Jill Duggar has opened up about the explosive interview she and her sister Jessa did with Megyn Kelly in 2015, in which they opened up about their brother Josh’s abuse – while defending him against claims he was a rapist.
Jill, now 32, and her younger sister Jessa, now 30, spoke to Megyn in June 2015 before a Fox News appearance, during which they confirmed they had been sexually abused by their older brother Josh but angrily denied that he was a pedophile.
But in an incredibly sinister twist to the sordid scandal, Jill has now revealed that Josh was actually present during the entire interview, sitting on a couch just feet away from his younger sisters as they defended him in an attempt to save the devastated Duggar family to recover. healthy image.
In her explosive new memoir, Counting the Cost, Jill admitted that Josh’s presence “was like a bandage being ripped off a deep and open wound,” but she didn’t ask her parents Jim Bob and Michelle why he was allowed to be there. gift.
The former reality TV star said the experience was “so painful” and that she felt like she could do “nothing” to “block any of it out.”
Jill Duggar has opened up about the explosive interview she did with Megyn Kelly in June 2015
Jill (right) spoke to Megyn in a Fox News special along with her younger sister Jessa
Josh Duggar abused four of his siblings, including his sisters Jessa and Jill
Jill wrote of the television interview: “That day we sat under the bright lights of the Big House and did what we could to stand up for our parents.
“Answering all of Megyn’s questions while Josh watched from a couch just out of frame was like having a bandage ripped off a deep, open wound. It was a pain, so painful that I didn’t really pause to ask why Josh was allowed to be there in the first place.”
She continued, “What was worse was the fact that I was hoping it would calm things down. That was not the case. The paparazzi were still chasing us, the internet was still reveling in us, watching every statement from the network, every new photo, every new angle.
‘My nightmares kept getting worse and there was nothing I could do to block them. All I did was survive from one breath to the next,” Jill admitted.
During the explosive exchange, the two sisters largely downplayed what happened between them and their older brother, calling the inappropriate touching “subtle and mild.”
“It wasn’t like a horror story or anything horrible,” Jessa insisted during the conversation, as both siblings emphasized that they and the rest of their family, including Josh, had processed the trauma and put it behind them. a long time ago.
Jessa also pointed out that she knows “so many girls who are going through things much worse.”
The Duggar star, who was 22 at the time, told the Fox News host, “I want to speak out in defense of people who are calling him a child molester, a pedophile, a rapist, some people say.
Megyn Kelly visited the Duggar home to conduct the interview with the two sisters
Jessa (left) was 22 at the time of the interview and Jill was 24 – both sisters were newlyweds
Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar pictured with their children in March 2014
Michelle and Jim Bob also sat down to talk with Megyn as part of The Kelly File special
“I’m like, that’s really exaggerated and a lie. I mean, people get mad at me when I say that, but I’m like, I can say this, you know? I was one of the victims.’
However, the sisters did not fully excuse their brother’s actions, although even when pointing out negative behavior, the couple seemed too quick to find a way to explain or justify his actions.
“Josh was a boy, a young boy going through puberty and a little too curious about girls,” Jessa explained.
‘And that got him into trouble. And he made some bad choices, but in reality the extent of it was mild – inappropriate touching of fully clothed victims, usually while the girls were sleeping.”
Years later, Jill tells much more about her upbringing and the scandals surrounding her famous family.
Elsewhere in her new book, she detailed her split with her 58-year-old father, saying he treated her convicted sex offender Josh better than she did.
Jos, 35, currently serves one 12 years in prison in connection with his 2021 conviction for downloading and possessing child sexual abuse images.
The father-of-seven downloaded a vile trove of “the sickest of the sick” child pornography, with US District Judge Timothy Brooks saying at the time of sentencing that “the images were among the worst this court has ever encountered.”
Jill and her husband Derick Dillard appeared in the recent Amazon docuseries Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets
Derick and Jill had their picture taken with Michelle and Jim Bob during what seemed to be happier times
Jill released her explosive memoir titled Counting The Cost earlier this month
In her book, Jill talked about the time she and her husband Derick Dillard confronted Jim Bob about money because they felt they weren’t being properly compensated for their contributions to the family’s one-time TLC hit 19 Kids and Counting.
In the memoir, she said she told them, “Some very painful things happened, and that’s why we wanted to get to the bottom of it all.” To have a good conversation together.
“We love you all and I know we all hope to be able to restore family relationships very soon.”
In the memoir, she said she told them, “Some very painful things happened, and that’s why we wanted to get to the bottom of it all.” To have a good conversation together.
“We love you all and I know we all hope to be able to restore family relationships very soon.”
She said her father’s “body language changed during the meeting.”
“He sat very still, his lips pursed and his eyes closed in a frown carved into the rock,” Jill wrote.
She said she could tell Jim Bob “wasn’t listening to her” and “had his own list of things he wanted to talk about.”
Josh is serving a 12-year prison sentence in connection with his 2021 conviction for downloading and possessing child sexual abuse images
Josh pictured himself with his wife Anna and five of their seven children before his sentencing
She said he told her, “You texted me, Jill. You said I verbally abused you. I was so offended by that too. Deep in your heart you know this is not right. Are you going to apologize for that?’
Jill continued, “Pops must have sensed what I was thinking because he suddenly stood up” and told her, “Aren’t you going to apologize?” Real? His voice was loud and had an edge to it that I had rarely heard.”
Jill said her father “took a step toward her in” an act of aggression.
She continued, “He towered over me, his entire body fueled by rage. My face turned red. My eyes filled with tears.’
Jill said he told her, “You know why you’re crying, don’t you?” Your conscience talks to you. Therefore.’
Jill said Jim Bob’s “words were like blows” as he reprimanded her, “You’re guilty!” as he “gave her a finger” and “stood right over her.”
She said she told him in response, “Do you want to know why I’m crying? It’s that you think I’m a terrible person just because I wear pants and have a nose ring, and yet you see that girl outside and you praise her.”
Jill added, “That’s why I’m crying, Dad. I’m evolving and changing, just like that girl out there, but you don’t see it. You treat me like I’m a prodigal son who turned his back on you. You treat me worse than my pedophile brother.”