It’s been a bad week in the Duggar house.
Just one day after eldest Duggar offspring Josh was convicted of receiving and possessing child sex abuse materials, TMZ broke the news that his sister, Jana, has been officially charged with the crime of endangering the welfare of a child! Jana appeared on both of the families TV shows, 19 Kids and Counting (which was cancelled because of Josh) and Counting On (which was also cancelled because of Josh).
“The circumstances surrounding the charge are still unknown… but we’re told Jana…was cited on September 9, 2021…she’ll be back in court next month,” the site reports, stating that the charge was confirmed by a court clerk.
The former reality TV star has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Jana— who is the oldest of the Duggar girls and has no children of her own— was present in the courtroom only one day during Josh’s trial. She has yet to speak out on the charge.
It is unknown whose child Jana is accused of endangering.
The Elms Springs, Arkansas District court clerk confirmed the charge to The Ashley on Friday. Jana was charged with a Class A misdemeanor on September 10, one day after the alleged crime took place..
Her bail was set at $430, and she has a hearing set for January 10, 2022.
UPDATE 1:
The Ashley spoke to Emily D. Baker, former LA Deputy District Attorney, legal analyst and host of The Emily Show podcast, regarding Jana’s charge.
She confirmed that Jana’s charge is almost certainly not related to anything regarding Josh or his pre-trial bond, stating that, had Jana done something (such as let Josh see a sibling or one of his children unsupervised, etc.), Josh’s bond would have also been revoked and he would have been taken into custody at that time. (The judge in the case even noted yesterday that Josh never violated the terms of his bond.)
UPDATE 2:
According to the Arkansas Uniform Law Enforcement Citation from the incident, obtained by The Ashley, is appears that whatever went down happened at or very close to the Duggar Compound. The location of the incident is listed as the Duggar home, with a cross-street also listed. There is one person (whose name is unknown to The Ashley) listed as a witness.
It does not appear that the incident had anything to do with a vehicle (such as leaving a child unattended in a car, which is one of the reasons someone could be charged for Endangering the Welfare of a Minor in the third degree.) The citation includes questions regarding the vehicle involved, if any, and the officer as clearly written on the citation that this is “Not applicable” to the incident involving Jana.
In Arkansas, the offense of “Endangering the Welfare of a Minor in the Third Degree” is a Class B misdemeanor. (Just FYI, “third degree” is less-serious offense than the crime in the “first degree.” This offense is described as “the responsible adult’s behavior leads to the harm or injury of a minor’s physical and mental welfare.”
Many details in the case are sealed, in order to protect that privacy of the minor(s) involved.
UPDATE: Jana and some of her siblings have spoken out, providing more information on the incident that led to Jana being charged. Click here to read what they said!
(Photos: TLC; Instagram)
29 Responses
There is something seriously fishy about these charges and this whole situation. The scent of coverup is so strong!!! So Jana has been responsible for her siblings all these years – feeding them, clothing them, educating them, babysitting them, being in charge of their overall wellbeing. But yet she is the one charged with child endangerment??? Sure…that tracks. ??
It’s interesting how they were able to keep this so well hidden. I wonder what else they’re hiding… ?
I think jail time would do janna a wold of good to be away from that cult and force her to think and act how she wants too.also to see and hear how other people live and there experiences and see how her parents treated her the same way as those sinners
Honeslty i really hope she gets jail time so jb and michelle are forced to clean and take care of there own ducking children they created and be forced to actually stay home.
Also so she can get a break
Think about it she will be able to jornal,eat alone,sleep and wake up when she wants too
I said the same girl is TIRED she’s been raising others kids since she was a kid…she was surely doing some Cinderella task and one of the crotch groblins she didn’t even shoot out got in some shenanigans. Where are the actual parents!
Have to thank The Ashley for turning me onto Emily D Baker. Her YouTube channel is amazing. She started off her Friday night live tonight with the Jana news but I had to come her first to see what the Ashley had to say lol
I’ll bet poor Jana was scrubbing toilets, homeschooling her siblings, renovating Anna’s new living quarters, and grocery shopping, all while under orders to watch all of her siblings, nieces, nephews, second cousins, third cousins and take them shopping at the nearest thrift store. And the actual PARENTS should have been doing so. The parents fucked up, and you bet your ass they made Jana the fall guy. They’re disgusting.
Hey, don’t knock the thrift store
I bet she was babysitting Josh and Annas kids while Anna was babtsittng/kissing Josh’s ass at his holding house. It sounds likely she was exhausted and fell asleep and a kid got out of the compund. STILL her fault, she is an adult and can tell Anna to take care of her own kids! Instead kids put at risk because of the cult. No sympathy for Anna, either.
I’ve worked in child welfare for over 20 years, and my experience is that it is EXTREMELY difficult to get the state or county to follow through with these charges. Of the child abuse/neglect petitions I have been party to over the years, I’d guess that 30% were supported by the courts and resulted in charges being filed. This is surely something more severe than a seatbelt charge, which would have also resulted in a ticket.
I work as a school counselor and have called CPS with some very egregious reports. Students have been placed in foster care and parents or guardians have been investigated but I have never seen anyone be charged with anything like this. It must have been something really serious.
I read on another site that she fell asleep while babysitting and a child(ren) was found alongside a road a good piece from the house. Not sure if that’s true.
Those kids were not taught properly. I have noticed that even the adult children are still very child-like. Their maturity and ability to handle adult situations is practically non-existent. They cannot function without their parents. I’m sure the number of ”endangering the welfare of a child” charged their parents should have received would be astronomical. Instead TLC rewards them for careless breeding with tv shows and publicity.
Jim Boob and the missus done more than their fair share of endangering children over the years but Jana cops it, sounds about right.
I fully believe she’s still in that house to try to protect those kids. Much more than Josh’s shenanigans are going on and she’s trying to shield as much as she can. I would not be surprised if she’s daddy’s little toy and she stays so the younger ones aren’t next
I’ve thought that, also…it’s disgusting to this, but also plausible.
It would explain why she’s never married (Jim Bob wouldn’t allow it + she also may have no interest in marriage because love and sex has been ruined for her by years of abuse). It could be why JB goes *everywhere* with her, and also why she was the one sister that Josh didn’t touch; he knew she was his dad’s and he needed to leave her alone or there would be total hell to pay.
Wonder if this is an unlicensed midwifery situation. Doesn’t she often help out with home births? That can be an issue in some states depending on what kind of license/degree you have
I’m calling it, She had a kid in a car without a seat belt.
That was my thought or something equally mundane. Not saying you shouldnt always have kids in seatbelts but compared to what Josh did im thinking Janas charge is something small. Of course could be totally wrong. Nothing suprises me anymore.
Maybe left a kid in the car while she went into the store, or church, or whatever. That seems like the outdated type of thing where Duggars would be all “never wake a baby!” and not think it’s a big deal, but that cops are really taking seriously now.
So fucking Jana, the one person who has held a household of 20+ people together all these years, is the one to be charged with endangering a minor?! This is some Shakespearean level dramedy. Jim Bob and Michelle are still – as far as we know – scott free, but Jana is in trouble? Damn, hell has truly frozen over.
Jana probably unwillingly took the rap to protect her parents or another family member.
Holy shit! She is NOT the one I thought this type of thing would happen to….
Damn
Oh wow! I’m curious to know more about the charge against her.
The Ashely,
Any changes to Jim Bob’s political aspirations?
Why the heck haven’t those charges been brought against Jim Bob and Michelle?