Tad Cummins Was Coerced Into Admitting About Sex With Elizabeth Thomas: Lawyer

The lawyer of Tad Cummins, the 50-year-old who prompted a massive manhunt after he disappeared with a teenage student named Elizabeth Thomas, claimed that statements he made after his arrest were coerced. In court filings filed with a federal judge last week, Cummins' lawyer said that his client's statements must not be used in court, the Tennessean reported.

Brent Horst said in court documents that authorities illegally worked with Cummins' now-estranged wife Jill to pressurize him into confessing that he had sex with his 15-year-old teenage student when he was on the run. The lawyer also said that authorities suggested Cummins could be charged with rape if he did not confess to consensual sex with Thomas.

Cummins and Thomas went missing in March prompting an Amber Alert for the missing teenager and a manhunt for the teacher, who was believed to have kidnapped the minor. Following an investigation, police said that they suspected a romantic relationship between the two as one student had seen the duo kissing before they disappeared. Thomas spent five weeks on the run with her high school teacher, Tad Cummins, before being discovered in a remote cabin in California.

Cummins was arrested April 20, however, he pleaded not guilty to charges against him. Cummins was charged with taking a minor across state lines for sex, and obstruction of justice after allegedly admitting they had sex during most of their 38 days on the run. If convicted, Cummins could face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, up to life.

Cummins’ estranged wife Jill told Inside Edition in April that he admitted having sex with Thomas. Cummins' wife filed for divorce just days after she learned that Cummins might be involved in the kidnapping of his minor student.

Earlier, Cummins' lawyer claimed that the teenager was not held against her will and that she fled her home willingly with her former teacher.

An attorney for the Thomas family called the idea of the teenager willingly going with Cummins as “amazingly absurd.”

"She is 15, a child. He is 50, a grown man. She's a high school freshman. He's a former teacher. This is, and was, not a romance," Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Director Mark Gwyn told reporters in April. "This was manipulation solely to benefit Tad Cummins. This is not a fairy tale. This is a case of kidnapping."

The trial for former Tennessee teacher Cummins was delayed to January 2018 after the accused filed a motion in July to reset the date.

“In light of the serious nature of the charge, the ongoing plea discussions, and the need to conduct additional research and investigation, undersigned counsel submits that the interests of justice will be served by the granting of a continuance," the motion by Cummins' attorney, public defender Dumaka Shabazz said. "Further, he submits that the denial of a continuance in the present case would deny him the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation, taking into account the exercise of due diligence."