Jim Bob Duggar’s sister Deanna Duggar is calling for a full investigation into the Duggar Family following the arrest of Joseph Duggar earlier this year.
Deanna called out her brother and sister-in-law Michelle’s family while joining her daughter, Amy Duggar King, on a recent episode of The Sarah Fraser Show. During the episode, Deanna was asked to weigh in on the public’s largely negative opinion of Jim Bob and Michelle amid their family’s many controversies, to which Deanna said she believes the former ‘Counting On’ couple should have to face more than just backlash.
“In my opinion, I do believe that they should be investigated, just because of everything that’s happened. Everybody should be checked out in that family,” Deanna said, before clarifying that she believes “a lot of” Jim Bob and Michelle’s adult children should be investigated.
Deanna did not go into detail regarding which of the Dug spawn should be looked into, or why. (However, as of press time, two of their sons— Josh and Joseph— have been arrested for child sex abuse crimes. Josh was convicted and is currently in prison for his, while Joseph is preparing to go on trial for his alleged child molestation crimes.)
Deanna made it clear that one of Jim Bob and Michelle’s grown children does not need to be looked into— Jill, who has distanced herself from her parents, but remains close to Amy and Deanna.
“ … I know Jill [Duggar Dillard] has done the work and the therapy … but I think a lot of [the Duggar kids] should be [investigated],” she stated.
Amy went on to interject that her family’s actions “stem from somewhere,” and that she believes some of her cousins may have “suppressed a whole lot.” She also stated that she thinks her cousins have not yet come to terms with what went on in their childhood, particularly given their involvement in the IBLP, the religious cult that Jim Bob and Michelle raised their children in.
“ … I do think an investigation going deeper might be good,” Amy added,.
Deanna’s (and Amy’s) comments come four months after Joseph Duggar was arrested after a 14-year-old girl disclosed in a forensic interview that Joe allegedly sexually abused her several times during a 2020 family vacation in Florida. At the time of the alleged abuse the victim was only nine years old.
Joe is facing two counts of lewd and lascivious behavior in Florida. He has pleaded not guilty and is currently out of jail on a $600,000 bond.
On part one of Amy’s interview on ‘The Sarah Fraser Show’ last week, she spoke about her grandfather (Deanna and Jim Bob’s dad) Jimmy Lee Duggar, whom she described as a “predator” in her 2025 memoir, Holy Disruptor, due to information she was told by her mom years after Jimmy Lee’s death. When asked whether she believes there’s a possibility that her grandfather could have sexually abused Josh or Joe, given the nature of their crimes as well as their actions following their respective arrests, Amy revealed that she and her mom had “definitely talked about it.”
“ … I honestly don’t think [Josh and Joe] were protected because I don’t understand how they’re smiling in mugshots, and how they go about life and the decisions that they’ve made if they haven’t been hurt in the past,” she said. “There is trauma somewhere deep, deep, deep, somewhere there that they just have not dealt with because hurt people hurt people. And as we know, abusers, they take years to uncover and they’re like onions, and so the layers that they have … I don’t know how far the rabbit hole goes on that.”
While both Amy and Deanna have spoken out against their family’s actions over the years, Deanna admitted on the episode that it’s been hard to see her brother and his family go through such difficult situations. Deanna said she continues to pray for them, as “it’s all [she] can do.”
“ … you know, I say a prayer for them, I pray that their eyes will be opened and they will see the error of their ways and repent and turn to the Lord,” she said. “That’s what I do because that’s all I can do, you know. I can’t convince them of anything. Tthey won’t listen to me, they won’t listen to Amy, they won’t listen to any of them, but God can get their attention, that’s what I believe … .”
You can watch a clip from Deanna and Amy’s interview on ‘The Sarah Fraser’ show below.
RELATED STORY: Joseph Duggar’s Pre-Trial Hearing Update: Lawyer Reveals Four Witnesses Will Testify Before Joe Goes on Trial
(Photos: Instagram; TLC)
3 Responses
They’re right, though. Unless pedophilia is genetic, they need to look into how two kids turned into pedophiles themselves. Statistically, most people who touch children were touched themselves. So, if Grandpa Danger Duggar wasn’t the one, who was?
Amy… girl… enough.
Honestly, I’m getting a little tired of hearing Amy. It feels she’s more about worrying if people will forget who she is if she shuts up. Just my feelings about her