The Bachelor Alum Clayton Echard opened up about the fake-paternity accuser who nearly ruined his life. Echard shared his statement after the accuser, Laura Owens, pleaded guilty on multiple counts.
Clayton Echard spoke out after his fake-paternity accuser pleaded guilty to four felonies
Clayton Echard shared a video on Instagram addressing the nightmare that affected his life. On Friday, Laura Owens, who accused Echard of fathering unborn twins in a paternity lawsuit, pleaded guilty to multiple counts. She pleaded guilty to charges, including fraudulent schemes and artifices, perjury, and identity theft, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Clayton Echard said, “Yesterday was a major moment in the paternity scandal case that I’ve been dealing with for the last three-and-a-half years. Yesterday, Laura agreed to plead to four felony charges. So it’s the first time that we’ve seen Laura take any accountability in this matter.”
He added, “Upon the ending of yesterday’s court hearing, I found myself telling the other guys, the other victims, it was anticlimactic what occurred yesterday. I felt numb and emotionless. I couldn’t understand why that was. My healing was not contingent upon what happened yesterday.”
The reality star said he built resilience through the ordeal. Echard said, “I’m grateful for this entire experience. I know that sounds backwards, but the amount of resilience that I’ve built through all of this, the community that I found within all of this adversity, the power of presence that I’ve gained, the insight — everything that has come from all of this — I would do it 1,000 times over.” He added that he was proud of the man he became and that all this would not have been possible without the “adversity.” “I’ve already found the silver lining. It does not really matter to me what happens to Laura at this point,” he added.
Echard also added that he wants Laura to heal and would not want her to rot in prison. Laura Owens is scheduled for sentencing on September 30.
