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Wynonna Judd’s daughter Grace Kelley has taken steps towards sobriety.
In an interview with The Daily Progress published in July, Kelley, 29, spoke about becoming sober following an arrest in October 2024 for stealing a church van in Albemarle County, Va., taking the vehicle belonging to the Charlottesville-based Ground Zero Church of the Nazarene.
“I got a hold of some bad drugs,” she said of the incident, “and I was hallucinating.”
Kelley told the publication that she didn’t know the van belonged to a church after falling asleep in the church’s trailer for a 10-mile drive to the pastor’s residence. She woke up and felt the urge to get away with the vehicle. “It was like Texas Chainsaw Massacre in my mind,” Kelley added.
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Per the Albermarle County Police Department, she was charged with three counts of felony grand larceny, driving without a license, destruction of property with intent, failure to use headlights and setting in motion a vehicle with intent to commit a crime.
Earlier that year, Kelley had been arrested for fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, driving with a suspended/revoked license, and not using motorcycle equipment properly in August.
Months prior, in April, she was arrested and booked for charges of indecent exposure and obstructing governmental operations.
Kelley had several brushes with the law years prior, including being sentenced to eight years in prison in 2018 for leaving a court-mandated drug recovery program, violating her probation after being arrested for possession of meth in 2016.
She was ultimately released early in December 2022 per The Daily Beast, and went back to prison from May to October 2023 for violating her parole and breaching a restraining order.
Kelley took a plea deal in December of last year for the van arrest, per The Daily Progress, with her charges lessened to possession of drug paraphernalia, drugged driving and petty larceny, and she spent six weeks in jail. During her sentence, she became sober and said she has been since.
Part of the plea deal required Kelley to stay away from the church upon her release. However, the church’s pastor, Kent Hart, felt otherwise. His wife invited Kelley into their community and baptized her, and she’s now an active member of the Charlottesville church.
“If it wasn’t for Pastor Kent and Megan Hart, I would still be out there using,” she said of their welcoming nature. “I’d still be out there doing the same thing I was.”
Kelley is embracing structure and is planning to write a book about her past experiences and what she hopes for her future. “I believe that now’s my time,” she tells the publication.
“I never had a voice, and I was iffy about talking about all this stuff, but no matter what is said about me, the Bible says the truth will set you free.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
