Over the years, Amber Portwood’s life has been riddled with problems of her own making. As viewers, we’ve all had a front-row seat to her various missteps on MTV, first on 16 and Pregnant, and then on Teen Mom OG. Naturally, her negative choices and behaviors have also affected her dealings with her daughter Leah Shirley, not to mention the actual law. And order.
Bad boys Amber, bad boys Amber, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when they come for you? And come for Amber the police have. Here’s an overview of their findings.
Amber’s first domestic and possession charges
In 2010, the footage that aired of the Teen Mom OG Season 1 finale, and all of Season 2, was damning AF. The cameras showed Amber displaying multiple violent behaviors against Gary Shirley, her now-ex and Leah’s father. These captured cheap shots included scenes of Amber slapping, choking, and kicking Gary. Her arrest came in December of this same calendar year.
In Touch gathered up Amber’s records, where this first sentence of hers consisted of 730 days. However, 728 of these got suspended. Amber also received credit for the two days that she spent in jail following her initial arrest. She therefore walked away receiving only two years of probation, alongside a $226 fine.
Shortly after though, in 2011, Amber returned to jail. She violated the terms of her probation and faced new charges of battery and public intoxication. In addition, she failed to get her GED, and she never took her court-ordered anger management classes.
Only a handful of days after this arrest, Amber missed her probation check-in. Therefore, the officers paid her a little visit to her house. She appeared groggy, and a mixture of prescription pills lay scattered about. They charged Amber with possession of a controlled substance.
Following this mess, Gary received full custody of Leah.
In January 2012, Amber pleaded guilty to possession, and in February, she received her sentence. It consisted of five years in the slammer, but wildly, she could have avoided this. You see, Amber got a chance to take a plea deal, which would have seen her avoiding jail time altogether if only she’d just go to rehab and get sober. But, even though they tried to make her go to rehab, Amber said no no no, and took the prison sentence instead.
Amber only served 16 months.
Domestic charges emerged again several years later
In 2017, Amber got herself a new man in Andrew Glennon. The following year, they welcomed their son James into their messy fold. But in 2019, Amber’s life fell apart once again.
Allegedly, Amber slapped Andrew on his neck with a shoe, as he held James in his arms. Andrew ran and hid with James behind a closed door at this point, but Amber began chopping into their door with a machete, according to Andrew. Due to this, Amber returned to jail. She once again faced down felony domestic battery charges.
In his report, Andrew claimed that Amber often hit him. She’s also “threatened him countless times.” Therefore, Andrew was granted primary physical custody of James.
In October 2019, Amber pleaded guilty to two felony charges of domestic battery and intimidation. She received 900 days of probation, and a suspended 910-day jail term. In 2022, Andrew moved away. He and James left Indiana, and they now reside in Malibu, CA, where Amber visits as she can.
In a special sit down with Amber, Dr. Drew Pinsky asked Amber about her legal battles. Well, kinda. She wasn’t allowed to say much, due to her lawyers not being present. She did call Andrew “insane” though, while noting that she “loved” her “fans.”
To date, things remain chaotic in Amber’s world
Following over a decade’s worth of legal battles and losses, things remain wild in Amber’s life. Thankfully, she hasn’t returned to jail, which we commend her for. But, she’s still out there, making headlines that read like a messy Telenovela.
To explain, Amber’s newest man Gary Wayt just popped up on Teen Mom. But then, he disappeared. Like, literally. He was reported missing on Sunday, June 9, 2024.
In an interview with a YouTube personality named Elle Bee, Amber stressed that she has changed. And that Gary’s disappearance shocked her, as “I have not touched this man in any horrible way. He does not touch me in any horrible way. We do not yell at each other. Please understand this, people change,” she said.
In a shocking, breaking news type of twist, after leaving their vacation cabin in NC, a Gary spotting has just emerged. He’s in Oklahoma. That’s suspicious. That’s weird.
Even still, hopefully, Amber’s words about her changed ways are true. Maybe her criminal charges did teach her a thing or two. On this, only time will tell.
TELL US – HAS AMBER CHANGED? IF SO, WILL SHE BE ABLE TO MEND ANY OF HER BROKEN RELATIONSHIPS?
