Duggar Family Did Not Tell Josh’s First Girlfriend or Her Family About Molestation Rumors, New Doc Alleges

The new Prime Video docuseries about the Duggar family, Shiny Happy People, uncovers some major accusations against Duggar parents Jim Bob and Michelle. Not the least of which is an allegation that they did not tell the family of their eldest son Josh’s first girlfriend about the molestation rumors against him. Back in 2015, reports emerged that Josh had sexually assaulted at least two female minors, both of which turned out to be his sisters. 

However, it was learned that the incidents had started as far back as 2001 or 2002 when he was around 13 to 14 years old. At the time, Jim Bob took Josh to see a police officer who gave him a stern lecture but did not take him into custody or bring any charges against him. In the new documentary, former Duggar friends Jim and Bobye Holt share their experiences with the family, which include being close to them during this period, due to their daughter Kayleigh dating Josh. The pair had known one another their whole lives, being born just two days apart in 1988, and the families believes, at the time, they would likely end up together since Josh once asked to “court Kayleigh for the purpose of marriage.”

“How deep do we go, ’cause that’s a rabbit hole,” Jim replies in the doc, after being asked about what he knew of Josh’s exploits. “Damn, it’s really twisted.” Sharing what he recalled of an early ’00s conversation with Jim Bob, after hearing about what had been going in the Duggar home, Jim says that the reality TV dad told him: “‘Josh has gotten into some trouble, he’s touched his sisters inappropriately.’”

Jim went on to reveal that Jim Bob once stated outlet that Josh “molested his sisters.” However, Michelle grew upset about this and told him, “Don’t you say that again.” Jim added, “[Josh] had apparently been doing it since he was 12, but we found out about it when he was 15.” 

He then claims that he and Bobye asked Jim Bob and Michelle when they were planning to tell them about what happened, and Michelle responded, “‘We weren’t gonna have them tell you guys at all. We were gonna have Josh confess to Kayleigh once they were married.’” Dropping a major allegation, Jim then stated, “I asked Jim Bob, ‘So are you basically saying you were kinda using my daughter as like a carrot to get him to behave the right way?’ And he goes, ‘Well, yeah, kinda.’”

Josh Duggar was taken into custody by sheriffs in Arkansas on April 28, 2021. The following day he was transferred to the custody of U.S. Marshals and formally charged with possession of child pornography. Duggar pleaded “not guilty” to the charges and remained in custody until a bond hearing. Josh was eventually released on bond and had reportedly been staying with a family friend.

He was tried and convicted late last year, with his trial ending on Dec. 9, 2021. Josh was found guilty of two charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. On May 25, 2022, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Per The Federal Bureau of Prisons, Josh’s scheduled release date is August 22, 2032. This means that he will spend over a decade in prison at Seagoville Federal Correctional Institution in Texas.