Grace Kelley accuses Wynonna’s ex-husband of abusing her at age 10 and says Wynonna prioritized image over protecting her; family turmoil resurfaces.
Wynonna Judd’s daughter Grace Kelley has accused the country star of looking the other way after Kelley says she was sexually abused by Judd’s then-husband, D.R. Roach, when she was 10 — and slammed her mother as someone who “was never a mother.”
Kelley, 29, made the claims in a July interview with The Daily Progress and spoke candidly about the long fallout from the alleged abuse.
Kelley says the abuse came to light during family counseling, and that law enforcement was notified soon after — leading to Roach’s arrest in 2007 and Wynonna’s divorce filing days later.
Media reports at the time confirm Roach was arrested in March 2007 on charges related to sexual battery against a minor; Wynonna publicly said she was “obviously devastated” and that the family would “pull together” to begin healing.
Roach later faced legal consequences: he is listed on the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry and court records show he pleaded guilty to charges tied to attempted aggravated sexual battery. More recently, his criminal record has been referenced in reporting about Kelley’s allegations, which have again put a painful chapter of the Judd family history back in the spotlight.
Kelley’s recollection is blunt and raw. She told the paper that after counseling revealed what had happened, the family initially discussed reporting it — and that only once Roach’s arrest became public did Wynonna move to end the marriage.
Kelley’s anger is concentrated not only at Roach but at what she describes as her mother’s efforts to prioritize family image over her safety. “She was never a mother,” Kelley said, adding that Wynonna is “so rich that she was able to sweep me under the rug and abuse me and then cover it all up.”
The past two decades have been rocky for Kelley. Reporting and interviews detail a long history of substance problems, legal run-ins — including multiple arrests in 2024 and a recent jail stint — and time in treatment facilities between ages 12 and 17.
Kelley says she’s now sober, leaning into faith and working on a memoir, tentatively titled #Pronoia, to tell her side of the story. Local coverage of Kelley’s July interview in Charlottesville paints a portrait of someone trying to rebuild after years of turmoil.
Wynonna, a Grammy-winning star, has previously spoken about being “devastated” by Roach’s arrest and has publicly shared that she herself is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse.
She is currently helping raise Kelley’s young daughter, Kaliyah, while continuing her music career. The family has not offered an immediate response to Kelley’s most recent comments.
