UPDATE: More than a year after NBA star Tristan Thompson’s mom sudden and tragic passing, a judge has made a permanent decision over the guardian ship of his little brother, Amari. Tristan has been looking after Amari since their mom’s passing.
According to TMZ, five months after Tristan petitioned for guardianship, a judge has ruled in Tristan’s favor.
Tristan Thompson is stepping up for his family when he’s needed the most. The Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles granted the 32-year-old NBA power forward temporary guardianship of his 17-year-old brother, Amari Thompson – who suffers from epilepsy, among other medical conditions.
It comes roughly 9 months after Tristan and Amari’s mother, Andrea Thompson, died of a sudden heart attack at her home in Toronto on January 5. After learning of her death, Tristan traveled to Toronto and was comforted by the mother of his children, Khloe Kardashian – who helped with funeral arrangements.
After taking some time to be with his family, Tristan Thompson – who was Amari’s legal guardian at that point – headed back to California. More tragedy struck when the roof of Tristan’s home caved in, resulting in extreme flooding in the home. Luckily, he and his brother had the ever-so-generous Khloe to lean on.
RELATED: Khloe Kardashian Shares Photos of Tristan Thompson with Both Kids: ‘You Are the Best Father’
According to recent court documents, the temporary guardianship grants Tristan ‘all powers a parent having legal custody of a child would have’ – as reported by PEOPLE. His guardianship is extremely important to Amari’s well-being because he requires around-the-clock support due to his disability.
The guardianship also grants Tristan the ability to ‘manage ward’s finances and assets, travel with the ward within the United States of America and internationally, enroll ward in social and other extracurricular activities, decide living arrangements of the ward [and] obtain legal counsel on behalf of the ward.’
Tristan Thompson initially filed a request for sole legal guardianship of his brother on September 8. He argued that he was Amari’s closest living family member, especially since their father, Trevor Thompson, has been absent from the 17-year-old’s life for the past 10 years. The courts obviously sided with Tristan.
“Appointing a guardian for Amari would be in his best interest because it would ensure that someone would be responsible for providing and fulfilling his basic needs,” Tristan wrote in the filing – adding that he would like to assist Amari in managing and investing the inheritance left behind by their mother.
Tristan Thompson and His Younger Brother Are Living in Hidden Hills
It has been quite a rough year for the Thompson family – evidenced by the death of their mother and followed by the roof of Tristan’s house caving in. Understanding the difficult times he was experiencing at the time, Khloe Kardashian allowed Tristan and Amari Thompson to move in with her earlier this year.
“Tristan and Amari are staying at my house right now until his home gets fixed,” Khloe said during a confessional on The Kardashians. “Amari is 16, and he is severely disabled. It’s just really sad, because we don’t know what he knows or doesn’t know, cognitively.” She was there when he needed her most.
Now, Tristan Thompson and his younger brother are back on their own and living in his Hidden Hills home. Amari will get to spend plenty of time with his brother and Tristan’s four children – Prince Oliver, 6, True Thompson, 5, Theo, 1, and Tatum, 1. Tristan shares both True and Tatum with his ex, Khloe.