Mama June Accuses Anna Cardwell’s Ex Michael of Physical Abuse in Custody Court Hearing
June “Mama June” Shannon accused her late daughter Anna Cardwell’s ex Michael Cardwell of physical abuse in her latest court filing amid her custody battle for her oldest granddaughter, In Touch can confirm.
“During his marriage to Anna, Plaintiff [Michael] frequently physically abused Anna and the child and it would not be in the child’s best interests to be in the Plaintiff’s care and control,” Mama June, 44, claimed in her legal documents on Monday, January 15. In her filing, she asked for “sole legal and physical custody” of Kaitlyn, 11, and for Michael’s petition to be denied and dismissed.
Michael was married to Anna from 2014 to 2017 and the pair welcomed daughter Kylee, 8, during their marriage. Anna was already a mother to her daughter, Kaitlyn, whom she welcomed during a previous relationship.
Anna died at 29 years old after a 10-month battle against adrenal cancer on December 9, 2023. After Anna’s death, Kylee moved in with Michael — which was reportedly part of her mother’s intended custody plan — and Kaitlyn remained in her grandmother’s care after June was granted emergency guardianship on December 15, 2023. However, only two days later, Michael filed a lawsuit against June in a Georgia court for custody of Kaitlyn, according to court documents obtained by In Touch.
Michael claimed in the docs that Kaitlyn’s biological father had never supported nor been in her life in any way. In result, Michael stepped up to a “permanent, unequivocal, committed, and responsible parental role” in Anna’s eldest daughter’s life and grew close with her during his relationship with Anna. He also argued that he was and still is paying for Kaitlyn’s schooling.
Michael also called out Anna’s historically “sordid relationship with her mother,” as she was raised by her maternal grandmother and did not reunite with June until she was 17 years old.
One day after Michael filed his lawsuit, June filed a petition asking for permanent sole legal and sole physical custody of Kaitlyn, according to legal documents obtained by In Touch. She argued that she was best fit to care for her granddaughter because Kaitlyn had already been living with June before Anna’s death. June also claimed that it was Anna’s wish for Kaitlyn to live with her and husband Justin Stroud.
June was awarded emergency temporary custody of Kaitlyn on December 19, 2023, as a judge ruled that it was in the child’s best interest to stay with her grandmother until a future hearing can be determined. Michael then hired legal representation, and June was served on December 22, as he intended to continue pursuing permanent custody of Kaitlyn.
Mama June hinted that Anna’s final wishes regarding custody were filmed for the family’s reality TV show, Mama June: Family Crisis.
“We are following Anna’s wishes at the end of the day. People will see that all this season of the show,” she told The U.S. Sun on January 12. “A lot was covered on camera. The world will hear it from Anna’s mouth. This is a hard season to watch, for sure. Like I said when I’ve been going live on TikTok, a lot of people need to realize that a lot of our life has been documented.”
In response, Michael’s attorney told the publication they were aware of Anna’s claims but had yet to see evidence.
“I believe that’s been Ms. Shannon’s claim for some time, but we’ve seen no documents and no footage of anything,” the lawyer claimed. “To be frank, this is a court case that is going to play out in a courtroom in front of a judge and not over any reality TV show. We’ve not seen any official documents or any even informal documents that pertain to her decisions.”
Season 7 of Mama June: Family Crisis will premiere on WE tv on February 9 at 9 p.m. ET and will be available to stream on ALLBLK every Tuesday after.
