MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Tenn. (WTVF) — A former Clarksville-Montgomery County science teacher accused of showing a student inappropriate photos has been arrested.
The Sumner County District Attorney’s Office, acting as a special prosecutor, presented the results of the law enforcement investigation into Mathew G. Vedder to a Montgomery County grand jury on July 7.
The grand jury indicted Vedder on four counts of exhibiting obscene material to a minor in violation of Tennessee law.
Vedder was taken into custody Wednesday by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office. His bond was set at $10,000, and he has since bonded out of jail, according to the sheriff’s office.
The arrest comes months after student Makenzie Ellithorpe said Vedder showed her between six and eight nude photos on his phone during science class in March.
Ellithorpe said Vedder continued scrolling through the images and that the incident did not appear to be accidental.
The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System previously said an inappropriate photo was “accidentally briefly” displayed while Vedder was showing an appropriate image to a student.
Vedder was reassigned to an alternative worksite off school property while outside agencies investigated. He later resigned from the district.
In June, Ellithorpe addressed the school board publicly about the incident.
“I no longer felt safe in a place where I was supposed to feel protected,” she told board members.
Vedder is the husband of Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools Superintendent Dr. Jean Luna-Vedder.
Assistant District Attorney General Nathan Nichols has been assigned to prosecute the case.
The Sumner County District Attorney’s Office said it does not plan to release any additional statements until the case is over.
“We also remind everyone that Mr. Vedder is innocent until proven guilty,” the office said.
You can read the full statement from the Sumner County District Attorney’s Office below:
On July 7, 2026, the Sumner County District Attorney's Office, acting as special prosecutor, presented the results of a law enforcement investigation into Matthew G. Vedder, a former Montgomery County high school teacher, to the Montgomery County Grand Jury. After this presentation, the Grand Jury voted to issue an indictment against Vedder which alleges four counts of exhibiting obscene material to a minor in violation of TCA 39-17-911. Mr. Vedder was taken into custody today by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office and a Montgomery County Judge set his bond at $10,000.
General Dean has assigned Assistant District Attorney General Nathan Nichols to prosecute Mr. Vedder's case.
While it is not the usual practice of this office to issue statements about pending cases, given the public interest in this matter, we felt the need to inform the public about this development. This will be the only statement our office will make about this case until it has concluded. We also remind everyone that Mr. Vedder is innocent until proven guilty.
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