Fans of ABC's Secrets and Lies may have come to terms with the fact that the Crawford family wouldn't be returning for a new season of the hit show, but they may need to officially come to terms with the fate that befell poor Ben Crawford (Ryan Phillippe) on the show's season one finale. 

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The television finale last year saw Ben go to jail for the murder of his son Tom, in an effort to protect his daughter, Abby, who was the real culprit. However, in the online addendum series Cornell Confidential, it was strongly hinted-though never confirmed-that his character had died in prison. 

But now, series creator Barbie Klingman has confirmed that Ben did die-and as a result, he absolutely would never be seen again on the show.  

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"Oh, he's dead," she said during Television Critics Association Press Tour.  

She also reiterated that the plan had never been to revisit the Crawford case or to bring back those characters, with the mystery focusing solely on Detective Cornell (Juliette Lewis) as she takes on new cases. 

"It would take your eye off the prize," Klingman said. "It was really by design from the get go. One of the things that makes this show so great is that every season is a new character and new story. When you're taking a 10-episode model and new characters every time, you can pretty much do anything you want for them. Ryan only signed on for one season and we always knew it would end up like that." 

Season 2 of the show has not received an official airdate.  

Tags: secrets and lies ABC television