Joseph Garrett Duggar, the brother of TLCs 19 Kids and Counting personality Josh Duggar, has been taken into custody and charged with lewd and lascivious behavior tied to alleged sexual activity with a minor.
According to Breitbart, the Bay County Sheriffs Office in Florida announced on Wednesday that it has arrested and charged 31-year-old Joseph Garrett Duggar for Lewd and Lascivious Behavior, involving unlawful sexual activity with a minor. The case underscores once again how high-profile families promoted by liberal Hollywood and legacy media as wholesome entertainment can harbor deeply troubling conduct behind the scenes.
Authorities stated that a 14-year-old victim participated in a forensic interview, where she disclosed several incidents involving Duggar that occurred during a family vacation in Panama City Beach when she was 9-years-old. Investigators say the alleged misconduct dates back to 2020, during a trip that, on the surface, appeared to be an ordinary family vacation.
The girl told law enforcement that Duggar repeatedly invited her to sit on his lap, then asked her to sit beside him on a couch before covering both of them with a blanket. While under that blanket, Duggar manipulated the victims underwear and grazed her genitals. Duggar would also continue to rub his hands on her thighs, the Bay County Sheriffs Office said.
The alleged victim reported that the incidents ceased only after Duggar apologized for his actions. That apology, however, did not end the matter, as the girls father later confronted the Counting On figure about what had allegedly occurred.
At that point, Duggar admitted his actions to the victims father and to Tontitown Detectives, according to the sheriffs office. Authorities further stated that Duggar was arrested out of state and charged with Lewd and Lascivious Behavior Molestation of a Victim Less Than 12-years-old and Lewd and Lascivious Behavior Conducted By A Person 18 Years Or Older.
The case inevitably recalls the scandal involving his brother, Josh Duggar, who was arrested and charged with child sex crimes five years ago. In 2021, Josh Duggar was charged with receiving and possessing child pornography, and a federal jury in Arkansas later convicted the former reality TV star of downloading and possessing child pornography.
Joseph Duggar, who also appeared in 19 Kids and Counting, is currently awaiting extradition to Bay County, the sheriffs office said. As the legal process moves forward, conservatives will note that, once again, it is the criminal justice system not celebrity culture or progressive institutions that is tasked with delivering accountability and protecting children from alleged predators.
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