Teen Mom’s Jenelle Evans Slams Claims she ‘Ran Away’ and Ditched Jace After He Went Missing

Teen Mom alum Jenelle Evans slammed claims that she ditched her son Jace Evans to go on a trip to California after he went missing.

After Jace, 14, was reported missing twice within two weeks, Jenelle, 31, reacted to a troll that told her to “take care of your kids instead of running away” to California.

“So yeah let’s talk, there’s a lot of comments going on right now and it’s crazy,” the MTV alum responded in a video posted via TikTok on Thursday, August 31. “First of all, I didn’t ‘run away to Cali.’ It was a work trip that was planned for months ahead of time.”

Jenelle then noted that the TikTok video she shared from the getaway was posted one week after she got home, so she was actually out of town two weeks earlier.

Jace, whom Jenelle shares with ex Andrew Lewis, was first reported missing as a runaway by Brunswick Co. Sheriff’s Department on August 15. The teen was seen leaving school around 2:45 p.m. ​on the day of his disappearance, while he was eventually located “in the trees behind the school building” per his location on Snapchat.

The drama continued when Jace was reported missing a second time two weeks later on August 28. Jenelle grew concerned when she hadn’t heard from Jace for several hours and contacted police. Jace was then found at a gas station located about 10 minutes away from their home.

“Jenelle is a momma bear raising a teenage boy. Jace likes exploring his extensive property that has woods, lakes,” the former Teen Mom 2 star’s manager, August Keen, said in a statement to In Touch. “He decided to explore too far Jenelle got worried and called the police after he didn’t come back before it became dark.”

Following Jace’s first disappearance, Jenelle slammed her mom, Barbara Evans, for allegedly spreading false information about the situation.

“Cut my own mother off again, and she has to keep going with the articles,” Jenelle wrote via Facebook. “Doesn’t call to check up, doesn’t ask me how he is, but talks to TMZ to give updates she knows nothing about.”

She then urged her fans to “not believe anything my mother is saying to the media at this time. The truth will prevail and I’ll soon tell you when the time is right.”

Jenelle didn’t specify which “updates” Barbara, 65, had been sharing, though she referenced her mother telling TMZ that Jenelle’s alleged decision to take Jace “off ADHD meds” might have led him to run away. Barbara explained that Jace was on the medication for seven years and was seeing a behavioral specialist, though Jenelle allegedly took him off the medication and stopped his appointments with the specialist when she regained full custody of him in March.

In addition to Jace, Jenelle also shares son Kaiser with ex Nathan Griffith and daughter Ensley with her husband, David Eason.