What to know about Josh Duggar’s sexual abuse scandal

JOSHUA Duggar is best known for his appearances on the reality TV series 19 Kids and Counting and Counting on.

It was revealed several years ago that he had been accused of molested multiple underage girls, including four of his sisters when he was 14 and 15.

March 2002

A 33-page police report reveals that Jim Bob Duggar told police that Joshua fondled the breasts and genitals of several young victims while they were asleep in the Duggar family home.

About four or five other incidents were reported.

May 2002

Jim Bob Duggar loses a primary bid for the Republican Senate seat to Senator Tim Hutchinson in Arkansas.

Duggar’s policies condemned rape and incest, deeming them capital crimes.

July 2002

A police report revealed that Jim Bob explained that Josh told him about touching one of his victims while they were asleep on a sofa.

March 2003

Jim Bob and wife Michelle are made aware of two more incidents where Josh touched an underage victim.

In one situation he allegedly touched his victim while she was sitting on his lap, and in another, he was accused of putting his hand up his victim’s dress in a family laundry room.

Elders at the Duggar family church agreed that Josh needs treatment.

Jim Bob tells cops that Josh Duggar went through a Christian counseling program from March 17 to July 17, where he “did manual labor and had counseling,” according to the 2006 police report.

Josh’s parents and church elders tell an Arkansas state trooper about the incidents after Josh completed his treatment.

Jim Bob  tells police that the state trooper, identified as Joseph Hutchens, gave Josh a “very stern talk” about what might happen if he “continued such behavior.”

Joseph Hutchens is currently in jail on child pornography charges.

September 2004

The Duggars appear on a Discovery Health special titled 14 Kids and Pregnant Again.

December 2006

The Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline receives a tip that there is further child abuse happening in the Duggar household, and the Springdale Police Department reaches out to the family for interviews.

The family was scheduled to appear on Oprah, but the interview was canceled after producers receive an email from an unnamed female that reported abuse from the Duggar household.

Harpo staff faxed the letter to the Department of Human Services Hot Line.

Springdale Police go on to interview Jim Bob and Michelle, victims, and the alleged perpetrator at Springdale Children’s Safety Center in Arkansas.

They determine that the time frame in which they could have pressed charges had expired.

December 2007

Mainstream outlets have yet to pick up on the abuse scandal but message boards online are swirling with rumors about Josh Duggar’s allegations, according to Gawker.

December 2008

The first episode of 17 Kids and Counting premieres (now 19 Kids and Counting) on TLC.

May 2015

In Touch publishes an article detailing Josh Duggar’s inappropriate sexual conduct towards minors when he was a teen.

They also obtain a police report through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Josh took to Facebook to apologize for the allegations, penning “twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends,” he wrote in a statement.

TLC cancels any rerun episodes of 19 Kids and Counting.

Arkansas police destroy the 2006 police report. Springdale Police spokesman Scott Lewis tells the AP that Judge Stacey Zimmerman ordered the 2006 offense report destroyed.

Major retailers like Walgreens, General Mills, and Choice Hotels pull their advertisements from the show.

Joseph Hutchens tells In Touch that Jim Bob hid the extent of Josh’s alleged abuse.

June 2015

Jim Bob and Michelle appear on television for the first time since news of Josh’s sex abuse allegations broke.

The Duggar parents confirm that four of Josh’s victims were their daughters including young Jill and Jessa.

The couple argues that Josh’s records should have never been released under the FOIA and they threatened to sue.

July 2015

TLC cancels 19 Kids and Counting.

“After thoughtful consideration, TLC and the Duggar family have decided to not move forward with 19 Kids and Counting,” a statement on the network’s website says.

“The recent attention around the Duggars has sparked a critical and important conversation about child protection,” it continued.

The network claimed it planned to release a one-hour special featuring the Duggars and some of the families affected by the abuse.

August 2015

A Gawker report claimed that Josh was using adultery-promoting dating service Ashley Madison and that he had been unfaithful to his wife Anna.

Josh owned up to the claims.

“I have been the biggest hypocrite ever. While espousing faith and family values, I have secretly over the last several years been viewing pornography on the Internet and this has become a secret addiction and I became unfaithful to my wife,” said a statement from Josh Duggar via duggarfamily.com.

Is Counting On still on air?

TLC reality show Counting On has been canceled after almost six years following Josh Duggar’s arrest on child pornography charges, The Celeb Report can exclusively reveal.

The shocking news comes after fans launched a petition to boycott Counting On – as horrifying details of Josh’s child pornography arrest emerged.

An insider told The Celeb Report exclusively: “The decision was made by TLC earlier this week to cancel the show.

“The family was told over the phone shortly after and it’s still very hush hush.

“The petition from those who boycotted Counting On was hard to ignore, and sponsors were very concerned following Josh’s arrest.

“There have been a lot of discussions in recent weeks as the network had already spent money on production after months of filming.

“But the bottom line is, the network really wants to be on the right side of this scandal ahead of Josh’s trial. It was important for bosses to be seen to have taken action.

“The case has put the show in such a bad light, and although it’s a shame for those who worked hard on it, and the money spent, there really is no way forward.”

Counting On’s last season ended in September 2020, and fans have been left wondering if there will be a new season this year.

Was Josh Duggar arrested in April 2021?

The Celeb Report exclusively learned that fired reality star Josh, 33, was taken into custody in Arkansas on April 29, 2021.

The incident is related to the 2019 Homeland Security raid on his now-shuttered used car dealership in Springdale, Arkansas, a source claimed.

In November 2019, Homeland Security Investigations conducted an “ongoing federal investigation” at the lot, but no charges were filed against Josh- until now.

A source exclusively told The Celeb Report of patriarch Jim Bob, his wife Michelle, and their 19 children: “The family has known that this has been coming for weeks, and Josh has been preparing himself.

“They are praying together for Josh and Anna, who is standing by her husband as she always has.

“Family members are extremely concerned by what is happening and they just want to find out the truth.

“They know that this will put them in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, and are stunned they are having to go through this again.

“The family will be speaking out shortly and hope this in many ways will bring them closer together and even closer to God.”

According to a new indictment, he was also arrested for child porn possession, featuring minors under 12.

If he is allowed to bail himself out, he cannot be around any minors, the judge told the star and his legal team during the court hearing.

The bombshell bust comes just six years after claims he molested five girls as a teen.

After the shocking arrest was made, family members have begun speaking out – including sister Jill Duggar who claimed to be a victim of her older brother’s alleged molestation in 2015.

“We just found out this information yesterday,” Jill and Derick said in a statement to People on April 30, 2021. “It is very sad.”

What is Josh Duggar doing now?

Duggar married Anna Renee Keller on September 26, 2008. They have six children together, three daughters and three sons.

According to Cheatsheet, before the sexual molestation and Ashley Madison scandal news broke he was working at the Family Research Council in Washington, but resigned after the scandal broke.

He is now a car salesman.

On October 23, 2021 Josh Duggar’s wife, Anna, took to social media to welcome a new addition to the family.

A baby girl, making their family of 6 to a family of 7.

When does Josh Duggar’s trial start?

Josh Duggar, 33, is on trial the week commencing November 29, 2021, for child pornography charges from his April 2021 arrest.

At an Arkansas court hearing, Jim Bob, 56, testified on Josh’s 2006 molestation police report, where he was accused of molesting underage females in the family home from 2002 to 2003.

According to court papers obtained by The Celeb Report, Jim Bob’s testimony was on behalf of the government.

KNWA reported Jim Bob testified “on the allegations that Josh touched four minors in the early 2000s.”

The state is fighting to discuss the scandal at trial, while Josh is demanding the details from the report be kept out.

Further briefing from lawyers is due at noon on November 30, The Celeb Report can confirm.