The tug o' war over Britney Spears blew up Friday as mother Lynne Spears and manager Sam Lutfi sounded off over their respective roles in the pop star's treatment, and who has her best interests at heart.
First up was Lutfi, who exclusively told E! News' Ryan Seacrest, "I have a moral obligation" to help the beleagured songbird. (Hear the whole conversation: part one, then part two.)
"You meet her and she cries, and she begs you not to turn on her," Lutfi said in an emotional phone call to Seacrest at roughly 8:15 p.m. Thursday. "I have three sisters—I would do the same for them. You would do the same for any of your sisters."
By becoming a near-permanent fixture in Spears' entourage in recent months, Lutfi has subjected himself to no end of scrutiny, not least of which with regard to what he's getting out of his involvement with the tarnished pop princess.
Despite tabloid reports to the contrary, Lutfi said she has never paid him, he has never sold any photos of her and he has "never accepted money from the media...not a dollar." He added that a "major magazine" once sent him a basket of food but that he sent it back.
And while Spears' parents continue to cast doubt on him and object to his intervention in their daughter's life, they're the ones who are "incapable of telling the truth and incapable of sympathizing," Lutfi said. "They're more concerned about money and their own image than Britney's condition."
"[I have] no more respect for the family," he said, adding that he's through trying to keep the peace.
That set off Lynne Spears, who spoke to Seacrest to set the record straight on her role as a mother and her concern for a daughter in trouble.
Lynne, speaking as a worried mother, told Seacrest her only concern is for her daughter's well-being and she just wants Britney to get better. Lynne said she is doing everything she can and sees her role as mom to a child who clearly needs help.
To that end, Lynne and husband Jamie Spears are headed to court to be named co-conservators, in charge of making decisions for their daughter. They also want an independent third party appointed, which would no doubt marginalize Lufti's role.
Lynee went on to say that she hopes people will question the reports they're hearing from the media and consider the source. She's afraid that everything going on is diverting attention from the real issue—Britney's health.
Finally, she wanted to make it clear that Britney's money has nothing to do with any of this.
Sources close to the situation previously told E! News that Lynne Spears was initially against Lutfi's plan to have Spears hospitalized. It was reportedly Lutfi who arranged with Spears' psychiatrist, Dr. Deborah Nadel, and the singer's lawyers to have the 26-year-old transported early Thursday morning to UCLA Medical Center, where she underwent a psychological evaluation later in the day.
Britney was admitted and placed on a 5150 hold, meaning the "Toxic" singer is a possible danger to herself or others.
The Spears family at first barred Lutfi from the hospital waiting room, but he was eventually allowed to enter about 45 minutes later. Everyone was forced to clear out Thursday morning while Nadel evaluated Spears and the entertainer caught her first shut-eye of the week.
Arriving separately, Lynne Spears and longtime family friend Alli Sims returned to the neuropsychiatric wing about 3:30 p.m., while Lutfi turned up a half-hour later.
At Britney's request, Lufti brought along a cheeseburger and fries from In-N-Out Burger.
The three visitors were all allowed to spend time with Britney but had to wait outside while Nadel and other staffers met with the star until 7 p.m. Spears, however, spent the night alone in her room.
—Additional reporting by Ken Baker and Jeanifer Hwang
For more on Ryan's interviews with Sam and Lynne, watch E! News Friday at 7 p.m.
(Originally published Jan. 31, 2008 at 11:07 p.m. PT.)