Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office/MTV Maci Bookout posted cryptic quotes via social media after Ryan Edwards was arrested.
“Teen Mom” star Maci Bookout shared a series of posts via Instagram on February 11, the day after her ex-boyfriend, Ryan Edwards, was arrested.
Edwards had been feuding with his wife, Mackenzie Standifer, and was charged with harassment, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance, according to the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office. Before he was arrested, Edwards had shared a revealing photo of Standifer on Instagram and claimed she had an affair.
Bookout didn’t issue a direct response to her ex’s arrest, but she did share various cryptic posts. The first one was a quote written by Atticus Poetry, which says: “If you’re reading this, you deserve to be loved.”
Her second Instagram Stories post was about a Christian senior in high school talking about playing sports for an “audience of one.” The student reads a Bible entry, which says, “To make God the No. 1 priority.”
Bookout’s third post was another quote written by Atticus Poetry. It goes: “You deserve to have people in your life that make you feel seen & heard.”
Her final post was an inspirational message, which originally appeared on Benny Nara’s Instagram page.
“So I heard this quote the other day that really impacted me. It said, you’re suffering from self doubt while others are intimated by your full potential,” the narrator says. “And I love that quote because I think we are our own worst critic. And it makes me think about if your past self could see where you’re at today think of how impressed they would be.”
Bookout had been working on releasing the anger she has toward Edwards on season 2 of “Teen Mom: Family Reunion.” The former couple shares a 14-year-old son, Bentley, but Edwards has been largely absent from his son’s life.
Edwards Was Arrested After Violating an Order of Protection
Edwards, 35, was arrested by the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office on February 10, 2023, after they determined he violated an order of protection, which was taken out by the Chattanooga Police Department on February 8, 2023. They listed Standifer as the victim, according to a press release.
Police said they found Edwards at his place of employment, where they claimed he was “in possession of drug paraphernalia and two bags of suspected narcotics,” per the press release.
Edwards was given a bail of $5,000 and his court date was scheduled for March 30, 2023, according to an image posted by Teen Mom Chatter.
Before his arrest, Edwards posted disparaging comments about his wife via Instagram on February 9. The revealing photo, which showed Stanfider wearing a leather jacket and nothing underneath, was ultimately deleted. In one of the captions, he referred to his wife as “spineless,” accused her of cheating, and threatened to divorce her.
His new Instagram bio, however, remains intact. “You ever had your trash can just smell so bad it makes you sick yea that was my life for the last 7 years,” it says. “I well anything or nothing is better then u.”
Stanfider and Edwards, who have been married since 2017, have two children together: 4-year-old Jagger and 3-year-old Stella.
Edwards was at the center of his own cheating scandal in 2019, when Radar Online published screenshots of a Tinder conversation that appeared to be between Edwards and another woman.
Bookout Is Trying to Let Go of the ‘Animosity’ She Has for Edwards
Before the arrest happened, Bookout said during a season 2 episode of “Teen Mom: Family Reunion” that she wanted to forgive Edwards during an exercise where they figuratively and literally “buried the hatchet.”
“I want to let go of the anger I have for Ryan. But I don’t feel like I’m angry for myself. I feel like I’m angry for Bentley, so I’m not sure I can bury that,” Bookout told life coach Dr. Cheyenne Bryant, who is leading the retreat during “Teen Mom: Family Reunion.
“There have been times when he wanted to throw in the towel on Ryan,” Bookout added.
MTV then flashed to a throwback clip, where Bentley said he hadn’t been visiting with his father. When Bentley did meet up with Edwards, it was at his paternal grandparents’ house. He didn’t feel comfortable being at his father’s home.
“I haven’t seen him in forever,” Bentley said in the flashback. “And then like, that would just be a big jump from just like not seeing him and then going like straight to his house.”
Edwards’ arrest might be unexpected to some fans. Bryant had teased that Edwards was doing well and working on his relationship with his son.
“Ryan showed up in a way that people have never seen him show up,” Bryant told The Sun. “It just was so beautiful to see Ryan in the space where he was really wanting this relationship with Bentley and not having the tools to do so, and extremely open to succeeding.”
In a December 2022 interview with Page Six, Bookout teased that her and Bentley’s relationship with Edwards had improved. “We do have his phone number [now],” she reveals. “But any other details, you’ll just have to wait and see.”
Bookout credited Bryant with bringing new awareness to the impact she has on her son’s relationship with his father.
“Everyone will find out what the status of everything is throughout this season,” she told Page Six. “But Coach B really helped because we were able to determine what role I played in the relationship or lack of relationship that Bentley and Ryan have.”
Season 2 of “Teen Mom: Family Reunion” airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern time on MTV.