Ex-Tennessee teacher pleads guilty; sentencing set for September
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A former Middle Tennessee teacher accused of taking a former student across the country, leading to a nationwide search, pleaded guilty Thursday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Nashville.
Tad Cummins, 51, of Columbia, pleaded guilty to charges of transporting a minor across state lines for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual conduct and obstruction of justice, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Middle Tennessee.
“The Government has been ready and eager to try Mr. Cummins on the charges brought by the grand jury,” said U.S. Attorney Don Cochran. “In view of today’s development and Mr. Cummins’ decision to plead guilty, we are pleased that the victim no longer faces the possibility of enduring a lengthy trial. We applaud the efforts of the FBI, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Maury County Sheriff’s Department and the many law enforcement agencies across the country that contributed to the search and ultimate rescue of the victim and the arrest of Mr. Cummins. We now look forward to the sentencing of Mr. Cummins and bringing closure to this case.”
Cummins was initially charged in April 2017 after he and a teen student were found in Cecilvile, California.
Cummings and the student, then 15, had been the subject of a nationwide search that began on March 13, 2017.
Cummins was brought back to Middle Tennessee on May 9, 2017, and was later indicted by a federal grand jury.
He remains in federal custody.
His sentencing is scheduled before U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger on Sept. 24. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.
