There are two police reports that have been issued — one from the Springdale Police Department, and one from the Washington County sheriff’s office. Both reports contain the initial interview with Jim Bob and Michelle. Only the Springdale Police Department’s report has interviews with other witnesses and with the victims (Washington County closed their investigation after the interview with the parents because the events occurred in the city limits).
Despite the “we’re so persecuted” claims against Springdale police chief Kathy O’Kelley, the city report had many more redactions than the Washington County report. O’Kelley didn’t release the fact the youngest victim was five and Josh 15 at the time he hurt her — given that there were four older daughters, only a very careful reading of the city’s police report pointed to the fact the oldest daughter was never targeted.
The Washington County report makes it clear that Josh confessed three times to his parents — in March 2002, July 2002, and March 2003 — to molesting young girls. Unlike what Jill said in her interview, she was not yet 11 in March of 2002 when Josh confessed to touching her in her sleep.
If this was just teenage curiosity about girls, why didn’t he go after the oldest daughter? She was the one who was 12, she was the one who was closest to puberty. Going after the younger girls suggests a predatory pattern to his behavior, and whereas most youthful sexual offenders go for older victims as they get older, his progression was to younger and younger girls.
I watched the interview with the two married daughters, and I couldn’t help but be reminded of some of the interviews with women of the FLDS when the government came in and took their children. When you’re born into a cult, and it’s the only thing you know, the outside world becomes very scary. Our condemnation is read as persecution by those who are truly brainwashed. And any group that suggests fathers who sexually abuse their daughters should be dealt with by the church instead of the cops is a cult, because anyone who actually believes that is right and just needs their head examined. (I’m more inclined to think the only part of the church that should be dealing with child molesters is the churchyard.)
Jim Bob said a couple of interesting things in the interview. The first was that Josh was a child preying on children. The second was an exchange where he said that in talking with other families (presumably their circle of friends), this was a common problem.