Britney Spears In Involuntary Psychiatric Hold

UPDATED (9:49 AM PST) LA Superior Court confirms to Access that there was an emergency Federline / Spears custody hearing this morning at 8:30 AM. Mark Vincent Kaplan was there representing Kevin and reportedly Tara L. Scott was there representing Britney the hearing is now over.

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[ Britney Spears - View the gallery ]

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (January 4, 2008) Britney Spears' troubles have been thrust into the public eye once again.

The police were called to the singer's house at around 8:00 PM Thursday to help end a custody dispute, involving her two sons, 2-year-old Sean Preston and 1-year-old Jayden James, according to Officer Jason Lee of the Los Angeles Police Department.

Although police say the children were released at around 10:50 PM, OK! Magazine reports that Sean Preston was removed earlier leaving only Jayden inside with his mother.

[ Britney: The Way She Was - View the gallery ]

The singer appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, according to Officer Lee.

Though authorities are reporting Britney was under the influence, not everyone believes this to be true.

"Her blood test just came back, and, thank God, it was clean. There are no traces of drugs or alcohol of any kind," a source close to the Spears family told Life & Style.

Access has reached out to the Los Angeles Police Department and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, but both have refused to comment.

She was wheeled out on a gurney, with an eerie smile stretching across her face, then taken by ambulance to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Cedars-Sinai would neither confirm nor deny to Access that Britney was admitted to the hospital.

[ Britney Stand-Off Ends With Eerie Ambulance Ride - Watch the Video ]

Britney is being held on an involuntary psychiatric hold, also known as a Section 5150, a source tells Access.

According to Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, a 5150 is defined as, "a means by which someone who is in serious need of mental health treatment can be transported to a designated psychiatric inpatient facility for evaluation and treatment for up to 72-hours against their will. If the facility feels that further treatment is indicated, the person can be held involuntarily for additional lengths of time providing he or she meets the legal criteria and is unwilling or unable to remain voluntarily."

The children are currently in the hands of father Kevin Federline, following a standard medical evaluation.

According to People's Deputy Managing Editor Peter Castro, in California there is a law stating that if there is an incident at a home involving children, they are required to go to a hospital and get checked for physical and mental issues.

In this case they were cleared of both, but not after a very long time in the hospital.

"This was a hostage situation," Castro told Access.

The court appointed monitor reportedly was the person who called the police.

"When it was time for Jayden to go visit, get back in the car and go to his dad, Britney did not allow that. She locked herself in a room with Jayden, and that's when the cops were called," Castro told Access. "They come in, they get through the door, and they strap Britney down on a gurney."

The police had a difficult time removing Britney from the locked room, according to Castro. "It's unclear whether they broke down the door or Britney let them in, but it took a long time for them to get through that door and when they finally got through they saw a disoriented Britney, who hadn't slept for days, apparently hadn't eaten for days, and that's when they decided, 'Let's put her in a gurney, she's under no condition to walk out of here on her own.'"

Access also spoke to Britney's mother, Lynne Spears, who was extremely distraught, crying on the phone and asking our staff, "Just say prayers."

Jamie, Brit's father, and the lawyer who requested a release from representing the singer, all showed up at the hospital, along with Britney's constant companion Sam Lutfi, according to Castro.

Spears and ex-husband Kevin Federline have been involved in a bitter and very public custody battle. Federline has primary physical custody of the two children, while Spears has limited visitation rights.

Earlier in the day on Thursday, Federline's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, deposed Britney for 14 minutes.