Stephen Collins, who once served as a “eucharistic lay minister” at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Pacific Palisades, has been accused of inappropriate sexual conduct with minors as young as 11 years old, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Collins is known for his role as the Reverend Eric Camden on the family drama 7th Heaven which aired from 1996 to 2007.
The accusations stem from an October 7 release of an audio recording in which Collins admits to inappropriate sexual contact with a young girl. Sources close to Faye Grant, Collins’ wife, say Collins separately admitted to molesting three underage girls, as reported in the entertainment industry publication.
Collins was first accused of child molestation 14 years ago after his wife Faye Grant was sent an anonymous letter from a woman claiming she had been molested by Collins when she was 11, The Hollywood Reporter claims. When Grant received the letter, she and Collins had an 11-year-old daughter. The couple’s marriage lasted a subsequent 12 years.
Collins and Grant are currently in their 30th month of divorce proceedings.
The Hollywood Reporter states that three separate law enforcement agencies have looked into the child abuse claims. Collins has yet to be charged with any crime.
The report was unclear as to when Collins worked at St. Matthew’s. The Palisadian-Post is working to verify all the information independently and to find out when, and if, Collins was ever affiliated with St. Matthew’s.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/stephen-collins-how-rev-camdens-742313?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thr%2Fnews+(The+Hollywood+Reporter+-+Top+Stories)
FOR THE RECORD: This post has been updated to include the term “eucharastic lay minister” in first graph.
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