Disgraced reality star Josh Duggar is currently living behind bars, and his long wrap sheet explains why. In 2015, it was revealed Josh had inappropriately touched several of his younger sisters as well as a family friend. He was later exposed in the Ashley Madison scandal for cheating on his wife, Anna Duggar, and was also accused of assault by an adult worker. More recently, in 2021, Josh was arrested for possessing inappropriate materials featuring minors. He was found guilty the following year and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Despite the nature of Josh’s crimes, his family has stuck behind him over the years, for the most part. They’ve even come to his defense in the face of heinous allegations. Now that Josh is serving a lengthy sentence, many reality television fans wonder if his siblings visit him. He does have 17 siblings, after all. Here’s what we know about Josh Duggar’s relationship with his family.
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Why It's Likely Josh Duggar’s Siblings Don’t Have A Relationship With Him
When Josh was exposed for being inappropriate with his sisters, the girls made a televised interview explaining how their family attempted to heal from the trauma and sticking by their brother and parents. However, with Josh’s more recent arrest after possessing inappropriate materials of minors, many of his adult siblings have publicly denounced his actions, which suggests they don’t have much of a relationship with him at the moment.
For example, Joy-Anna Duggar posted to her Instagram Story in May 2021 alongside her husband, Austin Forsythe, who gave their attention to the victims of Josh’s crimes. “The recent accusations brought against Josh sadden us to our core,” they said. “We have not wanted to be hasty in making any statements while trying to process the news ourselves,”
“We are especially heartbroken by the reality that there are children in the world being harmed and exploited,” the couple added.
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Similarly, Jill Duggar implied that Josh’s trial represented the death of their relationship. “This trial has felt more like a funeral than anything else,” she said in a statement released with her husband Derick Dillard.
There are no reports of Josh’s siblings visiting him behind bars. But there were many familial faces at his trial, including his brother Jed Duggar. This suggests some family members are open to at least communicating Josh, if not seeing him face-to-face.
However, Jill Duggar and her husband also attended the trial, though their previous comments suggest they’re no longer involved with Josh. So, just because someone was at the trial, it doesn’t mean they’ll visit him in prison.
As for Josh’s youngest siblings, many of them are still minors, so he may be legally barred from seeing them due to the nature of their crimes.
But Josh’s Parents Jim-Bob & Michelle Duggar Continue To Defend Him
Wikimedia Commons licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)""> Even though many of Josh’s siblings have distanced themselves from him, it’s likely he still has a relationship with his parents Jim-Bob and Michelle Duggar, even though it’s unconfirmed if they’ve visited him in prison. Though they didn’t defend his actions, the reality star parents fought hard to get Josh a more lenient conviction. After he was found guilty in 2022, Michelle submitted a letter on his behalf asking for a reduced sentence. In the letter, Michelle described her son as “considerate, respectful, quick to forgive, [and] patient.” She asked that he be “reunited with his wife and family in a timely manner.” She also implied that Josh would have a strong support system, should he be released. Michelle was likely referring to herself, her husband, and potentially other family members. “[Josh] has friends and family who will love and support him in his abilities to succeed as a husband, father, business owner, and man both now and in the future,” she wrote. One person who’s been confirmed to have visited Josh in prison on multiple occasions is his wife, Anna Duggar. She was reportedly visiting him with their kids when he was on house arrest during the trial and couldn’t live in the same house as their children. "Anna is spending most of her time with Josh at the Rebers [who are family friends], and her family has stepped in to help raise all their kids,” a source told The Sun in August 2021. "She takes them to visit him or they are looked after while she's there alone, despite what he's been charged with she refuses to believe he's guilty,” they continued. It was later reported that Anna was driving hours on a regular basis to see Josh in-person once he was in jail. At one time, she was reportedly considering moving to Texas with their kids to be closer to him. However, Josh allegedly disagreed with his wife’s idea, and it was causing tension in their relationship. “He thinks he is going to beat his appeal and feels his wife’s move is unnecessary. He tends to think they are going to reverse his case,” a source told The Ashley. “Josh and Anna had a dispute on the phone and Josh went two days without talking to her, which is big because he calls every day.” Even if they’re not moving closer, Anna continues to visit Josh regularly. In January 2023, she was spotted taking all seven of their kids to visit him in prison. So, even if Josh’s siblings aren’t coming in-person, he does maintain contact with his wife and kids. 
Josh Duggar’s Wife Anna Visits Him With Their 7 Children
