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‘19 Kids & Counting’ Duggar Son Caught In Parking Lot Watching ‘The Worst Of The Worst’ Toddler CSAM

41m 11s

‘19 Kids & Counting’ Duggar Son Caught In Parking Lot Watching ‘The Worst Of The Worst’ Toddler CSAM

The Dugger family, known for their wholesome image on TLC’s "19 Kids and Counting," hid a decades-long pattern of child sexual abuse by their eldest son, Joshua, who molested younger sisters while they slept as early as 2002. Despite evidence of abuse, the family concealed the truth, relying on religious justifications and counseling to downplay the severity. In 2006, an anonymous email to Oprah’s producers exposed the abuse, leading to a failed interview and a police investigation that ended due to expired statutes. The full extent of the abuse only came to light in 2015 when a leaked police file was released, revealing seven incidents of sexual misconduct. This caused public outrage, the cancellation of the TLC show, and widespread criticism of the family’s hypocrisy in promoting "family values" while harboring a predator. In a Fox News interview, the parents minimized the abuse, portrayed the victims as overreacting, and claimed the situation was common in families. The family’s religious beliefs, rooted in the IBLP movement, further normalized the abuse by framing it as spiritual growth. A separate lawsuit by adult film actress Danica Dillon accused Joshua of paying for a lap dance and engaging in intimate activities, adding to allegations of predatory behavior. The case eventually led to arrests of multiple family members for crimes against children. This exposé underscores deep issues of parental concealment, religious trauma, and the manipulation of public narratives to protect family image, while highlighting the trauma inflicted on the victims and the failures of institutions to act. The case remains a critical example of how abuse can be hidden under religious and cultural ideologies, with long-term consequences for survivors and public trust.

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Better being better boo. We get a lot of odd emails. Sometimes we get emails just simply telling us to look into somebody's name. Like there's no criminal record, there's no online discourse, it's just a name. And then we respond and then there's no response back. But that is still probably nothing at all compared to what the producers of the Oprah Winfrey show likely got when it was on air. December 2006, the Oprah show just flew out an entire family, almost two dozen family members, all the way from Arkansas to Chicago, they're paying for the airfare hotel costs, food costs, everything, which is a lot of money for almost 20 people. But the family that they're bringing into interview, they're famous, they're the doggers. They have their own TLC reality show. They're all about good Christian values and procreating like there is a mandated law that if you don't pop out of child, every other summer out of you, you will be struck down by lightning. They're naturally a very interesting site. The girls in the family all have curly hair where long dresses they look like they're stepping out of a movie from decades ago before cities had running water. But before they can even step foot onto the production stage for the Oprah Winfrey show, before they can even do a sound check and email lands in one of the producers' inboxes. Before you air the doggar family from Arkansas, you need to know the truth. They are not what they seem to be. Joshua, the eldest son of the 19 kids, has molested his siblings while they were sleeping, and the parents have been hiding the secret for a long time. Jim Bob, the father, lies to his church and his friends to make him look good. At this moment, he is in trouble with the church for lying about Joshua and the things that concern the way the church members react to it. I think that you should know the truth before they make a complete fool out of you in your show. They have been on TV before and come across as a perfect family which couldn't be further from the truth. They jump from show to show to receive gifts for their family to make them look really good. Please consider this and confront them about their secret. The Oprah Winfrey show they canceled the doggar interview, even though they're already waiting for the Oprah Winfrey show in Chicago ready to film the cancel it. And then they forward this email to the local police station. This email from 2006 is going to kickstart a decade long secret ordeal that ultimately implodes and results in multiple arrests. At least three doggars have been arrested thus far, one police officer in connection with the case, mostly all for crimes against children. Whoever emailed Oprah was right, the doggars were hiding something. We would like to thank today's sponsors who have made it possible for Rottenminga to support NECMEC, the National Center for Missing and Exploded Children. They are the nation's largest and most influential child protection organization. This episode's partnerships have also made it possible to support Rottenminga's growing team of dedicated researchers. And we'd also like to thank you guys for your continued support. As always, full show notes are available at rottenmingapodcast.com. A lot of disclaimers with this case, there's religious trauma, grooming, incest, CCM, CSA. So please watch with caution. This is going to be a multi episode series. So please take breaks whenever you feel overwhelmed. All information is publicly available. Any netizen comments, speculations, theories or allegations are opinions of netizens. And statements and quotes have been condensed for brevity. This is going to be a massive deep dive. So with that being said, let's get started. Let me quickly run. This is also part three of the audio for the Dugger Empire Fall. So let me just run you through the Joshua Dugger timeline. The Dugger family are about to go on Oprah when her production team get an email that something nefarious has happened in the family home, that the eldest child, the first son, Joshua Dugger, has been molesting his younger sisters. Did you say this is 2006? Yes, 2006. It's very early on, right? And then from then, nothing. The letter made it to the Oprah team, and it's not made public because I'm sure the Oprah team would have been sued in back for that. Though the production crew, they do for this email to the rightful police department that would have jurisdiction. But the public don't know any of this. The show, 19 kids and counting continues to air the happy, solidly wholesome, at least the Dugger parents are very much bigoted, okay? Some of the children, I'm sure they have different views, I don't know. But on the show, they're wholesome. And their biggest problem is making enough dinner for their 20 plus member family. The public does not know that there are crimes against children being committed in the family home. It's not until 2015, almost 10 years later, that that information is made public. In touch magazine does a FOIA request, and they do an expose. They reveal that they were able to get their hands on the police files from back in 2006 when the police investigate the family after the failed Oprah interview. The police document goes public. The sisters who were abused by Joshua were very upset that the police file was made public because people were guessing which sister was the victim in the redacted files. They were able to put the ages together, the length of the redacted names, and it was pretty easy to figure out who had been victimized by Joshua. Okay. And they don't want that information public. No. So while a few of the sisters have publicly spoken out about it, I'm going to be very vague in some of the details. It's hard to pinpoint who was victim, but let's run through the timeline. Jim Bob Dugger, the family man Christian who wants capital punishment for crimes like incest, first learns that Joshua has been assaulting his sisters, touching his sisters while they were asleep. This is back in 2002. He figures this out. Joshua is 14. Okay. Joshua is 14. 2002. Jim Bob finds out he does not report this to the police. A few months later, Joshua admits again that he's been molesting yet another sister. So the parents decide that they're going to discipline him privately at home, but nothing else. No call to the police. Nothing. They will later report it, but not right now instead Jim Bob punishes Joshua. And at the same time, he's running for the Republican Senate seat in Arkansas, and he's talking about how incest needs to be a capital crime. And the next year in 2003, the Dugger parents are made aware of two more incidents where he molested victim who is awake and sitting on his lap. And around the same time in the laundry room, he later puts his hand up another victim's dress. Jim Bob goes to the church. He asks the church leaders for the best course of action because he doesn't know how to prevent this from happening again. The church elders are like, oh yeah, he needs help. You got to send him away. Jim Bob sends him to this counseling camp, or at least that's like what Jim Bob tells the police. There's a Christian counseling program where he had to do manual labor and work with counselors, which turned out not to even be a counseling camp, it was just like a fellow Christian who owned a home remodeling business. Not that I would even think a counseling camp would suffice, but it's just some church friend. When he gets back, remember Jim Holt, Joshua Dugger was supposed to court Jim Holt's oldest daughter. Kaley. Everyone was like, oh yeah, they're definitely going to get married because Jim Bob and Jim Holt are besties. They're both politicians. They both have a trillion children and their son and daughter are absolutely, they're the same age. They're going to get married. Well, out of nowhere, Jim Holt is like, I'm not friends with Jim Bob anymore. I'm not talking about Jim Bob. My daughter will never be around Jim Bob's kids anymore, so no, fuck Jim Bob. And everyone's like, what happened? It was this at this moment that Jim Bob tells Jim Holt, hey, this is what my son's been doing. And we're trying to remedy it by sending him to this counseling program. Wow. He volunteer that information. Yeah. And Jim Holt is like, um, that's actually crazy. You need to take him to the police. This is a literal crime that you actually advocate against when you're trying to run for office. So like, you need to take him to the police. So that's what they do. They take Joshua to the police and they choose a very specific officer by the name of Joseph Hutchins. He's a former state trooper, but he's now in prison, federal prison for the next 56 years for CSA. The officer also? Yeah. But they didn't know that, right? When that happened. That's what they say. What do you mean by they take it to? No. So Joseph Hutchins was a close friend, it seems, of the family. Hmm. OK. Or at least very friendly with the family. So what is the police doing with Josh? So Joseph Hutchins gives Joshua a very stern talking to. And that's it. What? Joseph Hutchins. Also, he is in prison right now and he will come out to state that well, actually Jim Bob lied to me. He told me it was just one time. If I had known it was multiple times, I would have written him up and done something about it, but he told me it was one time. So I gave him a stern talking to, essentially, like that. But Hutchins, like I said, is a close family friend, gives him that stern talking to, I mean, of what could happen if he continues such behavior. And Hutchins is like, well, there's nothing else I can do about it. So for the next three years, since that point, the Duggers focus on getting famous, making millions of dollars showing their very safe, very loving wholesome family of children who all lived together while there were reported crimes inside the house. And then 2006, three years after reporting it to the police, they show up in Chicago for the Oprah Winfrey interview and the producers get an email that something nefarious is happening in the house. A formal investigation starts the family fly back to Arkansas. They relay all the stuff that's happened in the past few years and the police determined in 2006 that the time in which they could have pressed charges has expired. They can't do anything about it. Everything is out in the open. Everyone is, no one is negating that this happened. It's just they can't do anything about it. And if you're wondering, how did somebody email Oprah? So the identity of the emailer is a little bit vague right now. were two emails sent, one to the police station directly, and then one to the Oprah Winfrey show, and it seems like it all starts with a letter inside of a book. The in-touch reports, the duggers told police that at the time Josh was accused of and admitting to these sexual acts, a family friend aware of what had happened had written down, you know, in this little piece of paper letter, what he knew of Josh's actions. That letter was then placed inside of a book and then forgotten about. And then just recently in 2006, the book had been loaned out to someone else with the letter in it, and that person read the letter and started talking to all the church community members about what they found in the book of this letter, and somebody emailed Oprah. That's insane. Yeah. So in 2006, mainstream media depressed the public, they still don't know about any of these accusations, these allegations, except there's a few whispers on forums that something weird is happening with Josh Dugger, and he's not a golden boy, but a lot of these whispers are coming from people that are in that same church community in Arkansas. They don't have proof. It's just like an internet whisper, nothing is confirmed. 2015, in touch, gets their hands on that police file, and they decide to metaphorically let the hell gates open and release them to the public. They reveal that Joshua was 15 years old when he molested his younger, much younger siblings, and committed at least seven acts of sexual molestation in the ledges that he would go from sister to sister because they all the girls would sleep in one common room. All the guys would sleep in a common room, and he would molest them. Jim Bob and Michelle argued that Joshua apologized to the victims, and they had forgiven him. So what? What's crazy is what follows after is almost not, but almost as alarming as the original reports. The family released statements. Now, side note in 2015, that's when the Ashley Madison leak is also occurring. So Joshua is married. He and his wife Anna Dugger have four kids, one of whom is born during the midst of all of this in 2015. She gives birth while all of this is happening. The in touch expose goes live, then the Ashley Madison leak happens. But Jim Bob and Michelle, they write back 12 years ago, our family went through one of the most difficult times of our lives. When Joshua was a young teenager, he made some very bad mistakes and we were shocked. We had tried to teach him right from wrong, that dark and difficult time caused us to seek God like never before, even though we never choose to go through something so terrible, each one of our family members drew closer to God. We pray that as people watch our lives, that they see that we are not a perfect family. We have challenges and struggles every day. It is one of the reasons we treasure our faith so much because God's kindness and goodness and forgiveness are extended to us, even though we are so undeserving. Josh writes in his statement, 12 years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. Is this the same response to the Ashley Madison post or a separate one? A separate one. So this one comes first and then Ashley Madison comes next. I heard others including my family and close friends. I confess this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation. We spoke with the authorities where I confess my wrongdoing and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. So he just goes down the I sought forgiveness, Christ forgave me, so I'm thankful for God's grace, mercy and redemption. And a dugger, Josh was wife and the mother of their four children, who the world thinks is just finding out about the fact that he molested his sisters, she makes a statement. I can imagine the shock many of you are going through reading this. I remember feeling that same shock. It was not at the point of engagement or after we were married. It was two years before Josh asked me to marry him. Josh shared his past teenage mistakes. I was surprised at his openness and humility and at the same time I didn't know why he was sharing it. For Josh, he wanted not just me but my parents to know who he really was, even every difficult past mistake. At that point and over the next two years, Josh was shared how the counseling he received changed his life as he continued to do what he was taught. She says that she felt comfortable marrying Josh because he was someone who, quote, had gone down a wrong path and had humbled himself before God and those whom he had offended, someone who had received the help needed to change the direction of his life and do what is right. I want to say thank you to those who took time over a decade ago to help Josh in a time of crisis. Your investment changed his life from going down the wrong path into doing what's right. If it weren't for your help, I would not be here as a wife celebrating six and a half years of marriage to a man who knows how to be a gentleman and treat a girl right. Thank you to all of you who tirelessly work with children in crisis. You are changing lives and I'm forever grateful to all of you. That's just not how it works, okay. A lot of people think that Anna Dugger's reaction, Jim Bob, Michelle, Joshua Dugger, are they living in the same reality as we are? This is not the kind of statement that you release in a situation like this, like this is not normal. TLC, there's talks of them canceling their show. They stop all reruns of 19 kids and counting. Advertiser start backing out not just 19 kids and counting but of the TLC network. People are rightfully fucking pissed off. How dare you preach family values and use it as a way to justify being homophobic transphobic against woman and then you're what? Protecting a predator in your own home and then the interview drops. The Duggers decide in the heat of this PR crisis they are going to sit down for an hour-long interview with Megan Kelly then with Fox News. So that's when Megan Kelly was an anchor on Fox News to share their side of the story. Who's there? Everyone. So first it's Jim Bob and Michelle sitting side by side appearing almost with like a strange nonchalant attitude as if this is just another press tour for one of their many many specials but they're here to address the fact that their eldest son was molesting his younger sisters in their sleep inside their house and they did nothing about it. Jim Bob starts. We went through one of the darkest times that our family has ever gone through and our son Josh came to us on his own and he was crying and he had just turned 14 and he said that he had actually improperly touched one of our daughters. Michelle interjects. We were shocked. I mean we were just devastated. I don't think any parent is prepared for trauma like that and I think we had one ray of hope and that was Josh had a tender conscious and he was the one that came and shared on his own even though the others really didn't know anything of his wrongdoing. This is something that they do which is skip over the fact that the police reports states that he had a victim on his lap when he molested her and she was very much conscious. But the darker parents they seem to only like to talk about the fact that Josh were molested as sisters while they were asleep almost as if well they didn't realize what he was doing so it must be no harm no foul. It's like a victimless crime. Michelle states that yes as a parent she was devastated because they try to raise their kids right but here's one of their children just making some really bad choices. Jim Bob says he said he was just curious about girls and he had gone in and just basically touch them over their clothes while they were asleep and they didn't even know he had done it and so we went and the first thing we did was protect the girls. Michelle says it was so important to us as parents to talk to our girls and make sure that nothing else had happened. Well one by one as we talk to them none of them were aware of Josh's wrongdoings. When asked about what they did Jim Bob says so I talked to him and we put all kinds of punishments on him we watched him all the time I took him to work with me and he just I mean we poured our lives into him. He continues so we had safeguards that protected them from that but there was another incident where two different incidences where girls were laying like on the couch and he had touched like over the couch and touched the breast while the other was asleep and so it was a very difficult situation but as we talk to other parents and different ones since then a lot of families have said that they've had similar things happen in their families and so I mean yeah what and I mean this is for us of course this is a public shame that our son did this back 12 13 years ago now Michelle is looking at Jim Bob with her mouth again like either she's hearing this for the first time or she doesn't like that he's saying this on TV but I don't know Jim Bob continues what does she not like him say just like we talked to a lot of families like this is like everyone does this she's just like and also the couch like how someone was on the couch and he had touched someone and she's just like but Jim Bob continues again this was not rape or anything like that this was like touching somebody over there close there were a couple of incidents where he touched them under their clothes but it was like a few seconds and then he came to us and was crying and told us what happened and it was after that third time he came to us where we really felt like you know what we have done everything we can as parents to handle this in the house that's crazy what he said yeah no this whole 40 minute interview is well what is he saying right now he's he sounds like he tried to minimize the situation by adding more details and the more he says the worse it becomes yeah but like I genuinely think he believes it which makes it so much worse he doesn't care he doesn't think it's it's a big deal they go to the church leaders after the third time why not the police Jim Bob says you know what as parents you're not mandatory reporters the law allows for parents to do what they think is best for their child and so we got him out of the home and we sent him down to this place and that was really probably the best decision that we made through this whole process because it was at this place this is the first time Josh had ever been out of the home the ray of hope was that Josh had came and told us and that his heart was still soft, because we wouldn't have known about any of these things if he hadn't came and told us. It gets disturbing to the point that Megan Kelly becomes the voice of reason, and she's like, "Hey, can you just talk for a moment as the father of your daughters who are also the victims instead of like the father of the perpetrator?" And he says, "I was so thankful though that Josh came and told us, and our girls, even though this was a very bad situation, as we've talked to other families who've had other things happen, a lot of their stories were even worse." I can imagine my dad saying that. Like that's actually insane. Michelle talks about it as if it's something that happens in every single person's how she says, "I mean, there were a lot of things that changed in our understanding as parents, with this first child, for son, to come into this place in his life. There's things that we've learned even since then that I think, you know what? We don't let boys babysit. They don't play hide and seek together, you know, too, don't go off and hide. I mean, there's just a lot of things that we put in place and said, "You're not alone in a room with someone else, always be out, visible, and little ones don't sit on big boys' laps, or people that you don't know or even family members unless it's your daddy." And so there's boundaries that we've learned. She said you can't play hide and seek anymore? Yeah, if your children cannot play hide and seek together because you're scared that one of them is going to molest the other, you're doing something very wrong. Meghan Kelly is asking, "How could you, you know, unfairly in their view?" Because this is Fox News. Compare transgendered people to child molesters, because that's what they've done. So just that they're child molesters knowing that, you know, about Josh. Just to give you a little bit of context in 2014, so just a year before this interview, Michelle Dugger recorded a robo call, which is like, it automatically calls a bunch of residents in the area with an automated message, and in it she says, "Hello, this is Michelle Dugger. I'm calling to inform you of some shocking news that would affect the safety of Northwest Arkansas women and children. The Firetvelle City Council is voting on an ordinance this Tuesday night, that would allow men." Yes, I said men, "To use women's and girls' restrooms, locker rooms, showers, sleeping areas, and other areas that are designated for females only, basically transgender women. She's misgendering them and being fucking transphobic. I don't believe the citizens of Firetvelle would want males with past child predator convictions that claim they are female, to have a legal right to enter private areas that are reserved for women and girls. I doubt that Firetvelle parents would stand for a law that would endanger their daughters or allow them to be traumatized by a man joining them in their private space." Parents, what do you want, undressing next-year daughter at a public swimming pools private changing area? I still believe that we are a society that puts women and children first. Will you speak up for protecting women and children? Call 575-833-0 and tell the Firetvelle City Council members and may or Jordan to vote no on ordinance 119. Megan Kelly is like, "You just said every transgender woman is a fucking child predator that molests children." Meanwhile, they're not, and second of all, and the fact that Megan Kelly is the voice of reason, and this is so beyond me, meanwhile, you're harboring a child predator in your house. Michelle responds with as many neurons firing in her brain as a tater taught, "I think that protecting young girls and not allowing young men in general into a girl's locker room is just common sense. But this is different because you injected child molestation into it. So you didn't even just say, "Oh, you weren't even just transphobic with it." You just called them all child molesters. Jim Boob, the King of semantics and traps. I think you actually said petafile in that sense? A petafile is an adult that prays on children. Joshua was actually 14 and just turned 15 when he did what he did, and I think the legal definition is 16 and up for being an adult praying on a child, so he was a child praying on a child. Okay, exactly what did they do to protect their daughters? All they did from that point on, that we can tell as netizens, is they put locks so they have this new house that they designed. And on one side you have the boys' room, it's a common room with all the boys. The lock is from the outside. Do they lock them in there at night, I guess? Which is, I mean, you're going to get arrested for that because if there's a fire, they can't get out. Like, that's very dangerous. And then the girls' room, you actually have to walk through Jim Bob and Michelle's room to get to the girls' room. Okay. And if you want to know whose bright idea this interview was, look no further than Chad Gallagher. Chad Gallagher is a political consultant that focuses on crisis management and government relations. He was a large figure in Mike Huckabee's early political career, or earlier, I should say that man is pretty old. He's also the current ambassador to Israel and he's got like a very terrifying aura. He looks like President Snow from Hunger Games. I would not be personally surprised if he kind of acted like it, too. But Chad Gallagher gets hired by the doggers to help manage this full-blown PR crisis. The whole goal, according to Jill, from her book, is quote, "Chad was the one who was setting up the Megan Kelly interview to try and get it to where TLC would be cool with moving forward with the show." Obviously Fox News was chosen because the doggers' viewers are super conservative. But the real reason is, they decide that this is going to be the classic PR stunt response of redirect and deflect. The family's message is going to pivot from Joshua's crimes to victimhood. So the doggar parents are arguing that the release of the sealed juvenile records caused the victims to be further victimized. And all the sisters will say that is true. And I want to make it abundantly clear, I agree with it. But that being the only takeaway from this case is kind of absurd, as parents, to the victims as well. And if Jim Bob and Michelle really cared about the daughters that were victimized by Joshua, this is a very, very sick way of expressing that, because right after Jim Bob and Michelle get off the counterstools, in walk, 24-year-old Jill and 22-year-old Jessa, they're both married at this point. Jill is a mom, Jessa is expecting, and they're asked by Megan Kelly, "How old were you when Joshua inappropriately touched you?" Jill says she was 12 and Jessa was 9 or 10. The whole energy of this interview, I mean, it's pretty clear at least it feels from the audience perspective that the girls do not want to do this interview. But there's some pressure element to this. I can't speak for Jessa, nor can I speak for Jill, but Jill has come out to say that she felt highly pressured into salvaging the family image. Her husband, Derek, states that Jill's participation in this interview is, quote, "I wouldn't describe it as voluntary. It was more like being thrust into a suicide mission. You're gonna be harmed." But they wanted you to take the hit to ensure the show continues because it cannot fail. They would do anything to recoup their investment, even if it meant Jill was collateral damage. Jill says in her book that she's listening to Chad, the PR guy, and her dad talking about this Megan Kelly interview, and the conversation goes something like this. No need for Joshua to appear. No way. Maybe Michelle takes the lead. That could work. Who does the interview? It's got to be a female, Megan Kelly. Megan Kelly would be great. Jill has asked about this in an Amazon Prime documentary called Shiny Happy People, and in it, she seems really traumatized by the interview that she felt pressure and she felt like she was the only one that could fix it. She says, "It was like, 'Okay, we need you to fall in line here and do these interviews for the show. Go here. Do this thing and that thing to rally the troops and get it back together. I didn't want to be there. I wanted to help my parents, and I felt like I was the only one who could do this, and I was the only one who could feel that role." The interview was not something that I'm proud of. If I hadn't felt obligated to do one, one, do it for the sake of the show and two for the sake of my parents, I wouldn't have done it. I wanted to help my parents. Jessa has not really spoken out about whether or not she too felt pressure from her parents to do the interview, though I do think that the internet has come to their own conclusion just by the way that they respond to Megan Kelly's questions. Jessa states in the interview that she thinks the public is blowing the whole thing out of proportion, and again, I'm not like, this is what she says, and I think this is why people think that she was also pressured. She says that people are calling Joshua a monster, a child molester, and she says that is so overboard and a lie, really. I mean, people will get mad at me for saying that, but I'm like, I can say this. I was one of the victims, so I can speak out and set the record straight here. Like in Josh's case, he was a boy, a young boy in puberty and a little too curious about girls, and that got him in some trouble, and he made some bad choices. But really, the extent of it was mild in an appropriate touching on fully clothed victims. Jill states, "We didn't know about it until he went and confessed it to my parents, and then they shared it with us." The girls say, "Our situation is so different than most girls, and that he's very subtle in that way." He knew in his mind his actions were wrong, and I had bad intentions, but he was very slight. The girls didn't catch on. It was like, "Okay, if he catches a girl sleeping, a quick feel," or whatever. It was very subtle, and so I think that for us, it was like, "Okay, we realized this is serious, but at the same time, it wasn't like a horror story, this terrible thing where we're just like, 'Oh my goodness,' and I think my parents, they acted, you know, I can say, looking back as an adult now, they handled this situation very well." Jill breaks down in the interview talking about all of this becoming public, and a lot of internet users agree on a few things. The police report, without better redactions, probably shouldn't have been made public. Even if in touch got this police report, they should have further redacted it, so that you could not decipher at all who any of the victims were. There were not enough redactions to safeguard the victims. It was pretty clear who everybody was. And then the internet agrees, though there is some debate about whether or not it should been made public or not. not that's up for debate, but they do agree with Jill. Like there should have been better safeguards. However, Netizens also noticed from a trauma standpoint, the fact that the girls are displaying more trauma about the information being made public, while repeating very similar statements as their parents about the actual abuse, it seems like somewhat of an internet indication of how the parents told the girls to feel. Maybe not how they genuinely felt in that moment is what the internet believes. It's all made worse by the fact that Josh is in the real mother being interviewed by Megan Kelly. Jill writes in her book, answering all of Megan's questions with Josh watching from a couch just out of shot, was like having a bandage ripped off a deep and open wound. It was agony, so painful that I didn't really pause to ask why Josh was allowed to be there in the first place. What was worse was the fact that I had hoped it would calm things down, it's in it. She says, "I had no boundaries, no sense of what I needed to do to protect myself. I was terrified and didn't want to do the interview at all, but I felt like it's the only way to prove my love and commitment to my parents. I thought I knew how much it would cost me." And the worst part is, they do this interview and then the Ashley Madison scandal breaks. And Josh, he does like this really shitty apology that we covered in part one and two, and then you just like goes to rehab. Jill says in an interview later, watching the way that my parents kind of protected my brother, but then used me and some of my sisters, it was hard and it's still hard to swallow. That's like one point where I call my dad out about it. And I just say, "You treat me worse than you treat my brother, my pedophile brother." In the interview, they state or were encouraged to state. I think by the time that all of that was done, the report was made about the molestation. It was very obvious to everyone, us and our family, friends and officials that Josh was a completely changed person. He had not gone down that path for years. He was humbled before God, before us, before the officials that were involved. So in touch breaks the news. This interview airs, and then the Ashley Madison Lee happens. And then 2015 continues to be a pivotal year for the Dugger family because of Joshua. - So after 2015, this all came out. They are done with the show. - Oh, we're still not even done with 2015. - Oh, oh, I thought you just say 2015, okay. - Yeah, because right after the Ashley Madison Lee, - Uh-huh. - A lawsuit drops. (upbeat music) (soft music) - Joshua Dugger is being sued by an adult film actress for assault and intentional flexion of emotional distress. Okay, I have to give you some context. Danica Dillon is the adult film actress, but she was also doing a lot of dancing and paid appearances for local clubs. She says that in March of 2015, so earlier this year, Joshua Dugger came in and paid about $600 for a lap dance. And again, this is also shocking. It just adds more elements to the sadistic quality of Joshua Dugger because his wife and kids are wearing $2 flip flops. Like they never buy anything new, they thrift. I mean, Anna Dugger will only cook him hand homemade meals to save money. And he's out here paying $600 for a lap dance. And then he offered her $1,500 for full intimacy at a local hotel. In an interview, she says, he's very rough with me in all honesty, though it was consensual. It more or less felt like I was being raped. He was tossing me around like a rag doll, forcing me to go into positions. And she says that she's no clue who this guy was. Like she just thought it was a patron of the club. She was terrified. She runs into him a month later at a second club. And he's like, profusely apologizing. He walked up to me and he goes, I'm so sorry for the things that I did. I've been a fan of your movies. I'm, you know, I watch your scenes. I thought that this was what you were into. I'm sorry if I ever mistreated you. And I believed him. That night they end up being intimate again. And she says he actually was like a completely different person the second time. I mean, he was just like a little rough. So the doggers, they fight this lawsuit. They first state that Danica Dylan herself stated in the interviews that she never said no. And that technically it was consensual. That technically it was consensual sexual contact for payment. That was her description of it. And then they later say, well, Joshua Dugger was never even in the area that Danica Dylan said that he was. Eventually, Danica Dylan drops the case with prejudice, which means that this is something that she tried to fight. But it means that she can never refile a lawsuit against Joshua Duggers for these crimes, alleged crimes, which has a lot of people at the time believing that Danica Dylan lied. Because, oh, the doggers are getting pressed. Oh, so much is happening with Josh Dugger. She's probably lying because she's an adult film actress. There is no public merit decision saying that Danica Dylan lied. She could have felt overpowered by the Duggers and their millions of dollars that they have ready to fight this case. She could have felt like her career, her profession, everything that she's ever done would be thrown in her face. And she'd be dragged through the mud like a lot of victims had this actually gone to trial. She could have received hush money payout that is not on record. Many netizens are commenting, I think her story is accurate. But I believe that maybe she got some details wrong and the lawyers punched holes in her story and they convinced her to drop it. I think it's not unexpected or unreasonable that she couldn't remember every single thing. So maybe it wasn't the exact date she said. Maybe it wasn't the exact club. That's what netizens are saying. People believe that Jim Bob and Michelle would do anything to get rid of Joshua's quote-unquote problems. But like, what do you expect from the Dugger parents? Jim Bob and Michelle. In a blog article, Michelle Dugger teaches her audience. She's giving advice to anybody watching. If you're going to be a newlywed, she writes, number one, this is my advice to all newlyweds. Be joyfully available. Whenever I speak with groups of other moms and married women, I always share this advice. It's been the best advice that I was ever given in regard to my relationship with my husband Jim Bob. She says that one day her friend was telling her about it. You've got to remember this. Anyone can iron Jim Bob's shirt. Anyone can make his lunch for him. He can get his lunch somewhere else. But you are the only one who can meet that special need that he has in his life or intimacy. You're it. You're the only one. So don't forget that. He needs you. So when you're exhausted by the end of the day, maybe from dealing with the little ones and you fall into the bed so exhausted at night, don't forget about him because you and he are the only ones who can have that time together. No one else in the world can meet that need. So be available and not just available, but be joyfully available for him. Smile and be willing to say, yes, sweetie, I'm here for you no matter what. Even though you may be exhausted and big pregnant and you may not feel like he feels, I'm still here for you and I'm going to meet that need because I know it's a need for you. Wow. She says that she will be sharing this information with her daughters who get married. What the crazier part is that this is written after the Ashley Madison scandal. And there are insider sources who know the family that said that Anna Dugger was fucking pissed because she thought that Michelle Dugger was saying it was her fault that she was not joyfully available so Josh Dugger cheated on her, which Michelle Dugger why are you even writing blog posts right now? This is not the time for this bullshit. The religious group that they belong to is the IBLP, which more on this later, but it's led by a man named Bill Gothard. The one he thinks cabbage patch dolls are evil, reincarnated. Cabbage patch dolls, they're like little dolls. Okay, they look cute. But he said that the creator is a warlock who bewitched every single one to carry the soul of the devil. - Okay. - So you just know where that's gonna go. Bill Gothard goes on to create these wisdom booklets. I mean, this teaches the followers everything. They're all homeschooled. It teaches them what to wear, how to choose the right toothbrush. And detrimentally, what to do in the event of being sexually assaulted. In the wisdom booklet, they have this whole part on what to do. And it asks, what part of your being did the offender damage? And which part of yourself did you damage with that bitterness and guilt? And it asks you to ask the question, why did God let it happen? And maybe 'cause we're all fucking dim-witted, it gives you multiple choice answers. A, immotic stress. B, in decent exposure. Three, being out from protection of your parents. D, being with evil friends. And if you're not a fault, congratulations. This is a learning lesson for you. Quote, God compensated physical abuse with spiritual power. What is being mighty in spirit? Greater faith, spiritual discernment, genuine love, wisdom and understanding, creativity, energy and enthusiasm, joy, inner peace. It reads that a reason for your bitterness after essay is he damaged your body. Important step, dedicate your body to God. If you had to choose no physical abuse or being mighty in spirit, what would you choose? So he's saying, after you've been assaulted, you're gonna become mighty in spirit. Would you give up not being a saint? Or would you rather be mighty in spirit? Just to see if you have an idea of how deeply followers believed in this brain-dead concept. And I'm not blaming the people that grew up in this concept because it's for the adults to realize, hey, I'm not gonna teach my kid this. Another higher up in the IBLP leadership ladder. He runs a counseling camp. He says, you know, what you're hearing about Josh is a stupid thing that a little boy did. In the seminar, Bill Gothard calls it natural curiosity. Had it been as traumatic as they make it out to be? The sisters would have been bitter. And the sisters are not bitter. In another wisdom booklet, there's a little Q&A portion that reads, what if a wife is a victim of her husband's hostility? Basically, what if you're a domestic violence victim? The answer reads, there is no victim If we understand. stand that we are called to suffer for righteousness because Christ also suffered for us. Leaving us an example that you should follow his steps. Christ was not a victim. He willingly gave his life for us. Christ's life teaches us how to suffer. Question, if my husband violates God's moral laws against our children, should I at least separate from him in order to protect our children? A father's authority in the home is derived from and governed by the laws of God. If he violates these laws, God uses higher powers to discipline him. More on these wisdom books later, but it's very clear, Jim Bob and Michelle, along with their son Joshua, are not at all the wholesome family that they keep trying to shove down our throats on TLC. And that is why in 2015 TLC cancels the show. And that is where I leave you with the audio part 3 of this case. There's going to be part 4 that's coming up really quick and that'll be the last and final part I swear, but there's so much that we have to go through because the whole trial is ridiculous for Josh. Then we have Joseph and Kendra who get arrested within like days of each other. And then their jailhouse calls have recently been put online. So with all of that, stay safe and I will see you in the next one.

Podcast Summary

Key Points:

  1. The Duggers, a family featured on TLC’s "19 Kids and Counting," were accused of internal child sexual abuse, with Joshua Dugger allegedly molesting his younger sisters while they slept as early as 2002.
  2. Despite the abuse, the family concealed the truth for over a decade, using religious justification and claiming Joshua received counseling and redemption, while their public image remained wholesome and idealized.
  3. In 2006, an anonymous email to Oprah’s producers revealed the abuse, prompting a failed interview and a police investigation—though the investigation closed due to expired statutes, with no criminal charges filed.
  4. In 2015, a leaked police file exposed multiple incidents of abuse, leading to public outrage, the cancellation of the TLC show, and accusations that the family hid crimes to protect their image and religious beliefs.
  5. The family defended themselves in a Fox News appearance with Megan Kelly, minimizing the abuse, portraying the victims as “overreacting,” and claiming the situation was common in families.
  6. A separate lawsuit by adult film actress Danica Dillon alleged Joshua paid for a lap dance and offered full intimacy, adding to allegations of predatory behavior, though the case was dropped with prejudice.
  7. Religious doctrine within the family’s IBLP group downplayed the abuse, framing it as "natural curiosity" and teaching victims to view suffering as spiritual growth, rather than trauma.
  8. Multiple members of the family—including Joshua and others—were later arrested for crimes against children, and the case revealed systemic issues of concealment, trauma, and manipulation of public perception.

Summary:

The Dugger family, known for their wholesome image on TLC’s "19 Kids and Counting," hid a decades-long pattern of child sexual abuse by their eldest son, Joshua, who molested younger sisters while they slept as early as 2002. Despite evidence of abuse, the family concealed the truth, relying on religious justifications and counseling to downplay the severity. In 2006, an anonymous email to Oprah’s producers exposed the abuse, leading to a failed interview and a police investigation that ended due to expired statutes.

The full extent of the abuse only came to light in 2015 when a leaked police file was released, revealing seven incidents of sexual misconduct. This caused public outrage, the cancellation of the TLC show, and widespread criticism of the family’s hypocrisy in promoting "family values" while harboring a predator. In a Fox News interview, the parents minimized the abuse, portrayed the victims as overreacting, and claimed the situation was common in families.

The family’s religious beliefs, rooted in the IBLP movement, further normalized the abuse by framing it as spiritual growth. A separate lawsuit by adult film actress Danica Dillon accused Joshua of paying for a lap dance and engaging in intimate activities, adding to allegations of predatory behavior. The case eventually led to arrests of multiple family members for crimes against children.

This exposé underscores deep issues of parental concealment, religious trauma, and the manipulation of public narratives to protect family image, while highlighting the trauma inflicted on the victims and the failures of institutions to act. The case remains a critical example of how abuse can be hidden under religious and cultural ideologies, with long-term consequences for survivors and public trust.

FAQs

The Dugger family was scheduled for an interview on Oprah Winfrey's show in 2006, but the production team received an email revealing allegations that Joshua Dugger, the eldest son, had molested his younger sisters. The family was then asked to return to Arkansas, and the interview was canceled. The incident sparked a formal investigation, though no charges were filed due to expired statutes of limitations.

Yes, there were credible allegations that Joshua Dugger molested his younger sisters while they were sleeping or asleep on the couch, starting as early as 2002 when he was 14. These incidents were reported to police in 2003, and the family initially chose not to pursue legal action, instead opting for private discipline and counseling.

The family did not formally admit guilt. Instead, they released statements in 2015, claiming that Joshua had made 'bad mistakes' as a teenager and that they had forgiven him through faith and counseling. These statements were widely criticized as minimizing the severity of the abuse and downplaying the harm to the victims.

The public learned about the allegations in 2015 when In Touch magazine obtained and published a sealed police file from 2006. The file detailed multiple incidents of abuse and included redacted names, which led to the identification of the victims. The release of this file sparked significant public outrage and media scrutiny.

Yes, at least three members of the Dugger family—including Joshua Dugger—have been arrested or investigated for crimes against children. Additionally, Joseph Hutchins, a former police officer and close family friend, was later found to have been in federal prison for 56 years for child sexual abuse and was involved in the 2006 investigation.

The show was canceled after the producers received an email alleging abuse within the family. The family had to return to Arkansas, and the producers determined that the allegations were serious enough to warrant a full investigation. The cancellation followed widespread public backlash and pressure over the family's portrayal of a 'perfect' family.

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