Mama June star awarded custody of granddaughter over former son-in-law

Mama June AKA June Shannon, star of the famous reality show Mama June: From Not To Hot, was recently awarded custody of her 12-year-old granddaughter Kaitlyn Elizabeth Clark. This legal victory took place after a lengthy custody battle between Mama June and Michael Cardwell, the estranged husband of her daughter Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell.

Anna passed away on December 9, 2023, at the age of 29 after a long battle with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma. Given her health condition, June suggested to Anna that the latter put up a formal custody agreement before her passing which was well documented in Mama June: Family Crisis season 6.

Michael Cardwell, who shared one other child with Anna, Kylee Madison (8), sought full custody of Kaitlyn. By default, if the biological mother passes away, the custody of a minor is awarded to the biological father.

But Anna did not reveal the identity of Kaitlyn’s biological father which allowed Mama June to Take Kaitlyn home.

After months of legal proceedings and family struggles, the court ultimately ruled in Mama June’s favor, granting her sole custody of Kaitlyn.

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The complicated history between the family members led Mama June to file for custody

June’s relationship with her daughters has often been tumultuous and well-documented in various reality shows over the years. Mama June is also the mother of Alana Thompson AKA Honey Boo Boo and together they appeared on the TLC series Toddlers and Tiaras.

The Shannon family went on to star in their own series called Here Comes Honey Boo Boo which ran from 2012 to 2017.

June had been taking care of Kaitlyn for as long as one month before Anna's passing and the reality star was awarded temporary custody by the courts.

Michael did receive custody of Kylee afterward, before which he was on a visitation schedule since he and Anna had been divorced since 2017.

June also alleged that Michael had been abusive towards Anna during their time together and argued that it was in Kaitlyn's best interest that the latter continued living with her.

According to an article by People on September 22, a Wilkinson County judge wrote in the ruling that although Kaitlyn spent a good amount of time with Michael in 2023, the latter "never provided any significant financial support" for Kaitlyn.

Additionally, the court documents state that the family therapist testified that Kaitlyn "expressed a desire to stay" with her grandmother.

"Legal and physical custody of the minor child is to remain with the Defendant (Shannon) and Plaintiff (Michael) will have no right to visitation as such, unless otherwise expressly agreed to by the parties and the minor child," wrote the judge.

Michael alleged in his reply that Anna was raised by her maternal grandmother in Griffin, Georgia, rather than at June's house. Anna moved there when she was around eight years old and came back to the reality star's house at the age of 17.

“Anna has had a very sordid relationship with her mother throughout her life and went various periods of time without speaking to her. Likewise, June’s presence in the minor child’s life has been inconsistent,” read the court documents.

On season 6 episode 22 of Mama June: Family Crisis which aired on June 21, 2024, the old footage of Anna revealed that she wanted Kaitlyn to go to Eldridge Toney. Eldridge and Anna married in March 2023 after discovering Anna's cancer diagnosis.

June and Anna later argued about the same when Anna told her mother about her wish. In episode 24, Shannon revealed that Eldridge had decided that Kaitlyn living with Elizabeth would be the best option for all parties.