when she filed for divorce from Kevin Federline.

A court creates conservatorships when it determines that a person cannot care for themselves or handle their affairs. Commissioner Reva Goetz said Spears would be under conservatorship until Monday, at which time another hearing would be held.

Dr. Mark Goulston, a Los Angeles psychiatrist who is not involved in the case, said he was not surprised by the ruling, given Spears' increasingly erratic behavior and periodic efforts at rehabilitation.

Although placing people in conservatorships is not unusual, Goulston said, courts usually look long and hard at the evidence before putting a person in one.

"You have to really make a case before someone is allowed to become a conservator, so I would conclude her judgment is fairly impaired," he said.

The court, which rejected a request to hold the hearing without news media present, did not immediately rule on another request to seal all documents. Goetz said she would rule on Monday, and court spokesman Allan Parachini said the papers would remain sealed until then.

The conservatorship was approved by a different court from the one handling a custody dispute over the singer's children with Federline. A hearing on custody issues is set Monday morning in that court.