From the age of 10 until she was 25, Amanda claims she was molested more than 795 times by her father, Earl Nix.
“I was very confused. I accepted it because I was 10,” Amanda says on Tuesday’s Dr. Phil of the alleged early abuse. “As I got older, the abuse continued. I knew that as soon as my mom would walk out the door, my dad would have sex with me. It was very terrifying.”
Despite a jury convicting Earl of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and third-degree sexual conduct, Amanda’s family says they believe Earl is innocent and they have called Amanda a pathological liar.
“I am convinced that Amanda did this solely for attention,” her mother, DeeDee, says of her daughter. “Amanda has always wanted to write a book. This is a Lifetime movie, and Amanda wrote the script.”
At age 11, Amanda says she tried to tell her mother what was going on, but Earl claimed it was just cuddling on the couch. At 18, she says she tried to tell her family about the abuse again -- but then recanted.
“CPS and the police got involved and they began interviewing my family. But Earl had me very well wrapped around his finger. Earl told me we had a special bond … and if I told anyone about it, I’d be ripped from my family. I decided to protect my family’s happiness and sacrifice my own,” Amanda explains.
“I refused to cooperate with police, I refused to cooperate with CPS and I refused to comment to them about anything that had happened. They didn’t have a victim, so they couldn’t have a case, and the investigation eventually was closed,” she adds.
However, Amanda claims the abuse continued as she got older -- through her engagement, through her marriage and even after the birth of her first child.
Amanda says she decided to take action again when Earl allegedly made comments regarding Amanda’s own daughter.
“One of the final straws came when Earl told me that he tried to make the perfect daughter out of me and failed, so he would have to start over with my daughter,” Amanda claims.
It was then that Amanda was urged by a friend and her counselor to call the police, and Earl was arrested and eventually convicted.
Still, Amanda’s family says they believe Earl is innocent.
“I know them both,” her mother, DeeDee, tells Dr. Phil. “I don’t believe [the accusations] and it has nothing to do with him manipulating me.”
“Why won’t you believe me?” Amanda pleads with her mother.
Amanda faces off with her mother, DeeDee, on Tuesday’s Dr. Phil. And on Wednesday, Amanda takes a lie detector test -- what do the results reveal? Check here to see where you can watch.
