Britney Spears has sparked fears she should have been kept in a conservatorship to protect her mental health

An insider told Page Six: "I hate to say it, but the way this is all going - this is what we feared.

"The narrative of Britney having been locked away for no good reason other than her dad being evil and wanting to work her for every last penny has always been wrong.

"There is no question that Jamie Spears is a flawed father and the way that Britney was put to work in Vegas was awful. It should never have happened.

"However, there is also no question that the conservatorship - and the interventions prior to it - happened for a reason and it wasn't because her dad wanted to make some nefarious money grab.

"It was put in place because Britney has serious mental health issues and was going completely off the rails."

Before last week's incident at the Chateau Marmont, a source who knows Jamie told Page Six: "I have never believed that Jamie is the villain in this situation.

"I think he has been unfairly vilified by people who know nothing about the situation and have nothing to do with it. I hate to say it, but he could be vindicated."

The source highlighted how Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny did not put Britney through an evaluation when she ended the conservatorship.

At the time, Judge Penny said there was "no need for a capacity declaration" of Spears, and stressed it had been a voluntary conservatorship.

A former boyfriend of the singer, who dated her for several years while she was under the conservatorship, also told Page Six, "I think she needs to... pick up the Bible.

"She always said, too, that she wanted to go home to Louisiana. I hope she does. I'm not sure why she's still in LA. It's a cesspool there."

Britney was seen on Thursday hobbling out of the Chateau on Thursday barefoot and wrapped in a blanket, wearing only underwear, as she was escorted towards emergency services.

Multiple reports have said she had fought with her alleged ex-boyfriend Paul Richard Soliz, but the singer has since insisted paramedics were only called to the hotel as she suffered a sprained ankle.

Britney has also prompted fears for her mental health with her outpouring of bizarre social media posts in the last year, including nude photos and videos that are said to upset her children, and a now infamous clip of her dancing with a pair of huge kitchen knives at her home.