Duggar Family Controversies Fans Will Never Forget

The following article contains references to spiritual abuse and child sexual abuse.

Things have changed for the kids of "19 Kids & Counting" since it premiered in 2008. Most of the toddlers and tweens of the Duggar family have matured into young adults with their own families, and even the youngest few are teens on the verge of finding their own paths. But while the Duggars shared much of their life with their viewers, there were some things that the camera didn't show. Among them was the one scandal that brought the original series to a screeching halt: Oldest son Josh Duggar is serving a long prison sentence for receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material. 

While Josh's arrest and conviction is the most shocking example of the Duggars' wholesome image being soiled, it's far from the only one. Over the years, the family has faced scrutiny for some of their beliefs and practices, and individual members have found themselves in legal hot water. There are certain incidents fans won't soon forget. Still, those viewers have stayed loyal despite it all, keeping up with the latest news through social media. Perhaps viewers feel nostalgic about the show, or perhaps they've adopted a forgiving attitude. (The Bible warns against casting the first stone, after all.) Here are some of the more problematic situations surrounding the famous mega-clan.

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

As a young teen, Jim Bob Duggar attended a Christian seminar run by a charismatic minister named Bill Gothard, founder of an organization called the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP). Jim Bob became a follower of Gothard and his ministry, and raised his family according to the group's values.

The darker side of the IBLP was exposed in the 2023 Amazon docuseries "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets." Former members spoke out against the group, which they called a cult. The IBLP's patriarchal system establishes men as the authority figures, with women expected to follow their husbands, have a houseful of children, and stay in their marriages even in cases of infidelity or abuse. Homeschooling is the norm, and many IBLP families use the Advanced Training Institute program developed by Gothard. The Bible-based curriculum has been called an inadequate education. Gothard established a long list of forbidden activities, including drinking, dancing, watching secular TV shows, wearing immodest clothing, and listening to music with a beat.

Over the years, most of the adult Duggar children have broken from the group. Even Jim Bob and Michelle have distanced themselves from the IBLP somewhat, though they still follow many of its teachings. As for Gothard himself, he left the group's board of directors in 2014 after a dozen women accused him of sexual harassment and abuse.

If you or someone you know is dealing with spiritual abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

Fans often marveled at the Duggar children's exemplary behavior. Sibling squabbles were rare, everyone helped around the house, and no one talked back to their parents. But the 19 kids' attitude was no accident; it was instilled in them before they could even walk. The IBLP places a high value on submission to authority figures, with children taught to obey their parents without argument. Like many moms within the IBLP, Michelle Duggar used a concerning method called "blanket training" when her children were infants, a technique detailed in the controversial book "To Train Up a Child." The strategy involves tempting a baby with a toy just out of their reach, then hitting them with a switch when they crawl off the blanket to fetch it. Eventually, the child learns to stay put. "Some days we might practice blanket time three or four times; other days we only got it in once," Michelle wrote in her family autobiography (via Mercury News). "But gradually, it became a common practice."

The authors of "Train Up" claim the technique curbs children's instincts and creates a happy household. Critics beg to differ. Apart from the ethics of hitting a defenseless infant, child development experts say it's also harmful to stifle a baby's natural need to move and explore. Others point out that obeying a parent out of fear is different from doing so out of love. 

They say it takes a village to raise a child, and that goes double (or even triple) for a household of 19. But there was plenty of outcry over the Duggar family "buddy system" when the show was on the air. Under this strategy, the four oldest daughters — Jana, Jill, Jessa, and Jinger — were each assigned three younger siblings to care for at home and on group outings. The girls took charge of everything from dressing and feeding to supervising their homeschooling homework and music lessons. Mom Michelle was then free to care for her latest newborn or prep a couple pans of tater tot casserole. 

The system may have streamlined the big household, but it also put a lot of responsibility on girls who were barely old enough to take care of themselves. The Duggar parents began assigning buddies in 2001, when Jana was just 11 years old. Having been raised to obey their parents, the girls didn't have the choice of saying no. Former IBLP members addressed the topic in "Shiny Happy People," expressing concern that the big sisters' feelings were being overlooked. One interviewee said, "Nobody said, 'Is anybody checking to see if that 11-year-old had some needs? That maybe she shouldn't have the baby in bed with her? That maybe she needs school?' I cannot emphasize enough how hurtful that is."

Jana Duggar remained single well after most of her adult siblings were married with families of their own. Since she lived at home, she was often called on to look after the younger members of the family, including nieces and nephews. Jana had plenty of experience, thanks to her years looking after siblings Jason, Jackson, and Josie. But even the most experienced childcare provider can have moments of poor judgment or wandering attention. Such was the case in September of 2021. Jana was babysitting an undisclosed number of children one day, and one managed to leave the house without her knowledge. Someone saw the child wandering alone and notified the police. Jana was served with a citation for endangering the welfare of a minor. The story quickly made news — with some reports wrongly stating she had been arrested. 

Jana tried to calm things down by issuing a rare statement on her Instagram Stories (via People). Explaining she had taken her eye off the child for just a moment, the reality star added that a child welfare agent had visited the house and found no sign of neglect. "In the end I was just upset at myself that it had happened at all, but so thankful it all ended safely and that's truly what mattered most to me," she wrote. The case was settled out of court a few months later with Jana pleading guilty and paying an $880 fine. 

The Duggars live by a debt-free philosophy that includes buying at thrift stores, avoiding credit cards, and being self-employed. Many family members either have real estate licenses or do construction work. Their projects don't always pan out, however, as Joy-Anna Duggar Forsyth and her husband, Austin Forsyth, learned. The couple purchased a vacant 11-acre lot in Elkins, Arkansas, in the spring of 2021. The land was zoned for agriculture, but they put in a request with the town planning commission to rezone it for commercial use. The plan was to turn the lot into an RV park and collect fees from the users. 

The neighbors had other ideas. Local residents who attended a town meeting shouted down the plan, citing health and safety concerns. One woman told Fox affiliate KNWA, "I just feel like putting it in the middle of a small city, next to a big school, and then also a city that's having water and drainage issues, traffic issues, and then adding possible spots for up to almost 190 RVs, that's kind of worrisome for everybody, I think." Others echoed the fear of having so many strangers in close proximity to the local schools and daycare center. 

Despite Austin's assurances that the area would be fenced and the RV owners vetted, the proposal was denied. The Forsyths ended up selling the property in 2023, netting just $5,500 in profit.

There were some strange things about Jason Duggar's wedding to Maddie Grace in September 2024. Their courtship and engagement were lightning-quick even by Duggar standards. The couple are also facing a headache most newlyweds don't have to deal with: Shortly after their wedding, Jason was named as a defendant in a fraud lawsuit. 

The plaintiff, Mark Thompson, bought a home from the company Madison Holding, which hired Jason as a contractor to do repair work on the property. Thompson claims Jason left some of the projects unfinished, while others, such as the roof and crown molding, were shoddily done. After nearly a year, Jason allegedly told Thompson to pay for someone else to finish the job. Even more concerning is the lawsuit's claim that Jason misrepresented himself as a licensed contractor when he has no individual license. 

In October 2024, Jason filed to have himself dismissed from the case on the grounds that Thompson's contract was with Madison Holding, not with him personally. He also addressed the fraud charge by explaining that the business he co-owns, Build Master Construction, has an active license. (He does call himself "a licensed contractor" in his bio on the Duggar family website, however.) The case is still pending as of this writing, but if Jason remains as a defendant and loses, both his career and bank account could suffer.