Stephen Collins Death Hoax: Baywatch Alum Erroneously Tweets '7th Heaven' Star Has Shot Himself
Stephen Collins has been on the news all week after he was reportedly heard on a recording obtained by TMZ confessing to child molestation and exposing himself. As images and reports about Collins flooded the news on TV and the Internet on Tuesday Oct. 7, things took a bizarre turn as on that night, former "Baywatch" star Donna D'Errico tweeted that the "7th Heaven" actor had shot himself to death in his Los Angeles home.
"That guy from 7th Heaven lives around the corner from me & just shot himself a few minutes ago," wrote D'Errico. She later deleted the tweet, but it had already been retweeted several times.
The Los Angeles Police Department responded to reports of a gunshot at Collins' home, but was not able to find anything. The LAPD then told Buzzfeed that they responded and that the report was untrue.
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Jon Passantino of Buzzfeed tweeted, "LAPD officer tells me there was no shooting tonight at Stephen Collins' home. He is 'alive and well' and not even at that location."
D'Errico took to Twitter later that night to apologize for spreading the rumor.
"I just tweeted what I was being told by my neighbor who were on scene. I apologize for tweeting what I'd heard before confirming it," she said.
Meanwhile, the Daily Mail reports that the family of Collins' fear that he is on the brink of committing suicide as family members are concerned about his mental and emotional state following the pedophile claims.
"They fear that he could take his own life," said a family friend to the Daily Mail. "That's how low he is right now. No one wants to leave him by himself."
Collins famously played the patriarch and pastor on "7th Heaven." Following the audio recording revelation by TMZ, he has since resigned from the SAG-AFTRA board, and ABC confirmed that his scenes have been cut from an upcoming episode of "Scandal." Collins has also been dropped from "Ted 2" where he was cast in a special cameo role.
