Why Does Teen Mom’s Jace Live With His Dad Andrew Lewis? Jenelle Evans Custody Update

Teen Mom alum Jenelle Evans was granted custody of her eldest son, Jace Evans, in 2023 after a decades-long custody battle with her mother, Barbara Evans. Following her split from David Eason, Jenelle moved with her kids to Las Vegas for a “fresh start” — but just months later, she revealed that her teenage son was living in Florida.

Why Does ‘Teen Mom’ Star Jenelle Evans’ Son Live With His Father Andrew Lewis?

In May 2025, The Sun reported that Jenelle put her 15-year-old son on a plane to live with his father, Andrew Lewis, in Florida.

“It’s the summertime, and as of now, it’s a temporary situation, so Jace doesn’t need to be enrolled in school at the moment,” a source told the outlet. “The timing worked out that he doesn’t have to start a new school immediately. But Andrew has begun the process of looking into where Jace may possibly enroll.”

The outlet further reported that a judge would have to grant permission for Andrew to take custody of Jace and that the teenager was expected to return home to his mother in Las Vegas, Nevada, sometime in June 2025 to check back in before they make any further decisions.

Jenelle exclusively opened up to In Touch about choosing to send Jace to live with his father, revealing the decision caused her “a lot of anxiety.”

“Jace has had his own problems since he’s been younger. And you know he’s been living from household to household,” she explained on May 15, 2025. “I think it’s time that he goes and reconnects with his other side of his family. So that was one of the main reasons why he went.”

As far as how Jace was adapting to his new Florida lifestyle, Jenelle confirmed her son was “settling in good” but confirmed he would be returning to Las Vegas, Nevada, in June 2025, where she lived with her other kids, son Kaiser and daughter Ensley, from previous relationships.

‘Teen Mom’ Star Jenelle Evans Revealed ‘Incidents’ Led to Jace’s Departure

Jenelle addressed fan backlash in a 4-minute TikTok video posted on May 14, 2025, responding to accusations that she couldn’t “handle” her son and had to send him to live with his father.

“My son has been dealing with mental health disorders since he’s been 10 years old. He was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 10,” she told her followers. “Most recently in 2023, he was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, along with his ADHD and defiant disorder.”

Jenelle described that “incidents,” which she didn’t go into detail about, began when Jace was 10 years old and explained the situation as “pretty bad.” In the TikTok clip, the reality TV alum revealed to her followers that Child Protective Services (CPS) gave her custody of Jace after he “acted out at every household he went too,” which eventually led CPS to “throw their hands up and drop the case.”

After moving to Las Vegas, Jenelle said things were calm for about “three to four weeks” until another incident shattered the peace. Following several troubling episodes, she finally reached out to Jace’s father.

“I said, ‘Hey, I need help,’” she recalled. “I was in a panic attack. I was crying my eyes out, and I was like, ‘For once, I need your help. I need you to take over this situation because all of us have put forth effort into as much as we can give.’”

Who Is Jace’s Father Andrew Lewis?

Jenelle made her MTV debut with Andrew in 2009, when they welcomed Jace as teenage parents. After giving birth, she continued to embrace her youth and lifestyle, ultimately signing over custody of Jace to her mother in 2010. Nearly a decade later, Jenelle and her mom “decided together” that she would regain guardianship.