Jill Duggar from "19 Kids and Counting" could not help but shed tears during her interview with Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly of "The Kelly File" as she shared her frustration over the improper release of her brother Josh's juvenile files.
"I know that the tabloids that released this, they are used to exploiting women," she said.
She and her younger sister Jessa were victims of child molestation, and they had been told that it would be "safe" to talk to authorities about that painful past. "Apparently not," quipped Jessa.
The two sisters were both in agreement though that Josh should not be crucified by the media and the public over what happened several years ago. People encounter failures and deal with stupid mistakes from the past, they said, but that does not mean a person cannot change.
"I do want to speak up in Josh's defence," Jessa said. "In Josh's case, he was a boy, a young boy in puberty, and a little too curious about girls. And he made some bad choices."
They said they saw how their brother has changed into the person he is today.
Jill and Jessa said they believe people are blowing the issue out of proportion. "I think the real issue here is people are making it sound like this happened yesterday instead of something that happened 12 years ago," Jessa said.
When they found out that their juvenile report would be released by InTouch Weekly, Jessa said she felt furious while Jill could not help but shed tears. "I couldn't believe what was going on," she said. She immediately called her husband Derick Dillard and told him, "They don't have the right to do this. We're victims."
As a family, the Duggars have moved on from the issue, and that is why they feel pretty comfortable now sharing their personal lives on television.
At the same time they feel sad that people are calling them hypocrites for espousing good Christian values despite this terrible skeleton in their closet. In the first place, Jill said, "We have never claimed to be a perfect family."
