Bristol Palin 'Going Rogue' From Levi Johnston?

Dec. 29, 2009— -- It appears Sarah Palin might not be the only one in her family "going rogue."

Now the former Alaska governor's 18-year-old daughter Bristol wants to distance herself further from ex-lover Levi Johnston in what court documents show has become a heated custody battle over their 1-year-old son Tripp.

Bristol filed a legal petition Nov. 3 seeking sole custody of her son and child support payments from Johnston in accordance with Alaska law.

She also asked the Alaska court to keep the proceedings closed -- a request which was denied on Christmas Eve.

"Unfortunately, despite Bristol's interest in keeping this matter private, Levi has requested that this matter remain public," Palin's lawyer Lisa C. Hamby told ABC News.

"Bristol's petition for custody only asks for the status quo: primary custody with Bristol while allowing Levi visitation with Tripp," Hamby said. Bristol says her ex-fiance has only made "sporadic" visits to see their child.

For his part, Johnston, 19, insists in court documents that he has fulfilled his fatherly responsibilities and wants to retain shared custody of Tripp.

Bristol and Johnston were thrust into the national spotlight late last year after their pregnancy was announced days after Sarah Palin, then Alaska's governor, was named Republican presidential candidate John McCain's running mate.

The couple called off their engagement soon after their son Tripp Easton Mitchell was born.

Since the campaign, the relationship between Sarah Palin and the father of her grandchild has become severely strained, escalating into a full-blown war of words in the media.

Johnston has publicly accused Palin of calling her son Trig "the retarded baby" and also alleged that the Palins are on the verge of divorce – accusations which Palin denied in a November interview with ABC's Barbara Walters.

Sarah Palin: Johnston "Always Part of the Family"

During the interview with Barbara Walters, Palin also applauded claims by Johnston that he will sue for joint custody of his son if Bristol doesn't allow it.

"Well, it will be nice to see, in, I guess, even in, in legal proceedings, a desire to be a part of the baby's life," Sarah Palin told Walters. "That's a good sign."

Johnston catapulted himself into the media spotlight after separating from Bristol, posing for Playgirl magazine last month and making public appearances.

"Levi's making some irresponsible decisions right now with money, and with career. I guess his handlers are sort of ushering in, him into this new line of work, with the, with the porn, and with the things that he's involved in right now. He's a kid who's misguided, and he's kind of lost right now," Palin said.

But, despite the crossfire, Palin seemed to suggest that Johnston would always have a place in the family.

"I'm going to leave it at that, acknowledging that he will always be a part of our family. I can't wait until he comes back on that right road of wanting to be a part of the family in Tripp's life. It's going to be good. At the end of the day, this will be a good experience," she said.

ABC News' Polson Kanneth and the Associated Press contributed to this report.