Jenelle Evans
Jenelle Lauren Evans (born December 19, 1991) is a reality television personality who rose to fame on MTV's Teen Mom 2. She was originally chronicled on MTV's 16 and Pregnant, where she gave birth to a son, Jace.[1] In 2019, after ten years with the network, Evans was fired by MTV after her husband David Eason shot and killed their family dog.
Jenelle Evans | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jenelle Lauren Evans December 19, 1991 |
| Years active | 2010–present |
| Known for | 16 and Pregnant Teen Mom 2 |
| Height | 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m) |
| Spouse(s) | Courtland Rogers
(m. 2012; div. 2014)David Eason (m. 2017) |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Barbara Evans Robert Evans |
Personal life
Evans appeared on the MTV series, 16 and Pregnant, in 2010 with her then boyfriend, Andrew Lewis. After giving birth to a son, Jace Evans, at the age of 17, she separated from Andrew and went on to document her story on the MTV follow-up series, Teen Mom 2. After running into legal troubles and wanting to get to a point of independence, Evans signed over temporary custody of Jace to her mother, Barbara Evans, in 2010. Permanent custody of Jace was awarded to Barbara in 2017.
Evans has a history of drug abuse, including substances such as heroin and marijuana. She has previously been arrested for possession of heroin and marijuana, as well as possession of drug paraphernalia.
Evans continued to appear on MTV until she was fired by the network in May 2019 after her husband, David Eason, shot and killed their family dog. The network had previously cut ties with Eason over discovering a history of homophobic and racist online commentary. Evans and Eason temporarily lost custody of their children after the incident. She has since been replaced on Teen Mom 2 by fellow MTV star, Jade Cline.
After temporarily losing custody of her children, Evans claimed that Child Protective Services illegally took her children out of her home. She went far enough to seek help from Donald Trump, who was President of the United States at the time of the incident. When Trump attended a presidential rally in North Carolina, Evans reached out to him via social media asking if he'd help her investigate the Child Protective Services branch in her area, but never received a response.[2]
Relationships
Evans gave birth to her first child, a son, Jace Vahn Evans on August 2, 2009 when she was 17, with her ex-boyfriend Andrew Lewis. The couple separated while filming the MTV show, 16 and Pregnant, due to Lewis facing legal troubles. Lewis went on to father a second child and was not involved in their son Jace's life until 2019 when he unexpectedly asked for visitation.
After separating from Lewis, Evans started dating Kieffer Delp. The pair met at a party while Delp was homeless and couch surfing among Evans' friends. The couple went onto document their relationship on MTV's Teen Mom 2. Shortly after they began dating, Evans and Delp were arrested for breaking and entering along with possession of controlled substances. Evans later pressed domestic violence charges against Delp and he spent time in jail after she failed to find anyone willing to bail him out of jail. The couple officially split in 2012, but briefly reunited after Evans split with exes Gary Head in 2012 and Nathan Griffith in 2015. Delp was arrested in 2018 for allegedly running a meth operation and served time in jail until February 2020. Evans cited her tumultuous relationship with Delp as a big reason why she never regained custody of her son Jace and why her mother Barbara repeatedly threw her out of the family's home.[3]
Shortly after breaking up with Kieffer Delp, Evans got into a relationship with Gary Head - a former member of the United States Marine Corps. Evans and Head became engaged in May 2012 and broke up just two weeks after. Evans cited infidelity as a reason for their split. The pair remained in contact until they were both arrested in June 2012 for a physical altercation in her North Carolina home. [4]
Not long after her split from Head, Evans went onto date Courtland Rogers in November 2012. The pair married in December 2012 in a small courthouse ceremony. She became pregnant by Courtland and had an abortion.[5] in the same year, citing addiction and the ongoing custody battle over Jace. The couple quickly separated January 2013 and the couple were arrested for heroin possession and assault in April 2013. The couple divorced formally in 2014.
In 2013, Evans met Nathan Griffith on Tinder and the two began dating shorty after. Prior to meeting Evans, Griffith was a member of the United States Marine Corps where he served in Afghanistan. Evans became pregnant with Griffith's child months after and welcomed their son, Kaiser Orion Griffith, on June 30, 2014. The couple became engaged after vacationing in St. Thomas soon after the birth of Kaiser in January 2015. In April 2015, Griffith was arrested for domestic violence after allegedly pinning Evans against a wall to forcibly place her engagement ring on her finger. Evans got back together with Griffith before officially separating in August 2015. Evans and Griffith have experienced ongoing custody battles over their son, Kaiser, after Griffith accused Evans of physically and mentally abusing their son.
Currently, she is married to David Eason[6] Evans met Eason on Tinder in September 2015, after officially splitting with Nathan Griffith. Evans became pregnant in 2016, but miscarried shortly after. A few months after her miscarriage, Evans became pregnant again and gave birth to a daughter, Ensley Jolie Eason, on January 24, 2017. Eason and Evans married in September 2017, shortly after their daughter was born. In 2018, Evans called 911 on Eason claiming he had assaulted her outside of their North Carolina home, but she did not press charges. The couple documented their relationship on MTV's Teen Mom 2, but have both since been terminated by the network. Eason was fired for a history of behavior, and Evans was fired from the network 2019 after Eason shot and killed their family dog. The couple temporarily lost custody of their daughter, Ensley, and Evans' son Kaiser, but won custody back in July 2019. In October 2019 Evans filed for divorce from Eason, citing that she could not continue to associate herself with him and maintain her television career. [7] [8] Eason has since been accused of killing another animal, a goat named Elvis, in front of their kids in September 2020. As of 2020, Evans and Eason are still married.
Television Appearances
Evans made her television debut as a cast member of the MTV reality show, 16 and Pregnant. The show documented her pregnancy as a 17-year old and contributed to the network's attempt at lowering the teen pregnancy rate in the United States. Filming took place in 2009 in Evans' home state of North Carolina. Her episode served as the season two premiere on February 16, 2010.
Evans went on to appear on the MTV spin-off Teen Mom 2 from 2011-2019 where she was featured in 109 episodes. She was fired by the network in 2019 after her husband, David Eason, shot and killed their family dog. She was also caught in April 2019 on an Instagram live show where her mother, Barbara, threatened fellow Teen Mom 2 cast member, Kailyn Lowry,[9] The Instagram show also contained Teen Mom 2 star Brittany DeJesus. Lowry threatened to quit the show because she felt unsafe being part of a program that enabled such behavior, but it was Evans who ultimately was terminated.
References
- "'Teen Mom 2': Jenelle Evans' Ex Andrew Lewis Comes Forward During Reunion". Reality TV. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- Montford, Christina; Articles, More; September 7, 2020 (September 7, 2020). "'Teen Mom 2': Jenelle Evans Is Now Asking Donald Trump for Help". Showbiz Cheat Sheet. Retrieved January 3, 2021.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
- "Getting Fit! See Where 'Teen Mom 2' Star Kieffer Delp Is Today". In Touch Weekly. July 10, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
- "Inside 'Teen Mom 2' Star Jenelle Evans' Tumultuous Relationship History". Us Weekly. April 30, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
- Johnson, Tyler (August 28, 2018). "Courtland Rogers: Jenelle Evans' Ex Arrested For "Brutal" Assault on Wife". The Hollywood Gossip. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- Bonner, Mehera (June 5, 2019). "Jenelle Evans' Husband Got into a Confrontation With Her Ex Outside the Courthouse". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- Boucher, Ashley (November 21, 2019). "Jenelle Evans'Jenelle has once again gone back to Eason. Ex Nathan Griffith Speaks About 'Healthy' Co-Parenting Relationship Amid Her Divorce". People. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- "'Teen Mom' star Jenelle Evans Files for Divorce from David Eason". TMZ.
- "Kailyn Wants To Quit 'Teen Mom 2' After Enemy Jenelle's Mom Threatens To Kill Her". RadarOnline. April 16, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2021.