Jill Duggar Dillard has released a statement following the conviction of brother Josh Duggar on child pornography charges after the jury returned a guilty verdict Thursday. The former Counting On star, 30, took to her family’s blog not long after to speak out about the “difficult” day for her family, saying she and husband Derick Dillard felt the jury’s verdict was “consistent with the truth beyond a reasonable doubt.”
“Today was difficult for our family,” Jill wrote in the blog entry. “Our hearts go out to the victims of child abuse or any kind of exploitation. We are thankful for the hard work of law enforcement, including investigators, forensic analysts, prosecutors and all others involved who save kids and hold accountable those responsible for their abuse.”
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The former TLC star continued, “Nobody is above the law. It applies equally to everybody, no matter your wealth, status, associations, gender, race, or any other factor. Today, the people of the Western District of Arkansas made that clear in their verdict. As a Christian, we believe we are all equal at the foot of the cross, and, likewise, we are all equal under the law.”
The couple went on to reference Luke 12:1-3 from the Bible, which states, “Whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.” Jill and Derick, who married in 2014, attended parts of Duggar’s trial before he was officially convicted of two counts of receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material following his April arrest.
“We have been lied to so much that we wanted to hear the evidence for ourselves in court,” Jill wrote. “After seeing all the evidence as it was presented, we believe that the jury reached a just verdict today, consistent with the truth beyond a reasonable doubt.” Duggar has yet to be sentenced but faced up to 20 years in prison and $250,000 in fines for each count.
Jill also offered up her sympathies for sister-in-law Anna Duggar, as well as the seven children she shares with her husband. “Josh’s actions have rippled far beyond the epicenter of the offense itself. Children have scars, but his family is also suffering the fallout of his actions,” her blog post concluded. “Our hearts are sensitive to the pains Josh’s wife, Anna, and their seven children have already endured and will continue to process in the future. This trial has felt more like a funeral than anything else. Josh’s family has a long road ahead. We stand with them, we are praying for them and we will seek to support them however we can during this dark time.”
