TEEN MOM Ryan Edwards arrested on heroin related charge
It was revealed on Monday night’s episode of Teen Mom OG that star Mackenzie Edwards is currently pregnant with her and husband Ryan Edwards’ first child together. One day later, Ryan was arrested and in jail in Tennessee.
The news broke via social media sites earlier today as Ryan’s mug shot was discovered online by fans. The 30-year-old reality star was arrested by Red Bank Police on Tuesday after a petition to revoke his probation was issued by a judge.
Ryan was apparently on probation from a heroin possession charge that has somehow managed to remain under the radar, and he must have done something to violate his probation. I think it is VERY important to note that there is a long list of potential reasons that Ryan may have allegedly violated his probation that DO NOT mean he has relapsed. That being said, I think if it is a situation where it was something other than Ryan using again, that we will get some sort of statement from his wife Mackenzie Edwards soon.
UPDATE – Mackenzie has spoken with Radar Online about Ryan’s arrest. “Possession of heroin was the original charge from April before he went to rehab,” Mackenzie says. “Part of his case was he had to be booked. Everything is fine.” As far as whether or not Ryan is currently sober, Mackenzie says “he took a drug test yesterday and passed.”
Speaking of Mackenzie Edwards, she spoke with E! News yesterday and said that Ryan is “so excited” about her pregnancy. She also talked about his recovery, indicating that things seemed to be going well. “He’s in a really good place,” Mackenzie said. “He’s sober. I’m really proud of him.”
Immediately after the news about Ryan’s arrest broke on social media, the initial responses seemed to be more judgmental of Mackenzie than Ryan. CLEARLY, Ryan has his issues, and he is responsible for his own decisions and actions. But, fans seems to think Mackenzie has pressured him to get married and to have a child, which leads many to believe that she is more concerned about fame than his well being.
Some of these sentiments seem to be echoed — albeit with polite subtlety and with less judgment — by Ryan’s parents on the show. You can tell that Jen and Larry did not think the wedding was a good idea, especially given that Ryan was obviously high at the time, and Jen expressed in this week’s episode that she thought the couple should wait a couple years before having a child together so that Ryan could make sure that his addiction issues were under control. I’ve spoken before about how Jen and Larry’s scenes on the show in regards to their son are some of the most poignant in all of reality television, and this looks like another example of the heart breaking limitations of what parents can do to help their adult child make the right decisions.
UPDATE – Teen Mom 2 star Kail Lowry seems to share the anti-Mackenzie sentiment as she posted a series of tweets accusing Mackenzie of manipulating Ryan to get a paycheck. Click the link for all of Kail’s tweets as well as responses to Ryan’s arrest from Mackenzie McKee and Simon Saran.
While Mackenzie, Ryan, Jen, Larry, and Maci have yet to respond publicly to Ryan’s arrest, Teen Mom OG Executive Producer Morgan J. Freeman shared this tweet about drug addiction:
Please remember addiction is a disease. When in its grips, you lose the power to choose and are fueled by an insane urge to use even when you don't want to. So have empathy and compassion for those who suffer. Judgement can kill, so be careful.
— Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) March 28, 2018
He later added this comment, although it is unclear if he was referring to Ryan’s arrest or not:
Wait for all the facts before rushing to judgement.
— Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) March 28, 2018
If that last tweet by Morgan was in reference to Ryan, then it would seem to indicate that the alleged probation violation was not because of any sort of relapse on Ryan’s part. I suppose we will all just have to wait to find out — hopefully before this all airs on the show months from now.