June “Mama June” Shannon, 44, has reportedly been granted temporary custody of her granddaughter, Kaitlyn, 11, following her daughter, Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell‘s death on December 9. The Mama June: From Not to Hot star was reportedly granted temporary custody of her late daughter’s child just two weeks after Anna’s ex, Michael Cardwell, sued Mama June for custody of Kaitlyn.
In court docs obtained by Page Six, Mama June filed documents in a Georgia court just days after Michael sued her for custody of the preteen. The 44-year-old reportedly filed for a “petition for change of child custody and for emergency ex parte relief” following the 29-year-old’s death last month. Furthermore, Mama June noted that Kaitlyn “does not have a legal father,” and that the identity of her biological father is not known.
Michael was married to Anna from 2014 until their 2017 divorce. Although he is not Kaitlyn’s biological father, he did welcome daughter, Kylee, 8, with the late mother-of-two. Additionally, Mama June emphasized that Kaitlyn has been living with her for “more than a month” and that it would be in the “best interest of the child” for her granddaughter to continue living with her.
In the same filing obtained by Radar Online, Mama June revealed that Anna and Kaitlyn had been living with her leading up to her death. “More recently, approximately one month before her passing the mother and child began residing with [June],” the docs read on January 2. The grieving mother reportedly added that she is not “aware of any interested parties other than herself that would have standing to seek custody of the child.”
Mama June is reportedly seeking “primary sole legal” and “sole physical custody” of the 11-year-old. A judge granted her temporary “sole custody” of Kaitlyn until a future hearing. However, the date of the alleged hearing is not known. Before temporary custody was awarded to Mama June, Michael sued her on December 17 for custody of Anna’s eldest daughter. In the filing obtained by The U.S. Sun at the time, he claimed that he has “fully and completely undertaken a permanent, unequivocal, committed, and responsible parental role” for Kaitlyn.
The Toddlers and Tiaras alum confirmed the news of Anna’s death via Instagram on December 10. “With the breaking heart, we are announcing that @annamarie35 is no longer with us. She passed away in my home last night peacefully at 11:12 PM,” Mama June penned in the caption of a family photo. “We love y’all and continued prayers and thoughts for our family doing this difficult time.”
Anna had been battling cancer for nearly one year prior to her passing.