Toby Willis Pleads Guilty To Child Rape
Toby Willis, father of the "Willis Clan" and former TLC reality star, pleaded guilty to four counts of child rape.
Cheatham County Circuit Court Clerk Julie Hibbs confirmed that Willis received two 25-year sentences on two counts and two 40-year sentences on the other two. Those sentences will be concurrent, and served at 100 percent, giving Willis a total of 40 years in prison.
Willis was arrested and charged last September with the rape of a young girl following a TBI investigation involving the rape of a 9- to 12-year old girl about 12 years ago. He was arrested in Greenville, Kentucky, after hitchhiking there to evade arrest, according to a TBI news release.
Willis, his wife Brenda and their 12 children began performing Irish-inspired roots music as the Willis Clan in Chicago and moved to Tennessee in 2001. In 2014, the family, based in Ashland City, advanced to the quarter-finals of America's Got Talent, and in 2015, they began starring in a TLC reality show called The Willis Family.
TLC announced days after Willis' arrest that The Wills Family would not be renewed for a third season. A TLC spokesman said at the time the show's cancellation had been decided upon prior to Willis' arrest.