WATCH: The LAPD responded Tuesday to reports of a single gunshot at a San Fernando Valley home owned by television actor Stephen Collins, but sources say police have located the actor. He was not at the residence.
TORONTO — The bombshell allegation that actor Stephen Collins confessed to molesting and exposing himself to at least three young girls took a twisted turn Tuesday night when police rushed to his home amid reports the actor had taken his life.
Police swarmed Collins’ Los Angeles home to investigate a report of a gunshot.
Collins was not home, though, and police said there was no evidence a gun had been fired at the residence. Investigators were able to determine Collins was safe.
But the actor’s neighbour, former Baywatch star Donna D’Errico, tweeted that Collins had shot himself and she shared a photo of police cruisers outside the home.
D’Errico later deleted her tweet and apologized.
Collins, 67, was secretly recorded by his estranged wife Faye Grant during a 2012 therapy session.
In the recording, obtained by TMZ, a voice identified as that of Collins admitted molesting an 11-year-old relative of his first wife Marjorie Weinman. “There was one moment of touching where her hand, I put her hand on my penis,” he said.
The man on the tape also admitted to exposing himself to the girl on more than one occasion.
Collins allegedly admitted to inappropriate contact with two other young girls.
According to multiple reports, police in New York City and Los Angeles are both investigating.
Collins’ lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan told TMZ “we must regrettably refrain” from commenting on the statements in the recording.
He accused Grant of repeatedly threatening to sell the tape to the media unless “Stephen agreed to pay her millions of dollars more than that to which she was legally entitled” in their divorce case.
Kaplan told TMZ: “It appears that she has finally found an audience for this tape — not surprisingly, on the eve of the trial in the divorce case where, again, she is seeking millions of dollars more than that to which she is legally entitled.”
Meanwhile, two key questions emerged following Tuesday’s revelations.
Was Faye Grant allowed to secretly record the conversation with Stephen Collins?
U.S. federal law allows people to record conversations as long as at least one party consents. Since Grant was party to the conversation, she would be entitled to record it.
Where the recording was made matters, though. The state of New York follows the federal “one-party consent” law but California requires the consent of all parties to the conversation.
There is a loophole. California law reportedly allows a person to secretly record a conversation for the purposes of gathering evidence of a felony.
Could Stephen Collins be criminally prosecuted?
The alleged sexual abuse reportedly occurred between 20 and 40 years ago.
According to U.S. attorney Ken LaMance, child molestation can be prosecuted in California within one year of the date a victim reports to police. In New York, victims of child abuse have five years from their 18th birthday to come forward.
To date, no victims have come forward. It is unlikely prosecutors would file charges based solely on a verbal confession.
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