Kody Brown, the self-proclaimed patriarch of the polygamist Brown family, is left with only one wife, Robyn Brown, following the dissolution of his relationships with Meri, Janelle, and Christine Brown, all of whom have embarked on their own personal journeys in the aftermath, making the controversial polygamist question his ways.
One of the hardest breakups for Kody was Janelle, his second wife, whom he spiritually married in 1993. After almost 30 years of marriage, Kody and Janelle split, making their separation public in late 2022. There was no single reason preceding their decision, but a number of smaller issues the couple had been dealing with for years.
From Kody’s disapproval of Janelle’s independence to forcing her to buy a house she didn’t want, the star of TLC’s long-running “Sister Wives” also pushed his second wife over the edge with his super strict COVID-19 rules. While he did want to reconcile and work things out between them, Janelle decided it was best not to go down that road.
Kody wasn’t happy with Janelle’s RV purchase
While the Brown plural family purchased the Coyote Pass land in Flagstaff, Arizona, in 2018, they didn’t start building on it immediately. At the time, Kody Brown promised his four wives each a house of their own. Until their dream spaces came to life, the joint family had to figure out their living situation. Janelle Brown decided to buy herself an RV to live in until her home was built, which she shared on Instagram.
“The rental where I was living was sold, and I chose an alternative path to trying to find another rental … Presenting my new summer adventure — the RV life but camped on our property,” Janelle captioned the post. However, her adventurous decision didn’t sit right with her polygamist husband. Despite Janelle’s excitement, Kody rained on her parade during a Season 17 episode of “Sister Wives.” He argued, “We should’ve never bought the RV because we’re going to be moving it all the time … I’m struggling because I’m not optimistic about how this is going to come together,” per Us Weekly.
He also urged Janelle to seek approval from the rest of the family in the future for anything regarding the Coyote Pass property. “I don’t need their permission. We’ve already agreed. I do not have time for this,” Janelle reasoned, visibly annoyed with Kody’s interference. During his confessional, the proud polygamist complained that Janelle acts like they aren’t married by constantly making decisions by herself.
The patriarch urged Janelle to buy a house she didn’t want
When Christine Brown decided to leave Kody Brown in 2021, she also wanted to move away from Arizona, listing her house for sale. Kody hated the idea of losing the place, and since he couldn’t afford it himself after investing in the Coyote Pass land, he urged Janelle Brown to step in and buy it for the family. However, as Janelle also purchased a part of Coyote Pass, she didn’t have the money for yet another property investment.
“I can’t afford both house mortgages,” she stated in a Season 17 episode, adding that she felt like Kody was “using her for her money,” (via Entertainment Tonight). Later, a frustrated Janelle was seen yelling “I want my own house,” at Kody, with him responding, “Yeah, but we’re a year from that, even if we start building right away.”
The Brown patriarch ultimately highlighted the infamous RV purchase as the reason Janelle couldn’t afford another mortgage, adding that she doesn’t respect him. “If she can’t work with me to solve the problems, then she gets to solve the problems on her own,” Kody stated. Christine’s house ultimately sold for $700,000, but nobody from the Brown family was the buyer.
Janelle banned Kody from her house during COVID-19
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the plural Brown family had a tough time getting together simply because there are so many of them. Amidst all that was happening, Janelle Brown opted to ban Kody from coming over to her house, causing the patriarch a lot of confusion. As two of their adult sons, Garrison and Gabriel Brown, posed a certain risk to others in the family due to their lifestyle choices and employment circumstances, Janelle figured it was best for Kody to stay put at his own house.
“Instead of sitting here and waiting to be told or having something horrible happen that makes a decision, I’m just going to make the decision. I want Kody to stay away from my home until we can figure out how bad this is going to get,” Janelle said in a Season 16 episode of the show, as People reported at the time. Kody responded by asserting, “I don’t know why she’s just calling me and telling me just like, ‘Hey, this is the way it’s going to be’,” implying that he wasn’t a part of the decision-making process.
As Janelle was having a hard time making the decision in question, she jokingly said Kody “owed her” for being that brave, which the polygamist didn’t take too well. “That’s a statement of pressure,” Kody said, visibly stirred up, adding that he wasn’t pleased with how Janelle handled the overall situation.
