TradeEdge-'7th Heaven' stars address Stephen Collins' 'inexcusable' sexual abuse on rewatch podcast

Three of the stars of "7th Heaven" are TradeEdgespeaking out against the "inexcusable" behavior of their former colleague Stephen Collins.

"7th Heaven" actors Beverley Mitchell, Mackenzie Rosman and David Gallagher on Monday embarked on a rewatch of the family drama series on the podcast "Catching Up with the Camdens." But before diving into the first episode, the three shared a statement about Collins, who in 2014 confessed to multiple incidents of sexual misconduct with underage girls.

Rosman, who played Ruthie Camden on the show, said it would be "impossible" not to talk about the actor while rewatching "7th Heaven," on which he played the actors' father, Eric Camden. "But we want to be clear that we did not have any inappropriate experiences with Stephen," she said.

Mitchell, who played Lucy Camden, noted that Collins will "not be joining us" on the podcast and said the actors do not "excuse or condone his behavior."

"All forms of abuse, sexual abuse of any kind, it's inexcusable, and victims of abuse need to be shown compassion, and they should be given support," Gallagher, who played Simon Camden, said, adding, "We know that this is difficult, and we understand that it can be triggering."

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In 2014, Collins acknowledged in a statement to People magazine that he engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct with three underage girls from 1973 to 1994. Prior to the statement, TMZ published a recording of Collins discussing the alleged abuse in a private therapy session.

"Forty years ago, I did something terribly wrong that I deeply regret," he told People. "I have been working to atone for it ever since. I've decided to address these issues publicly because two months ago, various news organizations published a recording made by my then-wife, Faye Grant, during a confidential marriage therapy session in January, 2012. This session was recorded without the therapist's or my knowledge or consent."

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In an interview with Katie Couric at the time, Collins admitted to exposing himself to a 10-year-old girl in 1973 and said he later "took her hand and moved it in such a way that she was touching me inappropriately." He said he knew at the time that "something unthinkably wrong had just happened that I couldn't take back."

Collins went on to admit there were two additional incidents, in 1982 and 1994, where "I exposed myself to two different teenage girls," aged 13 and 14. He said there was no physical contact and blamed the incidents on his "poor impulse control" but maintained, "I am not attracted to underage girls."

Collins was fired from "Scandal" and dropped from the movie "Ted 2" after the revelations, and he has not worked as an actor since 2014.