Lamar Odom's Cousin Refuses To Blame Kardashians For Tragedy — 'He's Still Responsible For What He Does'

Lamar Odom's distant cousin spoke exclusively with RadarOnline.com about his troubled relative.

Michael Mercer, who lives in North Carolina, hasn't met the Kardashian family, but he appears to forgive them for his cousin's troubles. "I'm sure they're good people," he told Radar. "It says a lot that Khloe Kardashian's by his side."

Mercer then offered an excuse for Odom's downward spiral into addiction, which has left him fighting for his life in a Las Vegas hospital after he was found unconscious in a brothel outside the city.

"Being on TV doesn't change who you are, but being in the public eye and that kind of pressure is never really a great thing," says Mercer. "You're judged on a such a harsh level. So that definitely puts added pressure on what you do."

However, he adds, "Lamar's still a man and he's still responsible for what he does."