Teri Hatcher’s uncle, who molested Teri and later two young girls, died at the age of 70 while serving his sentence in prison.

Richard Hayes Stone was on his sixth year of a 14-year sentence at Chuckawalla Valley State Prison in Blythe, California.  He died Tuesday due to colon cancer.

One of the girls whom he molested later committed suicide by shooting herself in the head.

Hatcher heard the sad story and it prompted her to come forward with her story of abuse by the same man.  She says the abuse happened when she was only 5.  As with most abuse victims, she was too afraid to tell anyone.  She added that she hadn’t seen her uncle since she was 8 or 9.

Teri told Vanity Fair,

“That’s a victim thing; you ask yourself, ‘Am I just crazy? Did I make all this up?’ Somehow it might be easier to accept that you’re crazy and made it all up than to admit that it happened, and how awful it was.”

The prosecutor who put Stone behind bars commented on his death saying, “It closes the book on a very, very sad tragedy.  Unfortunately, those who are still alive will always suffer from his actions.”