Kidnapped Teen's Family Members Speak Out After Teacher Tad Cummins Claims Their Daughter 'Wanted To Run Away'

The manhunt is over. Kidnapped teen Elizabeth Thomas is home safe, and her teacher Tad Cummins is in police custody.
But in the aftermath of the nationwide search, there are still a lot of unanswered questions.
Related: Investigators Find ‘Romantic’ Emails Between Teacher & Kidnapped Student
In case you missed it, Cummins’ sister, Daphne Quinn, was on The Today Show Monday to talk about what her troubled brother and his family were going through. And she said:

“I asked him, ‘Why would you do this?’ And the answer she gave was she wanted to run away, and she wanted to leave. And he didn’t want her to go alone. So he went with her so that he could know she was safe.”

You can see that whole interview (below):

Shortly after that aired, Elizabeth’s father, Anthony Thomas, and older sister, Kat Bozeman, spoke to Ashleigh Banfield on Primetime Justice.
In response to Cummins’ claim that he was just going with her to keep her safe, Anthony said:

“If that’s what he calls guidance, he’s a very poor excuse for a teacher, an authority figure, a father, and in fact he’s a poor excuse for a human being.”

See the fair response from an obviously angry family (below):

“A poor excuse for a human being.” #Missing Elizabeth Thomas’ father on Tad Cummins’ reason why he did what he did. https://t.co/aqwTxVwpO0
— Primetime Justice (@PTJusticeHLN) April 25, 2017

Elizabeth’s family also gave an update on her health, saying:

“She didn’t look like herself at all. She looked like she was very worn out, very thin. And very jittery.”

#Missing Elizabeth Thomas found after 39 days. How is the 15YO doing and has she shared details about the ordeal? https://t.co/PzoWZwk3gC
— Primetime Justice (@PTJusticeHLN) April 25, 2017

They also spoke about the upcoming trial and what they would learn from it was hitting them:

“…that’s about the worst experience of my life.” Elizabeth Thomas’ dad on having his daughter #missing for 39 days https://t.co/FGq9eR6Oej
— Primetime Justice (@PTJusticeHLN) April 25, 2017

Finally, the fam spoke about what she had revealed about what happened:

As Tad Cummins faces a judge for the first time, did Elizabeth Thomas go willingly or was she lured by her teacher? https://t.co/0wF8tP77BL
— Primetime Justice (@PTJusticeHLN) April 25, 2017

This poor family seems to have as many questions as we do.
One thing is clear. This case is far from over.
[Image via Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office.]