Maci Bookout's ex husband Ryan Edwards keeps finding trouble. In the past few months, he has found himself in court for drug possession and for threatening Maci and her new husband. Mackenzie Standifer has stood by his side through it all, but is this the final straw?
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
Maci Bookout has been a fan favorite since she was featured on the pilot of MTV’s 16 and Pregnant. Viewers were thrilled when she finally ended things with her baby daddy Ryan Edwards in 2010.
Ryan stirred up drama in Maci’s life for years, and instead of learning from their breakup, he has brought his issues with drug abuse and his drama into new relationships. Recent reports suggest that he’s still at it!
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
Ryan wasted no time getting serious with his current wife, Mackenzie Standifer. They hooked up sometime in mid-2016, and started living together soon after that. They became engaged in December 2016. Though they claimed that they would wait for a year to get married, the wedding took place a lot sooner.
As allegations of Ryan’s terrible drug habit started surfacing, he was being pressured to go to rehab by Maci; it seems like his parents and fiancée weren’t taking as much initiative. Ryan did check himself into rehab in late May 2017, but he married Mackenzie in an expedited ceremony just days before.
Ryan told his mother about his strange wedding, “It don’t matter if there are a hundred people or two people. It just matters as long as we love each other. It just matters as long as we love each other. Just think it’s best for Bentley.”
Credit: MTV
Source: Instagram @mack.edwards21
Source: Instagram @mack.edwards21
Ryan said that marrying Mackenzie would help his custody of his son. Ryan shares a 9-year-old son, Bentley, with Maci.
Despite the rush, Mackenzie was filled with marital bliss and said, “Any negativity… bye. Hope the door doesn’t hit ya on the way out! #BeGoneSatan too much good happening in this household. God is so faithful! He has stuck by US in every step of our way. Thankful for a family that supports, loves and encourages.”
Though Makenzie did her best to shut down any negativity about the wedding, it stirred up a huge controversy last May when Ryan was filmed driving high on the way to the ceremony. Mackenzie noticed something was wrong with her fiancé right before their (first) wedding.
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
When she realized Ryan was swerving, she tried to straighten out the wheel. Then she asked, “Why are you swerving?”
Ryan responded, “My eyes, babe, in the sunlight I can’t keep ’em open.” Mackenzie asked if he was on Xanax, but Ryan insisted he wasn’t, telling her, “I put that on my kid’s life.”
Seeing Ryan as intoxicated as he was was very upsetting for some of the fans. However, what many found to be even more upsetting was the fact that MTV allowed it to happen while he was behind the wheel. Viewers took to social media, demanding MTV explain why they wouldn’t intervene while Ryan was driving under the influence.
In a statement obtained by People, the network said, “MTV does not condone driving under the influence. Ryan’s erratic behavior was due to actions that he took without anyone’s prior knowledge.”
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
The Ashley’s Reality Roundup interviewed a member of the Teen Mom OG crew who had more to say about the decision:
"The reason the producers didn’t stop Ryan from driving after he was seen nodding off is because the producers would not have been able to see him nodding off. That footage (and almost all car footage) is captured on Go-Pro cameras installed on the dashboard. We do not have a live feed to watch the cast in their car, despite what some viewers think. We do not have live eyes on them the whole time we’re filming them. That footage is captured and watched a few days later after the producers/crew get home from the shoot. It’s edited in later. When things happen in the car, we don’t know about it until the cast tells us, or when we watch the footage later on."
Source: Snapchat @Tyler.baltierra
Credit: MTV
Viewers expected Ryan to be at his best behavior at his second, larger wedding to Mackenzie, but he stayed true to his troublesome ways. As Teen Mom Talk Now previously reported, footage of the wedding shows Ryan throwing back what appears to be a beer. As if it weren’t clear enough that he was drinking before his wedding, he can be heard saying later, “I want to go get a shot real quick!”
Considering Ryan’s long-running battle with drug addiction, many fans were surprised to see him so openly drinking alcohol. They quickly pointed out that Ryan has been under the influence for not one but TWO weddings with Mackenzie. His behavior has her questioning the stability of their relationship.
Source: Instagram @mack.edwards21
Credit: MTV
On a recent episode of Teen Mom OG, Mackenzie questioned Ryan about his relationship with Maci while the newlyweds were discussing their first children. She has a 4-year-old son with her ex, Zachary Stephens.
As a former teen mom, Mackenzie asked Ryan about the pressure that she felt at a young age to marry a co-parent. “I was seventeen,” she recalled to Ryan. “I lived with my mom and dad… yeah, it was hard. I remember when I got pregnant, they wanted me to marry [my baby daddy] Zach and do the right thing.”
“That would have been awful if Maci and I got married,” Ryan said. “Just completely awful.”
“But you know what?” Mackenzie responded. “I respect you so much for the fact that you had the balls to say ‘No, this isn’t what makes me happy…’”
However, the couple was very close to walking down the aisle.
Credit: MTV
Source: Instagram @teenmom_mtv
“It was hard because my parents wanted me to do it,” Ryan shared. “I even bought a ring.”
Given their history, Mackenzie worries that Maci might not be over Ryan. “Do you think [Maci] has let go of the past?” Mackenzie asked.
Ryan laughed and exclaimed, “No! It’s my opinion I don’t think she has. I can’t act like I’m not to blame for any of it because I am, but it just sucks we have to drag it out and hold grudges… and stuff like that.”
Obviously, things did not work out between the two. These days, Maci is focusing on raising Bentley and rarely gets involved in the Teen Mom drama. But fans shared their own thoughts on the intimate conversation between Ryan and his wife.
Source: Instagram @macideshanebookout
Credit: MTV
Twitter user @RealitySnarkasm wrote, “Lol at Mackenzie wondering if Maci has moved on from the past and claiming Ryan left her. You and Ryan are the ones constantly bringing up ancient history, and clearly aren’t over SH*T #TeenMomOG.”
Though her husband Taylor McKinney rarely chimes in on the drama, he saw the tweet and quickly chimed in without holding back. He wrote: “Well when you have 2 jobless adults, one of whom is 30 years old and still needs his a** wiped, what do you [expect] the dinner convos to be? They should thank Maci for paying their ‘nursing school’….but that’s none of my business.”
Source: Instagram @macideshanebookout
Source: Instagram @macideshanebookout
Credit: MTV
Maci spoke out about her feelings for Ryan in her book I Wasn’t Born Bulletproof. She shared that Edwards was her “most painful breakup” and a relationship that she “had so much invested in.”
"I convinced myself that I needed to make it work and ignored a lot of red flags. It was my second love, and my most toxic relationship. When it finally ended it was painful, but I also felt a sense of relief that the relationship was over...We tried for a little while because we thought staying together was the right thing for Bentley (after all my parents have stayed together through all kinds of ups and downs since they were teenagers)...But ultimately we realized that being happy and apart was far healthier for our son than being miserable and together."
Credit: MTV
Source: Instagram @mack.edwards21
Maci’s breakup with Ryan gave him the freedom to find new love in Mackenzie. The couple has even announced that they are expecting their first child together.
According to The Ashley’s Reality Roundup, Ryan and Mackenzie could not stay quiet about the new baby. It turns out that they were sharing their news backstage while the Teen Mom OG reunion was filming in New York.
“That’s when most of the cast and even some of the crew found out Mackenzie was pregnant,” the source revealed. The source shared that Mackenzie is due around the same time that Chelsea Houska is!
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
“Ryan is actually really excited about this baby,” the source revealed. “They were trying to keep it quiet in the beginning, though, because they knew that [viewers] would have a lot of negative things to say.”
And they did. The backlash to their pregnancy announcement was swift. Reddit user farrahsoldnose posted, “Infertility is a common side effect with prolonged opioid use,” and suggested, “I'm just throwing this out there, but what if it's not even his?” Mackenzie has stayed by Ryan’s side, despite frequent rumors of his infidelity. Could she be getting even?
From what viewers have seen, Ryan has not seemed thrilled about the pregnancy. During the season finale, Ryan told a pregnant Mackenzie, "I think we just need to separate for nine months." Even more shocking, in an earlier episode, he told her, "Yeah, call me when [the baby's] about three."
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
However, Ryan’s absence may be the best option for a newborn given his history of outbursts and drug abuse. Days after the pregnancy announcement, he was arrested for heroin possession.
It was only a few months ago that he was celebrating his own sobriety. He had gone through a rehabilitation treatment and was back on his feet after only 21 days.
Radar Online revealed that Ryan “was arrested at his home on a warrant at 3pm on March 27 for petition to revoke, which means breaking probation, related to a past simple possession of heroin charge.” “He was held on $5,000 bond,” a spokesperson for Hamilton County Jail in Tennessee revealed. “He was bonded out at 10:15pm.”
Source: Instagram @rcedwards85
Source: Instagram @rcedwards85
In addition to criminal charges, Ryan is facing domestic legal woes as well. As Teen Mom Talk Now previously reported, Maci and her husband Taylor filed a protective order against Maci’s Ryan. Given his recent relapse, many fans believed this was to protect Bentley from seeing his father during this period of his life, but evidently the truth is much scarier.
According to court documents obtained by Radar Online, Ryan’s behavior before the restraining order had become frightening. “He has left voicemail messages threatening to show up at my house and take my son,” Maci claimed. “He has made threats to show up and hurt me if I don’t answer my phone.” She also alleged that during one of Bentley’s baseball games, Ryan “showed up under the influence of heroin and got in my face, yelling and threatening to hurt me.”
Credit: MTV
Credit: MTV
Source: Instagram @rcedwards85
Maci claims that she has proof that Ryan drives while under the influence, making her fear leaving Bentley with him. “His behavior and actions are getting worse,” Maci claimed. “I am fearful for my three children and myself, and what he may do, based on his threats.”
Apparently, Ryan has been extremely violent towards Taylor as well. “He called me on Tuesday, March 20th, 2018 and threatened to show up at my house and put a bullet in my head,” Taylor claimed in his own order.
The threats are particularly alarming because he has the firepower to follow through. “One for each pocket,” Ryan captioned a picture of five guns lined up on a bed. He has also shared a photo of a large assault rifle and two handguns. Ryan apparently knows how to use them too. He shared a picture of a target at a shooting range full of bullet holes.
Source: Instagram @rcedwards85
Source: Instagram @rcedwards85
Credit: MTV
Though Ryan has had his hands full with the new drug charges and the court orders against him, he can always find time for romance…just not with Mackenzie. There are new allegations that Ryan is pursuing women outside his marriage.
This is not the first time Ryan has been publically accused of two-timing. In August, Radar Online shared Ryan’s Tinder profile. Not only was it active, but it falsely listed his age as 25 (Ryan is 30).
In a series of messages beginning on August 12, 2017, Ryan asks a woman on the app, “What are you looking for on Tinder?” and “So not [down to f**k]?” among other things. He asks her to meet up that same night, but she doesn’t give him a firm answer. They exchange phone numbers and continue their conversation via text.
Credit: MTV
Source: Facebook @Ryan Edwards
Source: Instagram @ryancedwards85
Two more women from Tennessee came forward after Ryan allegedly contacted them via Tinder. Ryan is evidently no stranger to wooing girls via technology.
In July of 2017, an anonymous woman came forward claiming that Ryan sent her pictures and videos of his genitals the previous year. She alleges that he sent her the message, “Don’t mind the fact that I need to shave but that what happens when you go forever not getting any. When I f**k you all that prenut will go inside you.”
Radar Online reported that Mackenzie blamed the other women for these incidents. In a series of aggressive text messages, Mackenzie goes off on a woman who claimed to have communicated with Ryan, writing, “You’re just as much [at] fault…you continue to message a man you know is married.”
The other woman replies, “I’m 19, why the f**k would I want to sleep with a 29-year-old?”
Source: Instagram @kenziestandifer
Source: Twitter @_ShelbyWoods
When Radar reached out to Ryan last summer for a comment on the Tinder scandal, he simply told them, “I’m married. Get the f**k out of here with that dumb s**t.” However, the story refuses to die.
Most recently, The Hollywood Gossip reported, his ex-girlfriend Shelby Woods posted tweets that do not name Ryan explicitly, but strongly imply that the Teen Mom OG star is still hitting her up.
“Still texting, calling, and FaceTiming me," she wrote. "Better get your man, girlfriend!"
Ryan dated Shelby briefly after he broke up with Maci, but before he got together with his current wife, Mackenzie. Evidently, he has had trouble getting over the break-up.
“Sometimes I just wanna be like, 'Hey sis, your husband is still hitting me up,'" Shelby wrote on her now-deleted Twitter account on April 15.
Source: Twitter @_shelbywoods
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Though the Internet is abuzz with the latest rumors of Ryan’s misdeeds, it is unclear if Mackenzie knows about the new accusations. She dramatically left Instagram in May and gave her account away to Cristan C. George, a photographer from Chattanooga.
He wrote in an Instagram story after the switch: "You may have discovered, but this was once Mackenzie Edwards account. She is one of my clients turned friends! She offered me her account when she decided to delete it”
He more recently posted a photo of pregnant Mackenzie with a caption that included: “Since I took over Mackenzie’s account- I expected people to unfollow (because after all they didn’t follow me- they followed her). What I didn’t expect was the trail of bullying to continue...these are examples of the messages I’ve received: ‘You’re fu**kng ugly just like Mackenzie, your pictures suck and so do you, you’re trash, why did your ugly face show up on my timeline today.’"
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And with a baby on the way?!
Credit: MTV
Though fans have openly expressed their disdain for Mackenzie, Shelby was a fan favorite during her time on the show. “Your real pretty hope to see you in the new season of Teen Mom (:,” wrote Twitter user @wethelexx.
They continued to cheer her on after her break-up with Ryan. @Mscourtney8879 posted, “Shelby was his hottest girlfriend IMO.. Way to dodge a bullet my love.”
Many of the compliments directed at Shelby are at Mackenzie’s expense. @Bxmbict wrote, “WHAT THE HELL?! Ryan's new girlfriend is definitely a big downgrade from @_ShelbyWoods!”
Another fan, @drealities, tweeted, “Look at the difference in the quality of his love interests from then to now. Mackenzie has to keep him high to keep him.”
It seems unfair to blame Mackenzie for Ryan's philandering. If he doesn't want to grow up, the 21 year old certainly cannot make him.
Credit: MTV
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