Hey Dad! Former Star Sarah Monahan On Her Hell At Hands Of Convicted Sexual Predator Robert Hughes[/b]
Sarah Monahan, the former co-star of Hey Dad! who was among Robert Hughes' child sex abuse victims, said she would not pursue civil action against Channel Seven, but hopes the television network apologizes publicly.
Ms Monahan, who spurred the investigation into Hughes four years ago when she aired allegations about his behavior in a television interview, said on Wednesday night she felt vindicated now he had been convicted. In a moving interview she acknowledged that what Hughes did was “horrific” — and she urged other victims of abusers to stay strong and speak up. Asked whether she hated Hughes, the 36-year-old said Hate is a strong word. I definitely dislike the man. Later she added, “I honestly think he doesn’t think he did anything wrong,’’ before correcting herself: I take that back he knew what he was doing was wrong, because he didn’t do it in front of other people. If she had the chance to sentence Hughes, she said she would send him to jail. I would definitely sentence him to jail, and I wouldn’t give him one of the cushy jails, an emotional Monahan said. I definitely think he needs to go to a place where he can think about what he has done. (Somewhere) he realizes that he is sh*t. Some where he is not the star. Monahan was just six when she joined the cast for the 1987 Channel 7 sitcom, and 10 when she claims she was first flashed by the man who played her TV father, Martin Kelly.
She said that she can understand why some girls choose not to (come forward), and she feels really bad for those girls who choose not to go public, but she said coming forward and confronting her predator in court has given her closure and she didn’t come forward, people asked me to speak, and then I finally started talking; it was like a Pandora’s box, once you start talking you can’t stop. I did a lot of talking in court, four days, it’s the most soul crushing experience. Monahan said she had the option of testifying via video link from Texas but wanted Hughes to look at her when she spoke.
Monahan said the affair had created a distance between her and her mother.
In the interview she said that she doesn’t know (if she can form a relationship with her mum again). She hasn’t spoken to me, we were never the closest anyway, she said.
She said she hadn’t received a birthday or Christmas card in four years but hoped they could reconcile.
She ended the interview with a powerful message for other victims of abuse that suffer in silence: Don’t let them continue it. It’s not just you. It takes 60 people before anyone speaks up.
Sarah Monahan, the former co-star of Hey Dad! who was among Robert Hughes' child sex abuse victims, said she would not pursue civil action against Channel Seven, but hopes the television network apologizes publicly.
She said that she can understand why some girls choose not to (come forward), and she feels really bad for those girls who choose not to go public, but she said coming forward and confronting her predator in court has given her closure and she didn’t come forward, people asked me to speak, and then I finally started talking; it was like a Pandora’s box, once you start talking you can’t stop. I did a lot of talking in court, four days, it’s the most soul crushing experience. Monahan said she had the option of testifying via video link from Texas but wanted Hughes to look at her when she spoke.
Monahan said the affair had created a distance between her and her mother.
In the interview she said that she doesn’t know (if she can form a relationship with her mum again). She hasn’t spoken to me, we were never the closest anyway, she said.
She said she hadn’t received a birthday or Christmas card in four years but hoped they could reconcile.
She ended the interview with a powerful message for other victims of abuse that suffer in silence: Don’t let them continue it. It’s not just you. It takes 60 people before anyone speaks up.