Willis Family including rape charges

[doubleT]

2 hours ago, amendgitan said:

What worried you about the oldest son if I may ask? I watched very little of their program but I did watch their dance competition sets and researched a bit about the family. So I'm not that familiar with what's gone on, on the show. 

Sorry it took me so long to get back here and see this.  As @choralcrusader8613 replied, they talked about their oldest son having a temper and mood swings etc.  I never really saw him or his dark side, but the show covered it once.  I don't remember when that show was though.

[Gobsmacked]

6 hours ago, unsafetydancer said:

Wow even just from the intro this guy looks like a dick.

I've heard the family sing on TV but never seen the show. The father is not a nice man. Mum Brenda does the staring at him when he is talking thing all the time? 

Poor Jasmine doesn't want to understudy Jessica at all. The older brother appears to be a chip off daddy's block.

I hope all the siblings can pull together and keep the show on the road if that's what THEY want to do in light of recent developments.

Their father comes across as a wanna be rock star living that dream through his kids.

The kids in the clip all seem to be bright intelligent and talented young people. I really hope the brother Jair(?) doesn't turn out like his dad.

[MorningMist]

1 minute ago, doubleT said:

Sorry it took me so long to get back here and see this.  As @choralcrusader8613 replied, they talked about their oldest son having a temper and mood swings etc.  I never really saw him or his dark side, but the show covered it once.  I don't remember when that show was though.

Jeremiah seems like he's just not a people person and prefers to be alone. I doubt that there's something really dark going on there but then again, I didn't think that of Toby so my judgement may not be sound.

[FrumperedCat]

When Alan Smith was arrested it was announced that he was also being charged with incest. Does anyone know if that would have been announced in this case if it had happened or what? I know that FJ doesn't allow speculation so I hope this isn't crossing that boundary.

[Buzzard]

So this is interesting (and holy awful mugshot!)

http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/11/entertainment/tennessee-toby-willis-arrested/

 

Quote

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigations said it started looking into the case late last month and "developed information Willis had a sexual encounter approximately 12 years ago with an underage female."

A 12 year old case that appears to only have developed now?  He would have been 34.  Considering they've been in the public eye for more than a year its interesting that evidence would only come forward now.  I cant wait to see the court filings on this one...

The records likely wont be publicly filed for some time because of the extradition, so I guess we'll wait for the indictment.

Quote

TBI agents said Willis, whose show is based in Nashville, fled to neighboring Kentucky to avoid law enforcement.

There is an old saying in criminal law that flight is indicative of a guilty mind.  If someone came to me and told me I did something heinous 12 years ago I'm pretty sure my reaction would be to try and work it out (because I didnt do anything heinous 12 years ago).  I would not flee the state.

Note to Toby - those state boundaries dont stop authorities from coming to get you when you commit crimes.

[MorningMist]

4 minutes ago, Buzzard said:

There is an old saying in criminal law that flight is indicative of a guilty mind.  If someone came to me and told me I did something heinous 12 years ago I'm pretty sure my reaction would be to try and work it out (because I didnt do anything heinous 12 years ago).  I would not flee the state.

Note to Toby - those state boundaries dont stop authorities from coming to get you when you commit crimes.

My personal theory is that he didn't dare tell his family what was going on so decided to go and do the show in Kentucky anyway. I think if he was truly trying to flee police custody, he wouldn't go where he had publicly advertised he was going to be.

[Natalie22]

17 minutes ago, MorningMist said:

My personal theory is that he didn't dare tell his family what was going on so decided to go and do the show in Kentucky anyway. I think if he was truly trying to flee police custody, he wouldn't go where he had publicly advertised he was going to be.

Yeah, my feeling on this is that he's so focused on the band and his kids' careers that somehow he told himself that there was no need for him to stay in the state and deal with it.  He seems pretty self-absorbed, so I'm sure this 'logic' would make sense to him.

 

[Snarkle Motion]

Long time lurker first time poster. I'm wondering if he was really "running" or if this was a legal tactic to deny him bail and keep him in jail away from his children. 

[Coy Koi]

7 hours ago, holierthanyou said:

FundyHumper Award 2016 goes to People Magazine, for their article published yesterday titled "4 Things to Know About the Willis Clan", and write a folksy little article where the author appears to not think "The father was arrested for raping a child" need to make the top 4 list...

 

But the fact the kids have J names merited one of those coveted top 4 spots.

 

The wretched article

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with People? Usually when someone is arrested for raping a child, no one really considers it relevant if his kids have cutesy matchy-matchy names. Yeah, a lot of people wouldn't have a clue who this family was, so they wanted to bring us up to speed and that's understandable to an extent. But not with fun lighthearted trivia! Maybe next, they could tell us what Toby's favorite pizza topping is.

[Exjw2015deed]

I know everyone is saying they saw this coming, and that he was controlling and etc. I honestly did not see this coming. He just seems really competitive and wanted to push his kids to be great. Yes a stage dad, but inappropriate I think not.

When he made jasmine sing and she was freaking out, it wasn't in front of an audience but a sound check. He said he wanted her to gain the experience of singing lead, after she did it, even though it was really pitchy, he told her he was proud and that she did great. May seem like bad parenting but it wasn't like he forced her to an audience of unknowns and screamed at her. Compared to toddlers and tiaras its a lot milder.

Last season they admitted to having family conflict when it comes to the band, so I could tell there has been tension in the family. If he was arrested for child labor laws or even child abuse; that could be believable, but rape? I did not see that coming at all. 

He always seemed extremely sensitive to children since losing his siblings, and seemed to be tortured by it and wanted his children to live the life he wanted. That's why he pushed them to dance and sing and to be confidence because he said he was awkward and shy. Also he seemed to respect his wife and oldest daughter, always following her direction when it came to the band.

I feel for the victim but am curious of the concrete evidence that the prosecution must have. I do also don't believe he was a fugitive. I can't think of a fugitive who would be in a city that was listed on their website. 

[Front Hugging Fiend]

4 hours ago, amendgitan said:

Man. Is it just me or do all of them just seem so exhausted? Dad and some of the kids seem to have slightly slurred speech to me. 

And yeah. Totally overbearing. Ugh. The daughter is it Jessie? Who he ranting about needing to teach her younger sibling to sing like her? She seemed totally over it and barely able to tolerate her father. 

Talk about living through your kids. 

The video has just been slowed down to avoid copyright - select the first increased speed option and they sound normal again.

 

And absolutely - Jessica was so over her father in that episode. When she left the band I truly thought it was because she couldn't stand working with him in any way anymore.

4 hours ago, doubleT said:

Sorry it took me so long to get back here and see this.  As @choralcrusader8613 replied, they talked about their oldest son having a temper and mood swings etc.  I never really saw him or his dark side, but the show covered it once.  I don't remember when that show was though.

From memory, they spoke of him being very emotional and introverted when not on stage. Particularly post-breakup, they spoke about how worried they were that he was going to quit the band and run away or something. To me, all of the language they used hinted that he has some form of depression. I'm not going to go around diagnosing people, but I definitely related to how he was supposedly acting. I'm an artist myself, and I have depression, and when it's bad it is bad. 

I had a bad feeling about Toby from the start, just a gut reaction, but Jair always just seemed like he was struggling with things. I hope he has the help he needs and I hope this situation doesn't put any of the kids or Brenda in danger.

and oh man, I hope the victim is doing okay. 

[Dandruff]

Does TLC give potential families a questionnaire to fill out before featuring them in a show?  Make some percentage of payments forfeit if solid evidence of tabloid-grade nastiness comes out?  I can think of a few pointed questions they might want to consider asking... 

[calimojo]

I just think this is another example of people claiming that they have found the 'right way' to live and in fact they have just as much or more dysfunction than the rest of us who freely admit we are making it up as we go along.  Arrogance in this way will almost always lead to a downfall, imo.  We saw it with the Duggars, we   have seen it with countless televangelists and other religious leaders who claim to know the  path to righteousness, we have seen it with political leaders, and celebs.    I have gotten to the point that the more someone crows about how they have figured it all out, I just assume that there is something dark or at least dysfunctional lurking there.  I think we all have dysfunction to a degree, but when you try to put a cork on it like these families do, it just builds up pressure, explodes and gets messy. 

 

And, if Toby is guilty of messing with a minor,  I seriously doubt it was a one time thing.  Those kinds of things rarely are just a "one-off".  I feel badly for the kids, but his wife struck me as creepy too.    Adults living in Denial while touting how great they are, and rejecting society and forcing their kids to pretty much only mingle with each other and a few hand selected others, are not really people I end up having much pity for.  While the Willis kids, are at least some of them do seem to be talented,  I absolutely don't believe they are given a choice as to whether they are going to pursue passions that are "ok" with their parents or something that they want to do that is not part of the family business.  Just because these kids are allowed to dance and dress in pants, etc.  doesn't mean that they were given a choice about what they do.  If one of those older kids, who has a good singing voice told daddy "no, I don't want to sing, I want to study accounting or biology, I am pretty sure they would have been told no, and to get with the family plan. 

 

They did have some nice music though.  I will say that, but I think it is robbery of their childhood to treat everything they do as part of the family business.  Learn to dance so you can compete and learn to wrestle so you can compete and be musical so you can contribute to the band, etc.  It is all in the interest of making a name for the family, primarily the dad.  I watched maybe 2 shows and they bothered me worse than the duggars, even though the kids were obviously better educated and had actual talent. 

[Natalie22]

15 minutes ago, calimojo said:

 While the Willis kids, are at least some of them do seem to be talented,  I absolutely don't believe they are given a choice as to whether they are going to pursue passions that are "ok" with their parents or something that they want to do that is not part of the family business.  Just because these kids are allowed to dance and dress in pants, etc.  doesn't mean that they were given a choice about what they do.  If one of those older kids, who has a good singing voice told daddy "no, I don't want to sing, I want to study accounting or biology, I am pretty sure they would have been told no, and to get with the family plan. 

 

They did have some nice music though.  I will say that, but I think it is robbery of their childhood to treat everything they do as part of the family business.  Learn to dance so you can compete and learn to wrestle so you can compete and be musical so you can contribute to the band, etc.  It is all in the interest of making a name for the family, primarily the dad.  I watched maybe 2 shows and they bothered me worse than the duggars, even though the kids were obviously better educated and had actual talent. 

This has already played out with Jenny, the second oldest daughter.  In their show before TLC, it showed that she was interested in becoming a vet, but was pressured by her dad and older siblings to stick with the band instead.  She seemed to take the lead with the animals - especially the dogs and puppies - in the TLC show, so it seems she may still have an interest.  He didn't tell her no outright, but he did that thing that parents of soon to be adults can do, which is say they're giving you advice, when they're really trying to get you to make a specific decisions.

As for Jessica, I can't blame her for being tired.  It sounds that at 13 she said she wanted to voice lessons and somehow Toby turned that into her being the lead in a band.  She seems to have been somewhat the boss of the other siblings, which she may now resent as it could have alienated her from just being their sister.  The scene with Toby telling her that because she took singing lessons she must know how to teach Jasmine was ridiculous.  Does that mean that everyone who went to public school should automatically be able to teach at a school?  Lots of people who are great at things are terrible at teaching them to others.  It was also clear that Jasmine was really uncomfortable with doing warm ups in front of the entire camera crew.  

Jeremy seems like the kind of guy that can be super intense and needs help relaxing.  Instead of being able to do that, his dad has basically made him feel like he always needs to be intense in order to excel at anything.  He may have similar feelings to Jessica about basically being the boss of his siblings, especially the boys.  

I think someone mentioned a couple pages ago that you could definitely tell who his favourite children were.  I was wondering if anyone had an easier time picking up on that.  I'm absolutely terrible at it (though it definitely seemed like Jessica was one).

[Snarkle Motion]

36 minutes ago, Natalie22 said:

I think someone mentioned a couple pages ago that you could definitely tell who his favourite children were.  I was wondering if anyone had an easier time picking up on that.  I'm absolutely terrible at it (though it definitely seemed like Jessica was one).

He definitely shows favoritism toward Jedi. I get the sense that he pins his hopes on certain kids and if they don't live up to his expectations he switches his favoritism to a younger child. It seems like Jair fell out of favor and he pushed Jasmine hard to be the new Jessica. 

[candygirl200413]

Just like others I did watch a couple of episodes but didn't necessarily get a creepy vibe from him. I thought if anything it was sensitivity because of losing his siblings.

 

I also read in another article that TLC wasn't going to renew them for another season. The last showing of season 2 was April 2016, so within the last 5 months I'm just wondering/thinking that TLC found out within that window because as of Saturday/Sunday the family was completely removed from TLC website.

 

This is also like what TLC's 4th case of sexual assault?  It's disgusting.

[faraway]

I doubt TLC knew, the articles say the investigation started at the end of August. I would imagine the family were probably kind of a pain to work with because of the parents' control issues. Didn't someone say they were producing their own 3rd season?

I watched all the episodes back when they were on and found there was some really weird editing. At the end of the first season, when there were signs Jair & Mary's engagement wasn't going to work our, there was a preview of Jess and her now-boyfriend Sean. It seemed like they wanted a new "dating-storyline" to replace J&M, but Sean was never mentioned again. I have a feeling the parents had something to with it. Maybe Sean fell out of favor because Jess wanted more freedom and they blamed him. Also the second season ended somehow abruptly, there wasn't a real ending to it. I have a feeling some things were going on behind the scenes but I don't think it had to do with the recent allegations.

[Timetostoplurking]

This may have already been said but......

 

HOLY SCARY MUGSHOT!!!!

honestly, that is the stuff of nightmares.   

[SportsgalAnnie]

Here are a few updates.

http://www.wsmv.com/story/33061858/willis-member-of-the-willis-clan-waives-extradition-from-ky-after-arrest-on-child-rape-charge

 

https://tbinews.wordpress.com/2016/09/12/tbi-seeks-info-on-suspects-whereabouts-prior-to-child-rape-arrest/

This doesn't bode well for the family at all 

[socalrules]

11 minutes ago, SportsgalAnnie said:

Here are a few updates.

http://www.wsmv.com/story/33061858/willis-member-of-the-willis-clan-waives-extradition-from-ky-after-arrest-on-child-rape-charge

 

https://tbinews.wordpress.com/2016/09/12/tbi-seeks-info-on-suspects-whereabouts-prior-to-child-rape-arrest/

This doesn't bode well for the family at all 

He was hitchhiking to get away? Who resorts to hitchhiking, especially someone with money? Or for that matter, who the hell is picking up a hitchhiker in 2016? He truly was a man on the run. I wonder where he was when he found out the police where looking for him. It leads me to think that he did not have time to plan his escape and maybe just walked/ran away from wherever he was without having the chance to formulate a plan. 

[JesusPony]

Was the band performing in Kentucky around September 5/6? It sounds like he hitchhiked away from the family. 

[MorningMist]

4 minutes ago, JesusPony said:

Was the band performing in Kentucky around September 5/6? It sounds like he hitchhiked away from the family. 

I know. I bet Brenda and the kids feel awful, especially if it went down like this!

[clueliss]

I seem to recall that a month or two ago the family moved out of the rental house they had moved into (the second rental we've seen on the series, not the first) because the house sold.  And that they were supposed to be living on the bus.  Do we know if they established a home base after that?  

 

[2manyKidzzz]

This is awful for all of those kids.......and they are living in a bus??? I feel badly for those children. Very sad all around for all affected.

[EmmieJ]

22 hours ago, Natalie22 said:

Yeah, my feeling on this is that he's so focused on the band and his kids' careers that somehow he told himself that there was no need for him to stay in the state and deal with it.  He seems pretty self-absorbed, so I'm sure this 'logic' would make sense to him.

 

If the allegations are true, this guy has gotten away with this crime for 12 years.  It would not be surprising that he wouldn't take the investigation seriously, thinking he had gotten away with it.

I don't care for any parents who micro-manage their children's lives.  I never cared for the father and I wasn't particularly enamored of the mother either (but more for her emphasis on gender roles and general stage-mother personality).  I feel awful for what the children must be going through.  I hope that if some or all of them have different dreams or desires for their life than being part of a family singing group, this situation may give them the opportunity to move away from being under their parents' thumbs and becoming independent adults.