Jinger Duggar Admits Feeling 'Devastated' After Disgraced Brother Joseph and Kendra's Disturbing Arrests — 'I Did Not Think My Heart Could Break Like It Has'
Jinger Duggar emotionally opened up about the arrests of her brother Joseph and his wife, Kendra.
March 25 2026, Published 4:00 p.m. ET
Jinger Duggar looked visibly shaken as she addressed the shocking arrests of her younger brother, Joseph, and his wife, Kendra, RadarOnline.com can report.
The former 19 Kids and Counting star and her husband, Jeremy Vuolo, opened up on their shared podcast about Joseph's sexual molestation charges and Kendra's child endangerment accusations.
'It's Just so Hard and Painful and on Many Levels'
Jinger Duggar and husband Jeremy Vuolo addressed their feelings on their podcast
The married hosts of the Jinger and Jeremy podcast passed up their normal hour-long chats for a five-minute frank discussion about the arrests.
"I did not think that my heart could break like it has this week," Jinger, 32, confessed. "The pain and heartbreak that we've had over this, and just thinking of how it's affected so many. That's just unthinkable.
"It's so hard and painful and on many levels."
Jinger had a cold, distant look on her face as she struggled to discuss the latest scandal enveloping her family. Because of the nature of the alleged crimes, the former reality star was forced to relive the pain she experienced years earlier, when her older brother Josh was sent to prison on child pornography charges.
"You can't be prepared for news like this, even though we've experienced something very similar before with one of my other siblings who made unthinkable choices," Jinger continued. "Decisions that have affected all of us."
Fans React: 'Poor Jinger'
Fans were worried about Jinger Duggar's mental health.
In the comments section, fans offered signs of support to the struggling sibling.
"Poor Jinger. She’s mentally checked out," one person wrote. "This is opening up a whole new set of wounds that she’s worked so hard to close."
Another echoed: "Remember, Jinger is having to relive all the trauma with Josh during this. My heart breaks for her, and we should really be praying for all the victims."
While one user noted, "Jinger...you look like a different person. I can tell the toll this is taking on you. Jeremy...you keep taking really good care of her, she needs it."
Jinger Duggar Flees the Family
Jinger Duggar left the strict teachings adhered to by the Duggar family.
Jinger famously abandoned the teachings of the Institute in Basic Life Principles, which parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar adhere to.
She exposed shocking details about her strict religious upbringing in her book, Becoming Free Indeed. She also discussed her family's shared secret shame in her previous memoir, The Hope We Hold.
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The Duggar Family Shame
The arrests brought back the pain she went through when brother Josh Duggar was busted earlier.
As she explained, in 2015, Josh, the oldest of the 19-child brood, was accused of having molested five girls – including four of his sisters and a babysitter – when he was a teenager. It was also revealed that Josh had cheated on his wife, Anna Duggar.
"My brain hadn't quite caught up to the reality of what had happened in a few short hours," wrote Jinger of the aftermath. "Earlier that day, Dad had gathered my siblings and me to tell us that the worst trial in our family history, a trial we had long since dealt with and made our peace with, was now public knowledge."
"One of my siblings had made some sinful choices, but it had all been years ago," she added. "It had been awful, but we had dealt with it as a family. We'd sought the Lord, took the necessary steps to move toward healing, and offered up our forgiveness. Now that it was out in public, the old wound was open again, raw, painful."
