Written by: Jennifer Kathleen Gibbons

It was a relief when the verdict came today.

I was worried but there it was: guilty. The fallen Golden Boy of the Duggar family had his bond revoked. He kissed his wife goodbye and was escorted to jail.

This was a long time coming.

So why didn’t I feel jubilation?

Some background and a confession: I started writing about the Duggars ten years ago. I’ve always been drawn to stories about big families like Cheaper by the Dozen and Yours, Mine and Ours. I know every episode of The Brady Bunch by heart and can name all the Bradford children from Eight is Enough. I’m an only child so I always loved stories about big families. So it seemed natural that I’d watch a show about a family like the Duggars, who made the Old Lady In The Shoe look barren.

Jim Bob Duggar met Michelle Ruark in 1983 when she worked at his mom Mary’s yogurt store. Those two kids fell in love and a year later got married. He was nineteen, she was eighteen. They had Josh in 1988. Michelle became pregnant again but miscarried a baby boy they named Caleb. Michelle was on the Pill when Caleb was conceived, so they believed the miscarriage was God telling them to stop using contraception.

Please don’t expect this to make sense. Because it doesn’t.

After that fateful decision, they had eighteen children: Jana, John David, Jill, Jessa, Jinger, Joseph, Josiah, Joy-Anna, Jebidiah, Jeremiah, Jason, James, Justin, Jackson, Johannah, Jennifer, Jordyn, and Josie.

I’m getting tired just writing down all those names.

In 2004, The Learning Channel (TLC) spotlighted the Duggars in a special, then they made several more. In one of the specials, Josh’s head is shaved. No explanation is given. In 2008, 17 Kids and Counting (the title eventually changed to 19 Kids and Counting) made its debut on TLC. The first season centered on Michelle’s pregnancy with Jordyn and Josh getting engaged to Anna Keller, a girl he met at a homeschooling conference in Texas. This is when you realize something was up: Josh and Anna had to have chaperones go with them on dates. Holding hands was okay, but no frontal hugs. And no kissing until they got married.

No sex before the wedding night?

What do you think?

Look, I’m Catholic and when I learned about the birds and the bees (by a nun) we were taught it would be best to wait. But the rest of the conditions seemed a little much. No kissing? No frontal hugs? Come on. Also, both Josh and Anna were twenty years old. Legally, they were adults. They didn’t have to have rules. Or did they?

I continued to watch the show and I grew more irritated. All the girls (except for cousin Amy) wore skirts and dresses. Nothing wrong with that, but all the time? No pants, no jeans, not even yoga pants. They also disallowed dancing. They weren’t allowed to hear secular music. Sexual thoughts weren’t allowed, Masturbation was taught as a sin. When several of the girls started “courting” (instead of dating) the suitors had to fill out a lengthy questionnaire for Jim Bob. Again, the girls were nineteen and twenty. Adults. College was discouraged; too expensive. The girls were expected to be wives and mothers. While they claimed they chose their courting rules, I knew it was Jim Bob making the decisions.

In 2014, Michelle made headlines when she made robocalls about transwomen using the ladies’ restrooms. In the call, she said: “I don’t believe the citizens of Fayetteville 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.” Four months later, the family sent a Christmas card wishing Jesus a happy birthday. Now this made me see red. If you want to wish Jesus a happy birthday, great. You shouldn’t be doing it after discriminating against people who already have a rough road to walk on. This was when I started posting every week on my old blog Duggar Blogs; mostly pointing out their bad behavior and anti-Catholic remarks made by two sons-in-law.

In 2015, Josh was the executive director of FRC Action, a PAC sponsored by the Family Research Council. The FRC frowns on feminism, gay rights, and abortion. There were rumors Josh would run for Congress. The family often took pictures and claimed a friendship with former governor Mike Huckabee. Could the presidency be possible?

In May In Touch Weekly came out with news: in 2002-2003, Josh molested four of his sisters. In 2006 there was an investigation (thanks to a report from the Oprah Winfrey Show) and the girls told the officers they were okay and had forgiven Josh. Since no charges were filed within the three years after the abuse happened, no charges were/could be filed. He had been sent to a facility in Little Rock, which explained why his head was shaved. It also came out he also molested a babysitter. Josh had been “disciplined” and nothing else happened to him.

It got worse and worse.

After resigning from his job, it was revealed Josh used the website Ashley Madison for sexual trysts. To make it even more horrible, Anna had just given birth to their fourth child, a girl. 19 Kids and Counting was canceled. Anna’s brother pleaded for her to leave the marriage. She didn’t. I don’t blame Anna; she was trained to be a good wife, a good mother. A “good wife doesn’t leave her marriage, no matter what.” They proceeded to have two more children.

However, TLC didn’t want to give up on their cash cow. They convinced the older Duggar girls to follow their families, calling it Counting On. Eventually, the whole family started appearing again, except for Josh. In other words, they kept on getting TLC money. But in 2019, Josh’s laptop was seized by federal agents. In April 2021, he was arrested for possession of child pornography. I don’t even want to tell you what was on his laptop, but I can tell you this: this was when TLC said enough and canceled Counting On. The arrest was made after Anna announced she was pregnant with their seventh baby. Three weeks ago, she gave birth to another girl.

During the trial, Duggar family friend Bobbye Holt testified Josh admitted to the molestations. Other evidence was provided. Today he was found guilty. So why am I not celebrating? Because this should’ve never happened.

This was a clusterfuck.

And what do Jim Bob and Michelle have to say about their son’s guilty verdict?

Nothing. Only that they will continue to pray for him.

Josh was enabled by Jim and Michelle, by the local police, by Anna, by TLC. No one here comes off great. All I can think of is what Prince Escalus said in the final moments of Romeo and Juliet: See, what a scourge is laid upon your hate/That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love./And I for winking at your discords too/Have lost a brace of kinsmen: all are punish’d.

Today at long last Josh Duggar was punished too.