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Possible Lawsuit for Josh


DGayle

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Speaking of lawsuits, I wonder if the victims (Josh's sisters) could sue InTouch for exposing them as victims.. InTouch never exposed their names but they did expose the names of their parents, which made it kind of obvious. Unfortunately, I do not have enough legal knowledge to make an educated guess on this. But I'm curious to know what those of you were some degree of knowledge of the law think?

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"Anna cannot be called to testify, anything Josh told her is privileged."

Spousal privilege can be invoked, but it can also be waived. Depending on how pissed off she gets, she could waive privilege and stick it to him for anything he told her after the marriage.

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Speaking of lawsuits, I wonder if the victims (Josh's sisters) could sue InTouch for exposing them as victims.. InTouch never exposed their names but they did expose the names of their parents, which made it kind of obvious. Unfortunately, I do not have enough legal knowledge to make an educated guess on this. But I'm curious to know what those of you were some degree of knowledge of the law think?

Anyone can sue anyone else, for any reason. That doesn't mean their lawsuit holds any merit, or that they would actually prevail and win. In fact, there are many cases where the plaintiff ends up with nothing at all, because the trier of fact (whether it be a judge, a jury, a mediator or an arbitrator) found that their case had little to no merit. In this case, In Touch obtained that police report legally, through a FOIA request. Anyone else who had the proper information could also have done the same (before the judge mysteriously ordered it destroyed). Therefore, they (the Duggar girls) don't have a cause of action to bring against In Touch, or against the police department that released the report.

I know it's humiliating to have this awful secret exposed publicly, but that's not a legal cause of action by itself. The girls would have a better case against their parents, for the way they handled the molestation, and for continuing to put them in harms way for over a year after they knew what Josh was doing.

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Anyone can sue anyone else, for any reason. That doesn't mean their lawsuit holds any merit, or that they would actually prevail and win. In fact, there are many cases where the plaintiff ends up with nothing at all, because the trier of fact (whether it be a judge, a jury, a mediator or an arbitrator) found that their case had little to no merit. In this case, In Touch obtained that police report legally, through a FOIA request. Anyone else who had the proper information could also have done the same (before the judge mysteriously ordered it destroyed). Therefore, they (the Duggar girls) don't have a cause of action to bring against In Touch, or against the police department that released the report.

I know it's humiliating to have this awful secret exposed publicly, but that's not a legal cause of action by itself. The girls would have a better case against their parents, for the way they handled the molestation, and for continuing to put them in harms way for over a year after they knew what Josh was doing.

Thanks Emmie3, that all makes a lot of sense. Another legalish question is: How will the fact that the record of this case has been expunged and destroyed affect the outcome of this alleged lawsuit (if there is one). Could it have an affect on it or not?

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Does anyone remember the part of the interview where (I think it was) Jessa said something like the 5th victim is definitely totally over it? Am I remembering correctly that this was actually said?

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Thanks Emmie3, that all makes a lot of sense. Another legalish question is: How will the fact that the record of this case has been expunged and destroyed affect the outcome of this alleged lawsuit (if there is one). Could it have an affect on it or not?

There is a second police report from a different department that has not been destroyed. Plus, even though the original report was ordered destroyed, there exist many, many copies of it on-line. In a civil case, perhaps the plaintiff could still introduce it as evidence, perhaps by subpoenaing the officer(s) who prepared the report to verify it is a true and accurate copy. (But that doesn't mean the defense wouldn't vigorously object.)

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Speaking of lawsuits, I wonder if the victims (Josh's sisters) could sue InTouch for exposing them as victims.. InTouch never exposed their names but they did expose the names of their parents, which made it kind of obvious. Unfortunately, I do not have enough legal knowledge to make an educated guess on this. But I'm curious to know what those of you were some degree of knowledge of the law think?

You can sue anyone for anything in the US, but InTouch published a legally obtained public document. I can't see a lawsuit surviving.

The person with the best civil case possibilities is Joy. Should she opt to leave the cult and her family between 18 and 21, she has a slam dunk civil case against her parents for failing to protect her from her known predator brother. No statute of limitations issues, and no question they failed her. She'd also have a straightforward case against any mandatory reporters who did not report in time to prevent her abuse. And Josh,of course.

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You can sue anyone for anything in the US, but InTouch published a legally obtained public document. I can't see a lawsuit surviving.

The person with the best civil case possibilities is Joy. Should she opt to leave the cult and her family between 18 and 21, she has a slam dunk civil case against her parents for failing to protect her from her known predator brother. No statute of limitations issues, and no question they failed her. She'd also have a straightforward case against any mandatory reporters who did not report in time to prevent her abuse. And Josh,of course.

While this seems super unlikely I would love for this to happen. She should be able to get compensation for what she went through, and again, the Duggars would settle as quickly as they could, but its possible the other parties wouldn't.

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You can sue anyone for anything in the US, but InTouch published a legally obtained public document. I can't see a lawsuit surviving.

The person with the best civil case possibilities is Joy. Should she opt to leave the cult and her family between 18 and 21, she has a slam dunk civil case against her parents for failing to protect her from her known predator brother. No statute of limitations issues, and no question they failed her. She'd also have a straightforward case against any mandatory reporters who did not report in time to prevent her abuse. And Josh,of course.

I see the plane!!! Fantasy Island..... I really would like that, but I don't see it ever happening.

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What if the non-family victim is no longer a fundie and doesn't want the money but actually wants the Duggars to go down and all the fundie/Gothardites taken down with them? Extremely unlikely but a gal can dream, right? :lol:

Something like this actually sounds plausible. Years ago, I read a news article about a ex-Catholic who had been molested by priest sued an archdiocese many years later because he heard about other victims and wanted that archdiocese to be brought down.

I could see Josh's non-relative victim being an ex fundie now. The non-relative victim and her family could have ditched the fundie lifestyle and could possibly cut ties with other fundie families who associated with the Duggars. According to the InTouch articles and other articles that have mentioned Tandra Barnfield and how she said people in the area knew about the rumors, I have to wonder how much did fundie families in the area know. Were the other area fundie families completely in the dark? I might be wrong, but wasn't "Alice" someone who attended church with the Duggars?

Since the Duggar show started in 2008, we have seen the Duggars associate with other fundie families in the area. They used to play broomball with other homeschooling families and also Josh used to go to those broomball events even after he married. He acted like a major douche when the ice arena started charging people to play broomball. Also the Duggar girls associated with the Query girls and other fundie girls in the area for years. I remember a couple of years back, the four older J'Slaves and Joy Anna went to some fundie girl luncheon in the area.

If the non-relative victim and her family left the fundie lifestyle, it could have been extremely difficult for them to see the Duggars out and about with other fundie families and later seeing pictures of fundie outings being put online to Instagram, twitter, and Facebook. Also add in the major fact that the Duggars were getting national attention because of the show and were profiting from the show and calling it a "ministry".

I can't blame the non-relative victim for suing now, if the story is true. With a lawsuit, it's hard to tell what the outcome will . But, publicity about a lawsuit won't help the Duggars and just maybe TLC will can the show. Even though the Honey Boo Boo family pisses me off, I have to agree with June on a few things.

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This is without a doubt a legal nightmare, potentially even more so for JB and Michelle, than Josh. However, even though we'd love to see one or more of the girls bust out and file suit, it will most likely never happen.

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What I wonder is why sue now? If the other victim is not fundy why did she wait? She could have brought this all down at any point? If she is fundy, why sue? Unless it is for money and now is the best time to get it (they won't be getting any richer at this point).

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I see the plane!!! Fantasy Island..... I really would like that, but I don't see it ever happening.

Agreed. But stranger things have happened, especially in the entertainment world when kids who have worked for years on shows and end up without a dime.

At age 20, Joy falls in love with a non-fundie young man with green hair. Parents disapprove, disown. She and her beau see a lawyer about whether she's owed anything from the show. Attorney makes a click or two, and learns the whole story. Young lady set for life.

"Fathers, be good to your daughters..."

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While we are at it, Jinjer is only 21, she has until December to file. Or am I wrong about her age? Or math?

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While we are at it, Jinjer is only 21, she has until December to file. Or am I wrong about her age? Or math?

Statute runs three years after turning 18 which would be the 21st birthday.

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Statute runs three years after turning 18 which would be the 21st birthday.

Thanks, math is not my strong suit, sorry.

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What I wonder is why sue now? If the other victim is not fundy why did she wait? She could have brought this all down at any point? If she is fundy, why sue? Unless it is for money and now is the best time to get it (they won't be getting any richer at this point).

I understand completely what you are saying. Also the filing of this lawsuit would "out" her as a victim and she would be thrust into the public eye. I would say it is for compensation for any mental anguish she has under gone by the actions of Josh. Why she chose now to come out is irrelevant to me.. if she is seeking compensation she is completely in her right and I will not stand in judgement of her for that. If it is to nail the coffin closed on the Duggar brand, well, now might be the time she finally feels like she has the power to do so. Remember, for years the Duggars were pretty powerful people in that little corner of Arkansas, she may not have felt like she could take on the whole Duggar entourage. Now that they are quickly becoming public black sheep, she may finally feel like this her opportunity to seek some redemption.

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What if the non-family victim is no longer a fundie and doesn't want the money but actually wants the Duggars to go down and all the fundie/Gothardites taken down with them? Extremely unlikely but a gal can dream, right? :lol:

It's a beautiful dream! I'm also thinking is that Victim 5 has been watching the Duggars bob and weave out of any responsibility for Josh's molestation and she might be PISSED at all the lies and obfuscations.

It does sounds like perhaps Victim 5 isn't so interested in money, since Jim Bob would have settled that quickly. Victim 5 might be more interested in exposing the truths that the Duggars are avoiding.

IF that is the case, Victim 5 could still be a fundie, just a fundie who prayed on the matter and god handed her a sword to fight her injustice and the obvious mishandling of the situation by Jim Bob and the elders of that particular church.

Elizabeth Smart remains a Mormon, even though she now campaigns and lectures on the perverse ideas of purity within all religions that kept her a prisoner of a kidnapper, imagining all her self worth was invested in her virginity.

So maybe, just maybe, Victim 5 is suing from a religiously righteous perspective as well, which is better, in fact. If she has the fury of a religious community behind her, supporting the message that Truth Will Prevail, she can probably make it through the long haul of a full blown court case.

There, that's my dream. :D

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I understand completely what you are saying. Also the filing of this lawsuit would "out" her as a victim and she would be thrust into the public eye. I would say it is for compensation for any mental anguish she has under gone by the actions of Josh. Why she chose now to come out is irrelevant to me.. if she is seeking compensation she is completely in her right and I will not stand in judgement of her for that. If it is to nail the coffin closed on the Duggar brand, well, now might be the time she finally feels like she has the power to do so. Remember, for years the Duggars were pretty powerful people in that little corner of Arkansas, she may not have felt like she could take on the whole Duggar entourage. Now that they are quickly becoming public black sheep, she may finally feel like this her opportunity to seek some redemption.

I was not intending to be judgmental about the choice to come forward at all, I meant to question if the story was true or not.

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This is not accurate.

The SOL for civil torts in Arkansas is three years from the date of the event. An exception is that minors have three years from the age of majority (18 in Arkansas) to file suit after which time the statute of limitations expires.

We know the youngest Duggar victim has time left before she turns 21, however, I am assuming that a babysitter in 2002 is now over 21.

I don't really have the patience to find it again, but somewhere in the Josh admits threads, I quoted a law that states the SoL had been lifted from civil cases revolving around sexual abuse of minors.

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Count me among those who feel no sympathy for Anna. IF she knew of the molestation before she married Josh, then she's at fault for marrying and having children with a man who molested small children and received no treatment or punishment for his crime. If she knew nothing of it until the news broke, then she is at fault for STAYING WITH that man and putting her own children at risk.

I have a bit of sympathy for Anna. In a way, I think she along with her parents were manipulated by the Duggars. But I still don't have a lot of sympathy for especially she really did know and never considered the fact that the stuff could get out.

When it comes to financial future of Josh, Anna, and the four kids, they will be fine for awhile. But there is probably worries right now about jobs and future earnings. If TLC gives the Duggars another season, I doubt Josh, Anna, and the M kids will be on the show. Josh dropped speaking gigs after the scandal broke. I think Anna did enjoy the perks that came along with the show. It was evident on social media. In a way, I feel bad for Mackynzie. Again, if the show continues without Josh and his family, they will have to explain it to Mackyznie about why the crew isn't coming around or they would to explain or not tell her that the crew is still filming the rest of the family.

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I was not intending to be judgmental about the choice to come forward at all, I meant to question if the story was true or not.

I'm sorry if it come out wrong, I was not implying that you were being judgemental at all. I was merely stating that I believe she is justified. My apologies at wording it wrongly. Obviously, we are the same page.

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What I wonder is why sue now? If the other victim is not fundy why did she wait? She could have brought this all down at any point? If she is fundy, why sue? Unless it is for money and now is the best time to get it (they won't be getting any richer at this point).

There could be many reasons behind why now. In fact, it could very well be the fact that the story made headlines and required her to relive something that she was repressing. It's hard to say without even knowing who she is.

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Do you think Jim Bob will try to get this settled with the victim out of court? Maybe he will pay her a huge sum in order to not go through the whole court and have all of the truth be made public?

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