Amy Duggar Shields Son From Family Scandal Fallout

Protecting kids from grown-up chaos is hard enough without a family scandal dominating headlines. For Amy Duggar King, that challenge hits especially close to home.

The former 19 Kids and Counting star opened up on“The Dory Jackson Interview”series via YouTube on Wednesday, May 13, about her determination to keep her 6-year-old son, Daxton, insulated from the recent arrests and abuse allegations swirling around her extended family. Her approach is straightforward: shield him now, explain later.“When he’s older, I’m going to explain,‘Hey, mom was on a show’and really kind of tell him, but until then, I get to shield him from a lot of that,”Amy said.

The decision to homeschool Daxton gives Amy one crucial advantage—fewer awkward questions from classmates whose parents might be following the Duggar family’s troubled trajectory. In May 2022, her cousin Josh Duggar was sentenced to 151 months in prison following his December 2021 conviction on child pornography charges. More recently, another cousin, Joseph Duggar, was arrested in March on suspicion of lewd and lascivious behavior involving molestation of a victim less than 12 years old. He pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released on March 31 after posting a $600,000 bond.

It’s a lot for any parent to carry. Amy describes feeling the weight of staying strong for her son while processing her own shock and grief. When she first learned of Joseph’s arrest, it hit hard.“I just could not take it all in. It was a lot to absorb. This is now 2.0, right? That’s hard,”she told Jackson. Her son noticed her pain immediately and asked if she was okay. She didn’t pretend everything was fine—she was honest about her hurt while reassuring him of his safety and worth.

That’s the balancing act Amy’s navigating: being real about the brokenness in her family without letting it consume her child’s sense of security. Every day, she tells Daxton,“You are safe, you are loved, and you are our treasure.”It’s a promise she’s determined to keep, even when the family stories make that harder than it should be.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). If you or someone you know is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.