'Sons of Guns' star Stephanie Hayden stands by rape charge against father William Hayden, claims he molested her too

Sons of Guns star Stephanie Hayden has admitted her father and co-star William Hayden molested her in light of reports he had raped his youngest daughter for over a year.


William, the founder and owner of Red Jacket Firearms shop in Baton Rouge, was arrested and charged last month in Livingston, LA, with raping his now 12-year-old daughter. According to reports, she claims her father took her virginity in March 2013 and raped her almost daily ever since, however, she did not report him to authorities because he had threatened her physically.

Stephanie -- who serves as William's business partner and manages the company office -- originally denied such behavior on her father's part, insisting an old family friend was making up lies to sabotage William's personal life and career. However, Stephanie came clean during an appearance on Dr. Phil, which aired on Thursday.

Not only does Stephanie apparently believe her little sister had been raped, she's come forward with molestation accusations of her own against her father.

According to Stephanie, her little sister had confided in their grandfather that William "did these things" to her and "her biggest fear was, 'Nobody's going to believe me. Everyone supports him...' She really felt like the world was against her," Stephanie told Dr. Phil.


"And I now, believe that," Stephanie admitted on the talk show.

"She's told me a lot since then and there's been a lot that's come to light. A lot of my memories from being a kid have come back. At that point, I knew I was against him. The entire time, during this whole thing, he had been saying -- and he's always said -- 'If you're not with me, you're against me, and I'll take down the world if it's against me.'"

Stephanie previously released a statement calling William "a good father," shooting down all claims there was any impropriety in their household. But now, the reality TV star said she only did that because William had asked her to. She, too, is apparently afraid of her father.

When asked to recall the moment or moments in which William had molested her, Stephanie shared her sad story which dates about 20 years ago.

"I was 12, same age [as my sister]," Stephanie told Dr. Phil of the first time her father had been "inappropriate" with her.


"He came into the room and he was really drunk. He sat down on the bed and I asked him, I was like, 'Are you okay, Daddy?' And he goes, 'Yeah, Daddy just doesn't feel very good. Why don't you come give me some love?' So I went over there and I gave him a hug, you know, and he snuggled down into my chest."

Stephanie continued, "He had me sit on his lap. I wrapped my arms around him and just hugged him. And then he started to kiss at my neck and things like that. At that point, I realized he was holding me pretty tightly and that he had me kind of in a spot. It led to him pinching at my chest and he pulled my shirt down and things like that. He had his hand around my waist really tight."

Stephanie explained she tried to shake her father off at that point but things didn't stop there.

"He started to talk about the shape of my breasts and things like that. And he continued to proceed kissing on my chest. Once that happened, I jumped back and got off of him, and for some reason, he just left. And he never touched me again like that," she said.

Stephanie said she never told anyone about the incident, not even her husband, until her little sister told her "the truth" about "what she said happened."


It took a while for Stephanie to come to grips with the situation because she said her younger sister persistently denied their father had done anything wrong. She also still loved spending time with William, much unlike Stephanie, who said she had reacted in a completely opposing manner when she was 12 -- to the point where she tried to avoid William and began carrying knives.

As to why she's telling her story now after all this time, Stephanie explained on the show, "Because I know, that for one, my sister needs me. She needs someone that can speak for her and be on her side."

Stephanie feels she had let her little sister down "every day" since she was 12 because her coming forward sooner might have stopped William from touching anyone else besides her in the family.

"That's all I can think about," Stephanie admitted in tears.

The Sons of Guns star also said other victims have confessed to being molested by William now that news has surfaced of his crimes.


"Another family member of ours," Stephanie began, "I had to ask if he had ever done it to her and she got extremely quiet. She broke down crying and she told me that it was true, that it had happened to her twice in two different places at the age of 12... And one of my friends told me that he grabbed her and held her by the throat and put her against the wall and shoved his tongue down her throat."

Stephanie said most of the victims will file reports and she absolutely plans to testify against him in court.

"I am very afraid of him now," Stephanie noted, adding that William definitely deserves to spend time in jail. "I think that he has spent his life manipulating people and hurting people."

The reality TV star also told Dr. Phil that sharing her terrible past experience with the public makes her feel "dirty, the same way I felt I would when I was 12-years-old. I'm scared. He controlled my entire world -- everything."

Hayden was initially arrested on August 9 in Louisiana for allegedly molesting his youngest daughter before being charged later that month once authorities gathered more information. Following his first arrest, he was booked on a molestation charge and then released on $150,000 bail, The Times-Picayune reported.


William's criminal case had prompted Discovery Channel to cancel Sons of Guns after five seasons on the air. 






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski