Jenelle Evans Defends Decision to Stop Parenting Her Son

Jenelle Evans is standing up… for herself.

Late last week, the former Teen Mom cast member put her 16-year old son on a plane to go live with his biological father, Andrew Lewis.

This, despite Jace and Lewis having seen each other in person last year for the first time in over a decade.

The pair has next to no relationship.

So, what gives?!? Why did Evans do this?

“You guys are looking at it as a negative situation, but everyone behind closed doors is looking at it as a positive thing for him,” the 33-year old explained via TikTok on Tuesday, May 13.

“You can say all you want. You can say I’m not taking care of my kids. Being a mother is doing the best interest for your child and I am doing the best interest for my child.”

There’s a lot of background to this situation, as many readers likely know at this point.

In April, for example, Jenelle called 911 on Jace because she claimed the young man was smashing everything in their Las Vegas home.

Prior to this alleged incident, Jace ran away from home on a number of occasions.

Including, according to The Sun, not long before the decision was made for him to try his luck with his dad in Florida.

Moreover, the reason behind at least one of these disappearance, per Jace himself, was that Jenelle’s estranged husband, David Eason, physically assaulted him in some way.

Eason was charged with Assault by Strangulation as a result, which is considered a felony. Scary stuff.

Jace also was mostly raised by his maternal grandmother, Barbara, until he reportedly became too much for her to handle; Evans once claimed her son tried to burn down her mom’s house.

In her latest TikTok video, Evans — who now resides in Las Vegas — said that she needed some assistance because Jace continues struggling with mental health disorders.

“He was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 10 and most recently, in 2023, he was also diagnosed with major depressive disorder along with his ADHD and defiant disorder or ODD,” she explained to followers.

“With defiant disorder, it’s very hard to deal with. Kids act out on purpose because they want attention. They have no remorse. They have no empathy for what they did.”

Evans went on to say that her teenager’s mental health diagnoses has been a “family secret” that many loved ones kept private for years.

“We never wanted to put it in front of the media and explain it because it was Jace’s privacy,” she said in her video. “Now we’ve gotten to the point where it’s happened too many times, multiple incidents for years and years and years. Something had to be done.”

Jenelle regained custody of Jace in March 2023 and then lost him temporarily this past October after another 911 call.

It’s been a constant, and very troubling, roller coaster between mother and son. Pretty much forever.

“We’ve tried everything we could,” said Jenelle of herself and Lewis. “Right now, he needs to be in a situation where both households are safe.”

Looking ahead, Evans is optimistic that she can continue working with Lewis to do whatever they can for Jace.

“I feel like when you’re coparenting, if both sides of the family can come together to help solve these issues before they turn into adult…it’s just really important,” Evans said.

“I put all the drama aside and said, ‘Let’s just do this.’

Jenelle Evans Defends Decision to Stop Parenting Her Son was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.