Amber Siyavus, who appeared on Season 8 of the CBS reality series "Big Brother," died Friday in Nevada at the age of 46, and court records obtained by TMZ are now shedding light on a difficult final chapter marked by criminal cases and personal loss.
According to the documents reviewed by TMZ, Siyavus entered a guilty plea in 2020 to a charge of attempting to resist an officer with a dangerous weapon. Prosecutors alleged that she tried to drive away from a Henderson, Nevada police officer who was partially inside her vehicle at the time. For that case, a judge handed down a suspended prison term of 19 to 48 months, placed her on probation for as long as four years, and directed her to complete evaluations for substance abuse and mental health.
That was not her only encounter with the legal system. In September 2020, she also pleaded guilty to felony forgery in connection with Western Union money orders, according to the records obtained by TMZ. That case produced a second suspended prison sentence and a probation term of up to two years.
By 2023, Siyavus had completed her obligations and was no longer under court supervision for any of the offenses, the records show.
Her cause and manner of death remain under investigation, according to TMZ, which previously reported that she died Friday in Nevada.
Viewers of the CBS reality show first met Siyavus during its 2007 season. Her tendency to cry frequently during her time in the house led fans to give her the nickname "Whamber."
Beyond the courtroom and the television screen, Siyavus endured a profound family tragedy in 2018. Her 18-year-old daughter, Lexi Tomcavage, died in Ohio that year in a case that authorities investigated as an apparent suicide.
The combination of legal troubles and personal grief paints a portrait of a former reality television personality whose later years were far removed from her time in the spotlight. The investigation into her death continues.