Maci Bookout says that it was almost comforting when ex-boyfriend Ryan Edwards was arrested for heroin possession in July.
The Teen Mom OG star, 27, opened up about her relationship with Edwards, also 27, on the podcast Coffee Convos with Kailyn Lowry and Lindsie Chrisley on Thursday.
“To be honest with you, I feel better that he is in jail because I know he’s safe there,” Bookout told Lowry and Chrisley. “I know he’s not driving around or doing something that could potentially hurt him or an innocent person. It sucks, it’s a crappy situation for everyone.”
Edwards was arrested on July 23 in Red Bank, Tennessee and was charged with simple possession of heroin and held in the Hamilton County Jail without bond until his release on July 31.
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The mother of three shares one son with Edwards, 10-year-old Bentley. She has two other children, daughter Jayde, 3, and son Maverick, 2, with husband Taylor McKinney.
She revealed their son Bentley was aware of what was going on with his father, although she admitted it was difficult to keep him informed.
“No one ever wants to tell their child that something terrible has happened to their parent,” she said. “He understands, he doesn’t ever ask questions. We fill him in on whatever is going on and as sad as he is, the reason he doesn’t ever ask questions is that its kind of just always been this way.”
“I’ll be honest, I have no idea what state he’s in because he’s not allowed to be around any of us. He can’t just be in the same location as me and the family,” Bookout said.
While Bookout and Edwards separated in 2010, the MTV star admits she attempted to help Edwards with his addictions long after that.
“With Ryan, I’d say probably five years ago, I realized [we] broke up because [I] realized you can’t fix someone,” she said. “I’m a fixer, I couldn’t fix him so I left. I wanted the best for Bentley and I wanted things to be easy on me and him.”
Edwards has denied he was arrested for drugs, telling E! News Wednesday he was pulled over for a speeding ticket.
“While I was pulled over, it came up that I was in violation of my probation because the community service had not been completed,” he told the outlet. “I didn’t do all of it. I went to jail for not doing all of my community service. It’s not that I wasn’t taking the community service seriously, it’s just that we have so much going on, I didn’t realize the deadline had passed. It was just a misunderstanding. I thought I had more time.”
Nevertheless, Edwards said he takes “full accountability” for the situation.
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“I messed up, but I’ve had a chance to get organized and fix the situation,” he said.
Edwards — whose wife Mackenzie Standifer Edwards is pregnant with their first child together — said the “days were long” in jail while he awaited his court date.
“It was really hard to be away from my family,” he said. “Without a doubt, it was a learning experience.”
He is currently awaiting his community service assignment and said he faces six extra months of probation stemming from his latest arrest.
Edwards was previously arrested in March for violating terms of his probation stemming from a prior heroin possession charge — one day after it was revealed on the MTV series that he and Mackenzie are expecting. The couple secretly tied the knot last June before Edwards, whose battle with substance abuse has been documented on the show, headed to rehab.
Edwards and Mackenzie recently announced they would not be returning for the upcoming season of Teen Mom OG.
