“19 Kids and Counting” star Joseph Duggar told his wife, Kendra Duggar, that he was using his time in jail to pray and read the Bible.
Editor’s note: This article contains information about child sex abuse that some readers might find disturbing and/or triggering.
On March 18, Duggar, 31, was arrested and charged with “Lewd and Lascivious Behavior, involving unlawful sexual activity with a minor.”
The alleged incident occurred during a 2020 family vacation in Panama City Beach. The victim, who was 9 at the time, “reported Duggar repeatedly asked her to sit on his lap,” said the Bay County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) in a statement.
“As the vacation continued,” said the BCSO, “he also asked her to sit next to him on a couch and covered them with a blanket. Duggar manipulated the victim’s underwear and grazed her genitals. Duggar would also continue to rub his hands on her thighs.”
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Two days after Duggar’s arrest, Kendra, 27, was also arrested and charged with four counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a minor and four counts of false imprisonment. Those charges are unrelated to Duggar’s alleged 2020 incident and allegedly apply to her own children. She was released a short time after her arrest.
Duggar was also charged with the same eight accounts.
The conversation between Duggar and his wife—a phone call placed by Duggar from jail—took place after Kendra was released from police custody. The call was obtained by People.
The couple, who have four children, discussed Kendra’s attorney and what Duggar was doing with his time in jail.
“Hey, just know that we can’t talk about a lot here,” Duggar told his wife. He asked if Travis, an attorney, had reached out to her.
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“Yeah, I’ve got him as my attorney right now…it isn’t for you. It’s only for me,” Kendra replied. “I mean, he can work with you, but they said I needed somebody for the case that we’ve got going with the kids and stuff.”
Kendra asked her husband, “So, we can email each other?”
