Splash NewsTLC has officially cleared out of the Here Comes Honey Boo Boo house following the series' cancellation.
Earlier today, crewmembers were spotted at the home of Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson, "Mama June" Shannon and the rest of their clan in McIntyre, Georgia. Despite lots of controversy surrounding June's reported relationship with convicted sex offender Mark McDaniel, 8-year-old Alana was all smiles while helping TLC workers remove lighting equipment and other parts from her house.
TLC canceled Here Comes Honey Boo Boo last week following reports that June was dating McDaniel after her split from ex Mike "Sugar Bear" Thompson in September (June denies she's dating McDaniel). McDaniel was convicted of aggravated child molestation in 2004. He served 10 years in a Georgia state prison and was released in March of this year. He is currently a registered sex offender in Georgia.
After the shocking news broke, June's 20-year-old daughter Anna Marie Cardwell, known by the nickname "Chickadee" on the reality show, claimed she had been molested by McDaniel when she was 8 while he and June were dating.
Meanwhile, Lynn Soodik, a family lawyer who does not represent any of the parties involved in the controversy, tells E! that June could be in jeopardy of losing custody of her kids. "I think the Department of Family Services, if they found the child at risk could give custody to the dad and if they found he could not take custody she could be taken into the system," says Soodik. "Even if Department of Child family services don't feel the child is at risk, the father could go in and ask to modify the custody arrangement." Sugar Bear is only the biological father of Alana.
Additionally, Susan Boatwright of Georgia's Division of Family and Child Services tells E!, "Generally speaking, when we receive a report that children are living around a sex offender, it would certainly rise to the level of concern of us looking into it."
Because of privacy laws, Boatwright is unable to confirm any ongoing investigations into the allegations against Mama June, but says, "From our point of view, when there are young children who are not able to protect themselves that are in daily contact or living with a sex offender, someone would go out and assess the situation and decide whether the children can stay there or not. If we thought a child was in harm's way in any way, shape or form, we would develop a safety plan and make sure the children are not around an offender."
While the future of Alana's custody remains a question, Sugar Bear paid a visit to his former home on Friday and was spotted hanging out outside June's house for most of the day. Sugar Bear was also asked by reporters if he's upset with the news of June's reported relationship with McDaniel and he answered, "A little bit." He also said of TLC's decision to pull the plug on their show, "Yeah, I'm upset that it's canceled."
—Reporting by Michelle Falls and Claudia Rosenbaum