Earlier this week, we reported on the news that Ryan Edwards was arrested for the second time in less than six months.
The troubled Teen Mom 2 star is currently behind bars awaiting trial for heroin possession and a probation violation, and legal experts say it’s unlikely that he’ll walk away with another slap on the wrist.
For one thing, the judge isn’t taking any chances that by allowing Ryan another opportunity to mess up.
His trial isn’t until August 6, but Edwards will remain in jail until then, having been denied bail at his arraignment.
As for what awaits him in court — well Ryan has squandered multiple “second chances” in the past, so he should probably prepare himself for the worst this time around.
“It really depends on the case, as far as whether somebody would be going to jail or to rehab after getting busted for heroin possession,” Nashville-based criminal defense attorney Ben Raybin tells Hollywood Life.
“Usually in this state we do try to send people to treatment for when they’re found with drugs, but a lot of times once they’ve given them multiple chances, like in this case where Ryan is violating probation, then at that point sometimes the judge says enough is enough and says they are going to jail and at that point they can put all the offender’s sentences into effect.”
Yes, it seems that Edwards — who recently got fired from Teen Mom 2 along with his wife, Mackenzie Standifer — will almost certainly spend at least a few months locked up.
And the situation could wind up being far worse than that:
“In Ryan’s case I can tell you he is facing up to 11 months and 29 days in jail just on this most recent charge of simple heroin possession,” Raybin says.
“But that’s not all because he has a prior suspended sentence as well as probation that the judge could choose to add to his sentence,”
“To break it down, Ryan has the 6 months of probation he was sentenced to (in March 2018) as well as a suspended sentence of 11 months and 29 days stemming back to his very first arrest.”
It’s a lot of legal mumbo-jumbo that adds up to one thing — Ryan has demonstrated time and again that he’s incapable of remaining sober, which means, the state will likely keep him under lock and key in one way or another:
“They could potentially put those things together with the year he is facing on this most recent arrest,” says Raybin.
“Worst case scenario he could actually be looking at 2 1/2 years in jail.”
Raybin adds that he believes it’s “unlikely” that Edwards will received the maximum sentence, but it’s certainly not unheard of.
Edwards wife, Mackenzie Standifer is pregnant with his child and set to give birth in October.
Sadly, it’s looking more and more likely that Ryan will not be on hand for the occasion.
We’ll have further updates on this developing story as more information becomes available.
