DUGGARS FACING LAWSUIT FROM NONFAMILY MOLESTATION VICTIM

In Touch Weekly
July 1, 2015

http://www.intouchweekly.com/posts/duggars-facing-lawsuit-from-nonfamily-molestation-victim-62115?previewing=true

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar

A non-Duggar family molestation victim is preparing to file a civil suit against Josh Duggar, sources tell In Touch magazine exclusively in the new issue on newsstands today.

The shocking development means that Josh and his parents Jim Bob and Michelle could be forced to give depositions and testify about Josh’s molestation scandal. The Duggars likely will have to answer every question as they will not be able to invoke their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination because the criminal statute of limitations has expired.

The family is once again under investigation the Department of Human Services and the fate of their reality show 19 Kids and Counting is still undecided. The impending lawsuit sets up a nightmare scenario for TLC: if the network brings back 19 Kids and Counting, the show could be on the air while the Duggars are fighting a lawsuit that exposes all of Josh’s secrets surrounding the molestations and how the family covered it up.

The Duggars will face questions about how many years it took them to get Josh and his victims counseling, what type of safeguards they put in place in 2002 after first being alerted to Josh molesting female minors. “All the church elders who knew about this will have to be named,” a source tells In Touch.

Legal experts tell In Touch the victim still has the right to sue under Arkansas Code Annotated Section 16-56-130, which allows for a civil action when a sexual abuse victim start to experience the effects of the abuse years later.