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Kendra Duggar's Caldwell Family Breaks Silence on Joseph Duggar's Arrest
Until a month ago, Joseph Duggar was mainly known as one of the 19 Kids and Counting bunch.
Like 10 of his siblings, the seventh oldest of Jim Bob Duggar and Michelle Duggar's children got married and had his own family. He and wife Kendra Duggar were pretty low-key, posting the occasional date night or travel snap in between milestones as they welcomed four kids in five years.
But now, like his brother Josh Duggar, who's serving prison time for receiving child pornography, Joseph has been accused of a sex crime. And his and Kendra's world subsequently turned upside down.
On March 31, the 31-year-old pleaded not guilty to molesting a 9-year-old girl while on a 2020 vacation in Panama City Beach, Fla. Meanwhile, he and Kendra, 27, are also facing charges of endangering the welfare of a minor and false imprisonment in the family's home state of Arkansas.
After Joseph spent two weeks in custody while being extradited to Florida, the couple have since reunited as they await what comes next.
"God is gonna get us through this one day at a time," Kendra, 27, reassured her husband in a March 23 jail call. "Every time I look up the staircase I melt into a puddle, so we've decided to take it one day at a time, one moment at a time."
But leaning into faith has always been part of their life plan, ever since Kendra and Joseph met at her family's church when they were kids.
Joseph Duggar/Instagram
They'd known each other for five years and had been getting closer as friends for about six months before he proposed a courtship in March 2017.
After securing her father's permission to start courting his daughter, Joseph invited Kendra to go with him to a car auction so she wouldn't suspect he planned on making it a special day.
“Once we’re finished up with the auction," he shared on a September 2017 episode of the 19 Kids and Counting spin-off Counting On, "I’m going to take her to the house where I was actually born…And then I’ll pop the question to her and ask her if she’ll start a courtship with me. It’ll show her where I started my life and then maybe we’ll be able to start a new portion of life with her there."
He was admittedly "pretty nervous," but also confident enough to come prepared with a silver promise ring engraved with both their names.
Kendra looked truly surprised, noting as she accepted Joseph's ring, "It means we can hug."
But by the time this aired on TLC, Joseph had not only popped the question, proposing—with the bride's blessing—during his sister Joy Anna Duggar's May 2017 wedding to Austin Forsyth, he and Kendra had also already swapped vows.
After tying the knot Sept. 8 at First Baptist Church in Siloam Springs, Ark., then-23-year-old Joseph said being married was "an amazing feeling."
"It’s something that I’ve always dreamed of," he told People, “to have a wife and to raise a family in a way that honors the lord. We are to very excited to see what God has in the future for us.”
They started growing their family tree right away, welcoming son Garrett in June 2018.
"The more I get to know you I fall in love with you in a deeper way," Kendra wrote in tribute to Joseph on their second wedding anniversary. "I love how patient and loving you are."
At the time, she was pregnant with their daughter Addison, who was born that November. They welcomed daughter Brooklyn in February 2021 and son Justus in 2022.
But the couple haven't posted to their all-family, all-the-time Instagram account since November 2021, when they marked Addison's second birthday.
In a March 25 jail call recording obtained by E! News, Joseph referenced "health issues" Kendra had in the past. Calling it a "miracle" she was getting by as she packed up their home with an eye on turning it into a rental property, she asked Joseph to pray for her health, noting, "I've just been really, really fatigued in the last two days."
Josh's wife Anna Duggar, who shares seven children with her imprisoned husband, told Joseph in a March 21 email that she had spoken to Kendra, and she'd sounded "strong."
Except for, Anna continued, "when she talked about it being a month before she can see the kids."
And Kendra has been funneling her energy into reuniting with them.
While seeing Joseph get arrested was "crazy hard," she told her husband when he called from jail March 24, the day she was arrested was her "hardest day."
Because, Kendra explained, "When you then take my babies from me, they were who I was just going to pour my life into."
In another call, Kendra told him, "I just want you to know, through all of this, whatever happens, that's who's coming first…then we'll just see where the rest of it leads us and try to put the pieces together."
Joseph was released from Bay County Jail in Panama City on a $600,000 bond March 31 and was soon back with Kendra in Arkansas, his lawyer confirmed to People April 3.
Kendra's parents Paul Caldwell and Christina Caldwell have since expressed support for Joseph's alleged victim, as well as love for their daughter and grandchildren.
As for Joseph's parents Jim Bob and Michelle, they were "heartbroken over the entire situation," a spokesperson told Us Weekly last month, and "focused on loving their family and helping Kendra and her children during this difficult time."
As Kendra told her husband in a March 26 call, their families still loved him, "even if they're disappointed."
Read on for everything the Duggar family has said about Joseph's arrest:
Duggar Family/Instagram
Jim Bob & Michelle Duggar
Joseph Duggar's parents broke their silence in a statement on March 30.
“Jim Bob and Michelle are heartbroken over this entire situation,” a spokesperson for the Duggar family told Us Weekly. “Right now, they are focused on loving their family and helping Kendra and her children during this difficult time."
The spokesperson added that the couple was "praying for the victim. They ask for privacy and appreciate the kind words and prayers offered by so many.”
Jill Duggar Dillard & Derick Dillard
“We were shocked yesterday evening to learn of Jill’s brother (Joseph Duggar’s) arrest,” the couple wrote in a blog post March 19. “We first learned of anything related to his charges yesterday via a text from a friend who messaged us about the recent media reports of Joseph’s arrest and his alleged confession to molesting a juvenile female in 2020. We are shocked and heartbroken.”
Derick and Jill—who spoke out against the family in the 2023 book Counting the Cost—said they “strongly condemn abuse.”
Kris Connor/Getty Images
Josh Duggar
"Josh understands the stigma of being accused," his attorney told the Daily Mail in a story published March 20. "He lives with the painful reality of how false accusations can destroy a life. He understands how the targeting of a person for publicity can twist the truth into sensationalized fiction."
Noting that Josh—who is serving 12 years in prison for child pornography—is "not in frequent communication" with Joseph, the attorney said the former TLC star "hopes and prays for his brother's well being in this difficult time."
Instagram/Jana Duggar
Jana Duggar Wissmann & Stephen Wissmann
"We are deeply saddened and heartbroken by the situation involving my brother, Joseph," Jana and her husband said in an April 2 statement shared on Instagram Stories. "This news came as a shock to us, as we have no prior knowledge before it became public."
The countinued, "Our hearts are with the child who has been harmed—this is a grievous and unacceptable wrong. We continue to pray for the victim and for justice to be carried out."
Insatgram/Jason Duggar
Jason Duggar & Maddie Duggar
The couple, who married in 2024, said they are "angered" by the "unthinkable" actions of his brother Joseph.
"We, like many, have spent the week completely shocked, confused, and grieved to list a few emotions," Jason and Maddie said in a statement shared on Instagram March 26. "We are disgusted to hear the news about my brother, however, this isn't about how it's impacted our lives. Our hearts are burdened because a child's life has been turned upside down due to evil actions of someone who should have never hurt the vulnerable."
"Maddie and I have always had a special place in our hearts for the vulnerable around us, and we will continue to do so," their message went on. "To fathom that someone would abuse their authority to harass the innocent is vile."
They asked for prayers for the "brave" victim as well as Joseph's family, saying, "His children must face the reality of losing a father that should have been a spiritual leader in their lives."
Joy-Anna Duggar Forsyth
"What has come out about my brother is heartbreaking and deeply disturbing," Joy-Anna wrote on her Instagram Stories March 26. "My heart is with the victim, and I am grieved by the pain and harm caused. I have been a wreck this week and am taking time to process."
She added, "I will be taking some much-needed time with my family."
Jinger Duggar Vuolo/Instagram
Jinger Duggar Vuolo & Jeremy Vuolo
As Jeremy put it in March 25 episode of The Jinger & Jeremy Podcast, “It’s been a really difficult week for us to process and think through and pray through this with the podcast.”
As for Jinger—who moved to Los Angeles with Jeremy in 2019—she said, “I did not think my heart could break like it has this week,” adding, “The pain and heartbreak that we’ve had over this and just thinking of how it’s affected so many. It’s just unthinkable. It’s so hard and painful on many levels.”
“It’s hard,” she continued. “All we can do in those moments is cry out to God and ask him to sustain us and give help because you can’t just be prepared for news like this.”
Amy Duggar King/Instagram
Amy Duggar King
"I am sickened, heartbroken and deeply angry," Joseph's cousin said in a March 20 statement to People. "My first thoughts are with the victim, a child who deserved to be safe, protected and surrounded by people she could trust."
Amy explained she was "utterly shocked to hear about these allegations and Joseph’s arrest."
"For years, I have spoken out about the importance of truth, accountability and protecting children, even when it meant going against my own family," she added. "Family ties should never equal automatic trust or access, especially when it comes to the safety of children."
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