Tad Cummins’ Wife Jill Absent From His First Court Appearance In Alleged Kidnapping Of Elizabeth Thomas

Former teacher and alleged kidnapper Tad Cummins’ estranged wife Jill Cummins did not attend his first appearance Tuesday in a federal court in Tennessee. Cummins is accused of abducting his 15-year-old former student Elizabeth Thomas, with whom he was absconding for over a month before being found April 20.

Previously, Jill made it clear she does not want to have any relationship with Cummins any more, and she filed for divorce in March, days after the alleged kidnapping. She also said the 50-year-old “betrayed” her by being on the run with Elizabeth.

Read: Tad Cummins And Elizabeth Thomas Found More Than A Month After Disappearance

"It's very selfish of him to have done this to us," Jill said on ABC's "Good Morning America" last month. "I do love him, but I don't trust him anymore. He's totally betrayed me."

Most recently in an interview with Inside Edition, Jill said she would not stop her two daughters from supporting their father.

“I have to let them have a relationship with him,” Jill told Inside Edition. “I have to understand that. But they know he did wrong too and they’re standing by me 100 percent. They’re wonderful, wonderful girls and their daddy would be proud of them for them stepping up and being there when he wasn’t.”

On Tuesday, Cummins appeared in the court — 20 days after he was arrested in northern California. U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara D. Holmes read out the possible penalties he faces on a charge he took Elizabeth across state lines with intent to engage in sexual activity. The penalties include a minimum 10 years of jail and fines of about $250,000, the Tennessean reported quoting Holmes.

Cummins was assigned a public defender during the appearance. During the hearing, Cummins said he wanted a public defender because he could not afford an attorney, a court official told People magazine. The next hearing date is set for Friday afternoon.

Last month, after Cummins was taken into custody by law enforcement officials in Siskiyou County, California, Elizabeth was reunited with her family. The two had been on the run since their disappearance March 13. He was the teen’s teacher at Culleoka Unit School in Maury County, Tennessee, and prior to the alleged kidnapping he was under investigation by police and school administrators following reports from an unidentified student who claimed to have seen the two kiss in his classroom.

Benjamin Galloway, Cummins public defender in California said his client had “no history of violence and no criminal history whatsoever,” and that he did not force or threaten Elizabeth. However, her family attorney Jason Whatley countered, saying the indication of Elizabeth willingly going with Cummins was “amazingly absurd.”

“This is classic grooming and manipulation,” Whatley reportedly said. “And I predict this case will be studied years in the future about how authority figures like Tad Cummins can mess up young children who believe their lies and are manipulated into doing things they would never do.”

Elizabeth’s sister, Kat Bozeman, told People, “We’re doing good. … Elizabeth [is] receiving treatment and we’re just hoping to get this court stuff behind us quickly so we can get back to a new normal.”