Jessa & Jill Duggar Reveal How They Felt After Josh Duggar Police Report was Released

duggars jill jessaJessa and Jill Duggar decided to speak out for the first time since the huge sex abuse scandal broke on May 21 involving their brother, Josh. In an interview with FOX News’ Megyn Kelly, which aired Friday, Jill and Jessa identified themselves as two of Josh’s five molestation victims, and defended their family and brother against the media’s claims that the girls were living in a “house of horrors” due to their brother’s inability to keep his hands to himself.

While the girls admitted that they struggled during the period when the molestation was taking place, they both agreed that the last two weeks have been worse for them. Jessa and Jill have been uncharacteristically silent on all of their social media accounts since the scandal broke.

The girls revealed to Megyn how they felt when they learned that In Touch Weekly was releasing the police record that identified them and their sisters as Josh’s victims, and contained their statements on the incidents.

“I’ll tell you, we were pretty furious!” Jessa said.

Jill DuggarHer sister, Jill, had a different reaction, however.

“I called my husband and I was in tears,” Jill said before breaking down crying. “I couldn’t believe what was going on…Whenever I heard that the police report had been released, I said, ‘They don’t have a right to do this! We’re victims, they can’t do this to us…and they did.”

When asked what the other victims–who include two other Duggar girls and a non-related babysitter– thought about the report being released, Jessa said they felt the same way.

“I can speak for the others and as far as saying that everybody’s angry that this has been publicized,” Jessa said. “Everyone has forgiven [Josh]. We’ve all moved on…What was done was very wrong. The terrible thing about being a victim is being helpless in the moment over the actions of others. In this situation, again, we’re helpless.”

The girls also took some heavy swings at Bauer Publishing, the parent company that publishes In Touch Weekly.

“Whatever thing they may say, ‘Legally we can do this, or we can do that,’ it’s obviously not…they’re not protecting us here,” Jill said.

“I know that the tabloids that released this, they’re used to exploiting women,” Jessa added. “They have, the parent company…Baur, they’re a major p0rn provider.” [ Jessa was probably referring to this scandal involving the publishing company.]

“Maybe they’re used to making objects out of women, and I guess they don’t think we’re any different,” Jessa added.

(For the record, The Ashley agrees with the magazine publishing the report, since it was obtained legally; however she feels that it was morally wrong for In Touch to leave the statements that identified the sisters as victims visible.)

In an interview with The Advocate, the magazine’s West Coast Editor, Rick Egusquiza, explained how he and his team of reporters broke the story.

“The rumors of Joshua Duggar being sexually inappropriate as a teenager were circulating for years, but no one could prove it until In Touch Weekly really started digging into it,” he said. “My bosses received a tip and then sent me and a team to Springdale, Arkansas, to start digging around. One tipster led me to another, and then another. I have to say it was good old-fashioned reporting on the ground and a lot of door-knocking.”

The Ashley can just imagine how Josh Duggar felt when he learned that the man that “took him down” was actually a gay journalist. We all know how much love Josh has for the LGBTQ community.

Anyway, Rick told the magazine that he and his In Touch staff have gotten a fair share of hate mail over their expose on the Duggar family. Jessa and Jill certainly aren’t fans of the tabloid.

“I see it as a re-victimization that’s a thousand times worse,” Jill said of the magazine article. “This is something that’s already dealt with. We’ve already moved on. It’s not the truth. Everything is distorted. We feel like our story is not being told. The victims are the only ones who can speak for themselves. Now it’s already being warped into however they want to portray it, that’s why Jessa and I wanted to come out and say, ‘That’s not what happened!’”

To read The Ashley’s complete coverage of the Josh Duggar sex abuse scandal, click here.

Watch Megyn’s interview with Jill and Jessa below:

23 Responses


  1. Those poor girls are brainwashed. So terribly sad and disturbing all the way around. Perhaps TLC will finally clean up their act and get rid of this horrible, twisted “reality” show just like they did with that other freakshow, Honey Boo Boo!


  2. Everyone that is negative about how well this family came through such a terrible crisis needs to ask theirselves, why is it so hard to believe that God can heal the injured heart and clean a mind bent on bad choices? I feel it is because what scripture says in the last days…men would be lovers of sin and haters of good…..wake up people, clean under your own porches and face the obvious sins in yours lives…and you too can experience the beautiful nature of God and his glory.

    .Duggar family…we love you all…..


  3. Personally I think the best thing that could come out of all this is a national awareness of molestation. The Duggars (especially the girls) seem to really think that real predators are the creepy gay/transgenders lurking in public restrooms… When they obviously fail to acknowledge they raised & protected, & further supplied more victims to one living inside their own home.


  4. You are all such hypocrites. Sorry “The Ashley” you just lost one of your 6 readers. Your website sucks and honestly you could use a few English courses. Sad, sad world we live in where you write about reality television all day (or not because you write, what? One article every other day?) There are Americans being beheaded or burned alive in cages by a serious threat to our nation and all you care about is Leah Messer’s latest problem in her white trash, redneck, backwards ass family. Yes what Josh Duggar did was wrong. But bringing out his victims as news fodder for more hits on your website is disgusting and pathetic on your part. Before this story broke you had one, maybe two commenters per article, now that you’re blasting a Duggar any and every hypocrite liberal is googling anything they can find just to tout their two cents like any one really gives a shit what any of you morons think. Please go back to discussing Farrah Abraham’s twat, and Janelle’s latest retarded mistake. The REAL ISSUES.


    1. * face palm* Girl, WHAT!? This website is specifically for reality TV. That doesn’t mean that the Ashley doesn’t care about other issues. If you wanna read about other issues, go somewhere else because this sure as hell isn’t the place.


      1. It’s amazing to me that a certain group of readers/posters can’t differentiate between a GOSSIP website, and a NEWS website. Or whine at poster, who aren’t exactly like them with “don’t write that, say that, think that”, instead of posting why they don’t agree, aka debate, without resorting to name calling.

        It’s becoming more and more common nowadays.

        UGH!


    2. Lacey-

      Have you forgotten that Jill and Jessa gave an interview to a national news network? They could have issued statements acknowledging what is going on and asking that their privacy be respected. Instead they went on Fox and towed the family line, regurgitating the crap Jim Bob told them to say and furthering the news cycle.

      They happily let TLC pay for their weddings and televised every boring second of the wedding planning and the wedding itself. Although Jill and Jessa were minors when their show started, since reaching 18 they’ve chosen to remain on the show and put themselves in the public spotlight.

      It is unfortunate that they were brought into this whole situation but that is because of Josh’s actions, no one else’s expect Jim Bob and Michelle.

      The Ashley’s article was respectful, unlike your comment. This is a site about reality television so of course The Ashley is going to cover it.


    3. The Ashley wishes she could upvote this a million times because it gave her a good chuckle! While she mourns the fact that she lost 1/6 of her readership, she will now retreat back to her high school English classroom to study verb conjugation and prepare for a career in writing about serious issues. She will also repent for daring to write about the Duggar scandal, even though it has been a national news story for weeks! The horrors! -The Ashley


  5. I can’t believe these girls’ were named as the victime. This isn’t about the family, their beliefs or Josh. This is about the rights of the girls. They were little girls when this happened.Their records should have been sealed and stayed that way.Someone on the take released their names for $$$$, and should be held accountable.
    Jill and Jessa, you are brave young ladies who continue to show courage and grace. I wish you the best.


    1. Their names were actually blacked out. By process of elimination, we were able to figure out who was molested. It’s not the media’s fault we know so much about the family.


    2. Freedom of Information Act. Not that it was the classiest move for ‘In Touch’ to publish it, but freedom of speech also applies to speech we don’t like. That being said, the internet has known about this for a lonnng time. I stumbled onto it about five years ago without seeking it out. Josh having his own bedroom (maybe his parents weren’t taking any more chances, but personally it raises some red flags that this, sickeningly, isn’t the whole story) when every single other kid over six months, with the exception of Josie a few years later, slept in either the boys’ dorm or the girls’ dorm was massively suspicious.


  6. Show has to be cancelled ASAP. Enough already. Nobody cares anymore. They are not the people they portrayed on TV. If you dig deeper u can find something else. Just forget about this spooky family. Uneducated breeders. That’s what they are.


  7. I never thought I would see the day that Jessa would say “p0rn”. I am surprised she even knows what that is. Maybe the interviewer should have asked her.


  8. TLC needs to cancel this shit already! What Mama June did is no worse than what Josh and his neglectful parents did.


  9. They are completely flabbergasted as to why anyone would see them as hypocrites.. And just think that people are basically out to get them with this story.. Well of course you live in a glass house and you throw stones.


    1. They are still looking down their noses at the rest of the world. I feel like such an awful person, but it’s nice to see them knocked down a few pegs. Anna and Michelle, there is nothing a wife can do (be available for sex 24/7) for a man that has unnatural urges. It’s not you, it’s him!!! Duggar women, stop blaming yourselves.


  10. I’m getting Sick of hearing about this story.. Josh was a little pervert, everyone hates them now..move on!


  11. While I empathize with the girls completely on the matter of their privacy being compromised (in an extreme, albeit legal manner), can anyone in that family sustain a conversation without an a forced reference to abortion/immodest dress/the LGBT community/mostly imagined persecution? Seriously, Jim Bob (let’s all take a moment and truly appreciate the fact that he *actually* goes by ‘Jim Bob’) is far more fixated on sex than people who allow their (of legal age) children to have their partner spend the night (an observation, not an endorsement) ever imagined being. Good grief, the man even made turkey-hunting with Jinger about sex (The Ashley did an excellent recap of that episode, btw).

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