In May, 2015 In Touch broke the story that the eldest boy from the 19 Kids and Counting clan Joshua Duggar, had been investigated for (and admitted to) molesting five underage girls when he was a teenager. More than one of the girls were reportedly his sisters. In Touch was able to access a hidden police report from 2006 via a Freedom of Information Act request that detailed the incidents, including police interviews with the two parents, but not with Josh himself. The abuses would likely never have come to light if, according to interviews, a family friend who was in the know hadn't written notes about Josh's actions, stashed them in a book, and then forgetfully lent the book to a friend who discovered the letter and notified police in 2006 (you can't make this stuff up).

The family and certain members of their religious community knew about the attacks that occurred from 2002-2003, but did not immediately alert authorities. The report notes that rather than be tried by law enforcement, Jim Bob instead "met with the elders of [his] church and told them what was going on." Josh was reportedly sent to a "Christian Program" where he would supposedly undergo "hard physical work and counseling." However, as was also uncovered in the police reports, Michelle Duggar later admitted to police that he had merely been sent to stay with a family friend to help him with his construction business. 

The documents also revealed that Jim Bob blocked police requests to interview Josh. Although the investigation had to be abandoned due to the statute of limitations, Josh, the Duggar family, and TLC became the focus of a media frenzy. Josh and his family were widely criticized for the circumstances of the crimes, their handling of the crimes, and their perceived hypocrisy in the face of their extensive and controversial "family values activism."