'There’s no script I’ve ever read that’s been as awful as this,' actor says about case

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AND HAS OUR MESSAGE OF HOPE TONIGHT. REPORTER: ZOE MCCLELLAN SAID HER SON IS SAFE AND STRONG IN THERAPY EVERY DAY. SHE SAYS THE ABUSE HER CHILD DESCRIBES IS WORSE THAN ANYTHING SHE COULD HAVE EVER IMAGINED. >> NO SCRIPT I HAVE EVER READ THAT HAS BEEN AS AWFUL AS THI HOWEVER, I ALWAYS TELL MY SON WE ARE WARRIORS, NOT WORRIERS. I ALWAYS KNEW THAT BY SPEAKING UP AND FIGHTING FOR HIM, I WOULD BE ABLE TO KEEP HIM SAFE. >> HER EX-HUSBAND AND HER SON’S FATHER ABUSED HIM REPEATEDLY AT HIS METAIRIE HOME. HE WAS ARRESTED IN LOS ANGELES AND EXTRADITED TO JEFFERSON PARISH. HE WAS BOOKED WEDNESDAY ON FELONY CHARGES. AGGRAVATED CRIMES AGAINST NATURE AND FIRST-DEGREE RATE, WHICH CARRIES A MANDATORY LIFE SENTENCE IF CONVICTED. MCCLELLAN IS SPEAKING OUT BECAUSE SHE FEARS HER SON IS NOT ALONE. >> THERE ARE OTHER VICTIMS. I AM HOPEFUL THEY WILL STEP FORWARD. REPORTER: ROBERT JENKINS SAID IF THE CASE GOES TO TRIAL, THE CHILD CAN BE CHARGED TO TESTIFY AGAINST HIS FATHER. >> THE HARDEST PART, AND I HAVE HAD THE MORE YOU HAVE TO CROSS-EXAMINE THE CHILD. THE FATHER OR THE MOTHER SITTING ON THE TABLE. BASED ON THAT TESTIMONY AND THAT EVIDENCE, IT’S OUR WAY OF LIFE. REPORTER: HE IS SCHEDULED FOR HIS FIRST BOND HEARING FRIDAY. HE HAS DECIDED HE’S ALLOWED TO CONTACT HIS CHILD AS THE CASE MOVES FORWARD.

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According to arrest records in Jefferson Parish, 51-year-old Jean-Pierre Gillain was extradited from California and booked into the parish prison Wednesday on first-degree rape and aggravated crime against nature charges.Gillian is the ex-husband of former "NCIS: New Orleans" actor Zoe McLellan. She said the victim is the couple’s son.“There’s no script I’ve ever read that’s been as awful as this,” McLellan said. "However, I always tell my son that we are warriors, not worriers, and we are fighting for him and that I will be able to keep him safe.”A preliminary police report said the alleged abuse occurred at Gillain’s home in Metairie from 2014 to 2016. McLellan said she is speaking out because she fears her son is not alone.“There are other victims,” she said. “I am hopeful that they will step forward, that they will have the courage to step forward because there are other victims.”McLellan and Gillain were locked in bitter custody disputes for years. She said the new charges have nothing to do with that dispute.“The truth is out there and this is absolutely not that,” McLellan said. “Thank God that the law enforcement in Jefferson Parish saw that and have taken action.”McLellan founded the Believe the Child Campaign to help families with the costs associated with legal action and therapy for abused children.Gillain is scheduled for his first bond hearing in Gretna on Friday. The judge could then decide if he will be allowed to contact or communicate with his son as the case moves forward. WDSU legal analyst Robert Jenkins said the first-degree rape charge carries a mandatory sentence of life in jail if Gillain is convicted.