Lamar Odom ripped by judge for not making child support payments
Lamar Odom has had plenty of issues since his NBA career ended eight years ago, and we can now add not making child support payments to the list.
Odom was sued last month by his ex-girlfriend Liza Morales, who says the former Los Angeles Laker has been skipping out on child support payments for a year now. The two reached a settlement agreement in 2015, and Morales says Odom has not honored it since June 2020. As a result, she says she has fallen way behind on rent and an eviction case has been opened against her.
Morales says Odom owes nearly $83,000 for rent at the apartment in Lower Manhattan where she lives with hers and Lamar’s two children, according to Page Six. Morales’ lawyer, Abraham Borenstein, says Odom also owes more than $90,000 in child support payments. Morales said in court on Tuesday that Odom has not given her any money despite recently making $40,000 in his celebrity boxing match with Aaron Carter.
Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Matthew Cooper encouraged Morales to file a judgment for him to sign.
“If Mr. Odom is in good enough shape to participate in a boxing match, he’s certainly in good enough shape to abide by his obligations to support his children as set forth in the settlement agreement,” Cooper said.
Morales claims Odom also owes her $24,000 for college application fees and room and board for their children. She says he drained bank accounts that each held over $68,000 that was set aside to use for college tuition. Morales added that Odom is “definitely making income” between his NBA pension, the boxing match and other things he is doing with his brand.
“I will just offer the observation that if Mr. Odom wants to have a brand that means anything, it should be one where the person behind the brand pays to support his children and doesn’t leave his children in danger of being evicted,” Cooper said.
Odom beat Carter in an ugly “fight” earlier this month that was really more of a freak show. It’s unclear how much income the 41-year-old currently has, but even agreeing to the bizarre fight made him seem desperate for money.
