Have you spent a part of your life gawking at the 19 Kids and Counting family and thinking how wholesome and inspirational they are?
Well, Josh Duggar, one of the kids in the TLC reality show, made headlines for sexually molesting his younger sisters Jill and Jessa when he was 14. Now, he is being sued by woman (not a family member) that he allegedly molested as well.
According to reports, Jill and Jessa Duggar were molested by Josh at least seven times between the years 2002 and 2003. Parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar knew about his actions but said they chose to deal with it privately as a family.
The non-family molestation victim plans to sue Josh Duggar http://t.co/7YvZCwCQTU pic.twitter.com/uuUZMUiVvh
— New York Post (@nypost) July 1, 2015
What makes it surprising is that Josh is now 27 and the police didn’t find out about the molestation nor was he charged until recently. However, the statute of limitations has since ran out. This means the Duggar family of 19 Kids and Counting are not allowed to invoke their Fifth Amendment rights anymore. In short, they are now unable to refuse answering questions that are thrown at them.
The Duggar family will have to reveal what they know, when they knew it, what they did about it, and why it took them this long to come forward.
According to Arkansas Code Annotated Section 16-56-1300, civil action is allowed when a sexual abuse victim starts to feel the effects of their trauma years later.
This is apparently the reason Josh’s alleged victim is filing a case against him now. She reportedly became upset when she saw the 19 Kids and Counting family on television trying to defend Josh’s misdeeds.
The victim wanted to hold Josh accountable for what he did. According to In Touch Weekly, she also has the ability to sue Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar for the cover-up.