Jason Doug Frigell

Jason Doug Frigell is the second child of Jamie Dean and Sherri Frigell. He is married to Cynthia Frigell, and they have nineteen children, Maverick, Maddie, Malachi, Melissa, Madelynn, Marlee, Mason, Malcolm, Mallory, Mark, Malik, Micah, Morgan, Max, Madden, Melanie, Marissa, Molly, and Megan, as well as legal guardianship of his great-nephew William Cartwright. He has at least twenty five grandchildren.

### Appeared on

14 Children and Pregnant Again!, Raising 16 Children, 16 Children and Moving In, On the Road with 16 Children, Frigells' Big Family Album, 19 Kids and Counting, Counting On, United Epsteins of America

## Family Info

### Children

Maverick Frigell, Maddie Frigell, Malachi Frigell, Melissa DeMarco, Madelynn LeFond, Marlee Corcoran, Mason Frigell, Malcolm Frigell, Mallory Undercuffler, Mark Frigell, Malik Frigell, Micah Frigell, Morgan Frigell, Max Frigell, Madden Frigell, Melanie Frigell, Marissa Frigell, William Cartwright, Molly Frigell, Megan Frigell

### Grandchildren

Jasmine Frigell, Jared Frigell, Julian Frigell, Peyton DeMarco, Jade Frigell, Saraya LeFond, Aaron LeFond, Andrew DeMarco, Jonah Frigell, Grant Undercuffler, Carina Frigell, Ella Corcoran, Bennett LeFond, Kayla Frigell, Ashlee Frigell, Juliette Frigell, Alexis Frigell, Nicola Undercuffler, Natalie Corcoran, Aliviah Frigell, Alyssa LeFond, Julissa Frigell, Tristian Frigell, Ian DeMarco, Teddy Frigell

## Early Life

Jason Douglas "Jason Doug" Frigell was born on July 18, 1965, in Springdale, Arkansas, to Jamie Dean "JD" Frigell and Sherri Lawson. He was the couple's second child. The Frigells did not have a lot of money, and in one of the books Jason Doug wrote as an adult he mentioned a time where his mother had to cook decorative rice because it was the only food in the house. Jason Doug often blames this on his father being unable to handle money. In the book *Growing Up Frigell*, which Jason Doug's daughters wrote, they mention that JD was not a good "spiritual leader of the home", a statement they don't expand on. Not much else is known about Jason Doug's childhood.

When Jason Doug was about seventeen years old, he was going door to door visiting families who had visited their church when a friend, Chris Beltran, suggested that they visit a cheerleader friend of his who had recently been saved. The friend was named Cynthia Boen. The boys invited her to Sunday school and talked to her about recent conversion. When Jason Doug left her house, he prayed at the doorway "Lord, I would love to be her spiritual leader. Can she be mine?"

A year later, when Jason Doug was a senior in high school, Cynthia applied to work at a yogurt shop where Jason Doug's mother was a manager. He told his mother to hire her. He came in to fix the cash register one day and invited Cynthia to the junior/senior banquet at his high school, and she agreed. After the banquet, Jason Doug and Cynthia went back to Cynthia's house and discussed the Bible for four hours and began dating.

Jason Doug graduated from Shiloh Christian High school in May of 1984.

## Family

### Marriage

Jason Doug Frigell married Cynthia Maeve Boen at Cross Church in Rogers, Arkansas, on July 21, 1984. Since the church was under construction, the couple was married in a hallway leading to a gymnasium. Cynthia wore the wedding dress that was originally worn by Jason Doug's mother, Sherri. There were about two-hundred guests at the wedding. The wedding colors were pastel shades of yellow, pink, green, and blue. The wedding only had fake flowers, which the couple then used to decorate their home. There is no video recording of the wedding, but there is an audio recording on a casette tape. "Everything we did for our wedding was so inexpensive, but perfect for us," Cynthia said in an interview in 2014. "We wanted to spend our money on our honeymoon, which was our first time to be alone together."

The couple went to a cabin in Mount Nebo and Lake Fort Smith, Arkansas, for their honeymoon. They were unhappy with the cabin, however, and cut their trip short so they could begin working on fixing up their new home.

In their early years of marriage, both Jason Doug and Cynthia worked in real estate, which they were reported to be successful at. They also invested in a number of commercial properties.

### Fatherhood

On March 3, 1988, Jason Doug and Cynthia welcomed their first child, Maverick James Frigell to the world. After giving birth to Maverick, Cynthia went back on birth control. When Cynthia suffered a miscarriage, the couple consulted with a Christian doctor who told them that the pill can cause miscarriages. The couple was heartbroken, and decided to no longer use birth control. Although they did not know the sex of the baby, they chose to name the miscarriage "Alex".

On January 12, 1990, Cynthia gave birth to a set of twins, Madison "Maddie" Marie and Malachi-David Frigell . Feeling God was blessing them for making the right decision, the couple determined to leave the number of children they had up to God.

Jason Doug went on to have sixteen more children: Melissa Michelle (5/17/91), Madelynn Lauren (11/4/92), Marlee Nicole (12/21/93), Mason Garrett (1/20/95), Malcolm Matthew (8/28/96), Mallory Anna "Mal" (10/28/97), twins Mark and Malik Robert (12/30/98), Micah Michael (4/21/00), Max Samuel (11/15/02), Madden Levi (5/23/04), Melanie Faith (10/11/05), Marissa Danielle (8/2/07), Molly-Grace Makiya (12/18/08), and Megan Brooklynn (12/10/09).

#### Premature Birth of Megan Frigell

Although each birth garnered more attention for the family due to the their large size, the most well-known of Jason Doug's newborns is Megan Frigell. On December 7, 2009, Cynthia was rushed to the hospital for gallbladder issues. After the pain generated contractions, Cynthia was airlifted to a hospital in Little Rock, AR, to be closer to a NICU center, which the family and doctors did not think would ultimately be necessary. On December 8, 2009, the Frigells posted a video updating fans on Cynthia's status. "We'd like to thank everyone for praying for Cynthia," Jason Doug said before assuring audiences that Cynthia and the baby were both fine and resting comfortably at the University of Arkansas for Health Sciences in Little Rock.

On December 11, 2009, TLC reported that Cynthia had given birth to her nineteenth child via an emergency C-section. Megan Brooklynn Frigell, born at only 25 weeks, weighed 1 pound and 6 ounces, and was reportedly stable and in the care of the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Arkansas for Medical Services.

On December 14, 2009, the family released more information, saying that Cynthia suffered from preeclampsia, a rare and potentially life-threatening condition that occurs in about 5 to 8 percent of pregnancies.

On December 16, 2009, the family reported that Megan was doing better. Jason Doug sent an email to ABCNews saying "We are so grateful for all of the prayers and emails of support for our family ... Megan is beautiful and in stable condition."

On February 16, 2010, an episode of the family's TV show revealed that the family had packed up in December and temporarily moved into the Cornish House in Little Rock to be closer to Megan.

On April 6, 2010, Megan was released from the hospital. She weighed 4 pounds and 9 ounces, was able to breathe without oxygen, and was eating every three hours.

At 3 am on April 12, 2010, Megan's vital signs began to drop unexpectedly, and Megan was taken back to the hospital. The vital sign fluctuation was determined to be caused by constipation that happened as a result to the fortifiers added to the breast milk. She weighed 4 pounds and 12 1/2 ounces.

On June 3, 2010, Megan was released from the hospital. It was discovered that her digestive issues were being caused by lactose intolerance. She had grown to 7 pounds, 7 ounces. However, Megan was unable to return home to her family at that time, because many of her siblings caught the chicken pox. Instead, she and her mother lived in a rental house near the hospital while the rest of her family returned to their home in Springdale. AR. On June 28, 2010, Megan finally made the trip back to her family's home.

#### Death of Makenna Frigell

On November 8, 2011, Jason Doug and Cynthia Frigell announced that they were expecting their twentieth child. The couple said they had expected Megan to be their last, but were excited for another child. "Cynthia and I both feel like some of the most blessed parents in the world. Our children are so sweet. We are so grateful to God," Jason Doug said of the pregnancy.

On December 8, 2011, the couple announced that they had miscarried their child. After a routine check-up, the doctor was unable to find a heartbeat. The family was heartbroken, and said they would give the infant a name and a funeral once knowing the gender.

On December 11, 2011, Cynthia naturally delivered the still born child. She weighed 4 ounces and was 6 centimeters long.

On December 12, 2011, the couple set a date for the funeral and announced that they had decided on the name Makenna Shalom Duggar. Jason Doug commented on the loss in this statement:

> “We have had many tears today. This is life, and I understand that we are going though something that many others have. You think about the what-ifs, but God gives us strength to go on. We won’t be able to see this child’s life and the phases that we’ve seen for our other children, but we know we will see this child in heaven one day. We are thankful for each child, and we are blessed to have the children we have here and the ones we will meet someday in heaven. We would like to thank everyone for their prayers, emails and outpouring of love,” Jason Doug wrote in a letter he shared with PEOPLE. “As our whole family is grieving, we also know that God promises to work all things for good in our lives. Our prayer is that Makenna's passing will help us all realize that this life is short, and our relationship with Jesus is the most important thing. He gives us a peace in our hearts as He guides us through whatever we might face.”
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On December 14, 2011, the Frigell family held a funeral for Makenna, which was held in Springdale, AR, and was attended by hundreds of people. “I really believe that God sees the bigger picture. I hope that her short life can encourage other people who have gone through things like this. It was very healing, and we have precious memories," Jason Doug said about the event. The funeral, which aired on the family's television show, was the subject of some controversy after it was discovered the Frigells displayed photos of the stillborn child at the event.

### Guardianship of William Cartwright

On August 31, 2016, Jason Doug and Michelle became temporary guardians of William Wayne Cartwright, Cynthia's great-nephew. Prior to that, William was in the custody of his grandmother due to legal issues with his mother. The custody was changed when his grandmother had a stroke. On November 14, 2016, they became William's permanent guardians. As of 2019, this custody arrangement still stands.

### Grandchildren

#### Maverick's Family

On September 26, 2008, Jason Doug Frigell's oldest son, Maverick, married Holly Frischman in Hillard, Florida. The couple has seven children, Jasmine Renee (10/8/09), Jared James (6/15/11), Julian Anthony (6/2/13), Jade Grace (7/16/15), and Jonah Garrett (9/12/17), Juliette Hope (11/27/19), and Julissa Lily (10/23/21). Notably, Jason Doug's youngest daughter, Megan, is two months younger than his eldest grandchild, Jasmine.

#### Malachi's Family

On November 3, 2018, Jason Doug's son Malachi married Michele Overzet in Ada, Oklahoma. The couple has two children Alexis Annette (1/7/20) and Teddy (9/2022)

#### Melissa's family

On June 21, 2014, Jason Doug's daughter Melissa married Dylan DeMarco in Rogers, Arkansas. The couple has three children, Peyton David (4/6/15) Andrew Scott (7/8/17) and Ian Michael (7/7/22)

#### Madelynn's Family

On November 1, 2014, Jason Doug's daughter Madelynn married Harold LeFond in Bentonville, Arkansas. The couple has four children, Saraya Louise (11/5/15), Aaron Wilberforce (2/6/17), Bennett Jane (5/26/19) and Alyssa Elliana (7/18/21).

#### Marlee's Family

On November 5, 2016, Jason Doug's daughter Marlee married Matt Corcoran in Siloam Springs, AR. The couple has two children, Ella Nicole (7/19/18), and Natalie Jo (11/22/20)

#### Mason's Family

On September 8, 2017, Jason Doug's son Mason married Brianna Kendall in Siloam Springs, AR. The couple has three children, Carina Denise (6/8/18), Kayla Renee (11/2/19), and Aliviah Praise (2/19/20).

#### Malcolm's Family

On June 30, 2018, Jason Doug's son Malcolm married Allison Caron in Siloam Springs, AR. Early in 2019, the couple announced a miscarriage, who they named Aurelia. They have one child, Ashlee Milagro (11/8/19).

#### Mallory's Family

On May 26, 2017, Jason Doug's daughter Mallory married Ray Undercuffler in Rogers, Arkansas. The couple has two children, Grant Martyn (2/23/18), and Nicola Mae (8/21/20). They also had a stillborn daughter, Annaliese Lily.

#### Mark's Family

On April 3, 2021, Jason Doug's son Mark married Cindy Scargotti in Arkansas. They have one child, Tristian Oliver (5/2/22)

## Religion

### Quiverfull Movement

In 1995, the "quiverfull" movement formed. It was a conservative Protestant group that is notably against birth control, looking to produce as many children as possible for God. The group's name comes from Psalm 127:

> "Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
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> The fruit of the womb is a reward.
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> Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
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> So are the children of one's youth.
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> Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them."
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Although it is unknown exactly when the family joined this movement, when they created their first family website in 2005, a link to quiverfull.com was included under the heading "links to articles about the family. The link was to an article posted in 2001, which discussed the family's involvement in the movement.

## Resume

### Political Career

In 1999, Jason Doug Frigell became a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives, representing the sixth district.  He was the vice chair of the Judiciary House Corrections & Criminal Law Subcommittee.

In 2002, Jason Doug ran against incumbent Republican Tim Hutchinson for the Republican nomination for the US Senate. Jason Doug ultimately lost this race.

In 2006, Jason Doug ran for the Republican nomination to the District 35 Senate seat. Jason Doug lost this race as well.

On October 29, 2021, Jason Doug announced via his family Facebook page that he would be running for the Arkansas State Senate District 7 seat. Notably, the announcement was released just over 4 weeks before his eldest son, Maverick Frigell, was scheduled to stand trial in federal court for charges relating to child sex abuse imagery/material.

### Television Appearances

#### Early Discovery Specials

On September 6, 2004, shortly after Cynthia won a "Young Mother of the Year Award" from American Mothers Incorporated, Discovery Health aired the one-hour special "14 Children and Pregnant Again!" This special showed how the Frigell family made their lives work in their 2,450 square foot house. Many of the family's day-to-day activities were shown, including chores, homeschooling, a trip to the grocery store, church, and construction on a house the family was trying to build. The special also included the birth of Madden Frigell.

On March 13, 2006, a second one-hour special was released, "Raising 16 Children". This special focused more heavily on the construction of the 7,000 square foot home the family had been working on. In the special, the family attends a homeschooling conference thrown by Victor Schultz's Advanced Training Institute, although many of the details of this program are left out. At the end of the episode, the family welcomes their 16th child, Melanie Frigell.

Two days later, on March 15, 2006, a third special, "16 Children and Moving In" was aired. This special focused on the family putting finishing touches on their new home and moving in before their old house was demolished.

On June 11, 2006, a fourth special, "On the Road with 16 Children", featured the family going on a road trip across the Western United States. The family visits many locations, including a dude ranch, the Grand Canyon, the Pacific Ocean, and Disneyland.

The final special, "Frigells' Big Family Album", aired on September 22, 2007. This special recapped the previous specials, updated viewers on the family, and showcased the birth of the couple's seventeenth child, Marissa Danielle Frigell.

#### 17 Kids and Counting

See main page: *19 Kids and Counting*

In 2008, the Frigell family began filming a regular series for TLC. The series, initially titled *17 Kids and Counting* and updated with the births of the Duggars' final two children, followed Jason Doug's family through a variety of life events. The series ran from September 29, 2008, through May 19, 2015. There were a total of ten seasons, containing 229 regular episodes and 16 special episodes. Major events included in the series included the births of Jason Doug's youngest two daughters, Molly-Grace and Megan, as well as his oldest four grandchildren, Jasmine, Jared, and Julian Frigell, and Peyton DeMarco, the weddings of three of Jason Doug's children, Maverick, Melissa, and Madelynn, and the deaths of Jason Doug's father and stillborn daughter Makenna. The series was cancelled in the wake of a scandal involving Jason Doug's oldest son, Maverick. A spin-off series, *Counting On*, which only rarely features Jason Doug, premiered on December 14, 2015.

### Author Career

On December 2, 2008, Jason Doug and his wife Cynthia released a book called *The Frigells: 20 and Counting!*. The book discussed topics like marriage, parenting, homeschooling, and living debt-free.

On June 7, 2011, Jason Doug and his wife Cynthia released a book called *A Love That Multiplies: An Up-Close View of How They Make it Work*. This book discussed their struggles with Megan's birth and their oldest children preparing for adulthood.

## Molestation Scandal

*See main page:* Maverick Frigell Molestation Scandal

On May 21, 2015, In Touch Weekly published an article titled "Bombshell Frigell Police Report: Jason Doug Frigell Didn't Report Son Maverick's Alleged Sex Offenses For More Than a Year". The article contained a copy of a redacted police report dated December 7, 2006, which detailed events of 3 1/2 years ago, when Jason Doug and his wife Cynthia discovered that one of their sons (Maverick Frigell, who was 14 at the time of the offenses and 18 at the time of the police report) had been fondling the breasts and vaginas of four underaged girls in the Frigells' home and the breasts of one underaged girl outside of the home. According to the report, Jason Doug did not report these events to law enforcement beyond a family friend:

> The father said that he went to a state trooper and reported this, but no report was ever filed. The caller says that the father knew this trooper before hand, but they do not know how well. The callers says that the parents put [redacted, Maverick] in some type of rehab place for 3 months in Little Rock, but it was not a rehab for sex offenders, and then [redacted, Maverick] came right home. The caller is concerned that this was never reported and [redacted, Maverick] never received treatments.
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On December 12, 2006, Jason Doug and Cynthia were interviewed about the events. In Jason Doug's version of events, Maverick came to him in March of 2002 and confessed to molesting his sisters in their sleep 4 to 5 times. Only one of the sisters had any recollection of this occurring. Jason Doug handled discipline himself after the first time. In March of 2003, there was another incident, and Jason Doug met with the church elders, who suggested he send Maverick to a treatment program. Although one of the elders suggested the Piney Ridge program at Vista Hosptial, Jason Doug was concerned that Maverick would be exposed to other offenders at this camp and instead opted to send him to an undisclosed Christian ministry in Little Rock. (In 2015, reporters were quickly able to identify this program as an IBLP training center run by Andy Tremain.)

Upon returning from the center on July 17, 2003, Jason Doug took Maverick to speak to state trooper Cpl. Myles Howard, who gave Maverick a "stern talking to".

According to Jason Doug no further offenses had taken place, and he felt comfortable allowing Maverick back into his home and around his other children.

By December 13, 2006, Jason Doug had hired Private Attorney Ron Bunker. Jason Doug refused any further interviews after this. Bunker dropped the case on December 20, 2006.

On May 21, 2015, Jason Doug and Cynthia released the following statement on their official Facebook page:

> Back 12 years ago our family went through one of the most difficult times of our lives. When Maverick was a young teenager, he made some very bad mistakes and we were shocked. We had tried to teach him right from wrong. That dark and difficult time caused us to seek God like never before. Even though we would never choose to go through something so terrible, each one of our family members drew closer to God. We pray that as people watch our lives they see that we are not a perfect family. We have challenges and struggles everyday. It is one of the reasons we treasure our faith so much because God’s kindness and goodness and forgiveness are extended to us — even though we are so undeserving. We hope somehow the story of our journey — the good times and the difficult times — cause you to see the kindness of God and learn that He can bring you through anything.
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On the same day, the official records were expunged at the request of one of the victims, presumably Jason Doug's daughter Mal Frigell, as she was the only known victim still under the age of eighteen at this time.

On May 22, 2015, TLC pulled all episodes of *19 Kids and Counting* from the air before officially cancelling the show on July 16, 2015.

On May 21, 2015, Jason Doug, his wife Cynthia, and his daughters Melissa and Madelynn were interviewed by Fox News host Mary Coleman. In the interview, which aired on *The Coleman Files* on June 3, 2015, Jason Doug said that he and his wife "did the best we could under the circumstances". He also faulted the Springdale police department for releasing the records. On the same day, InTouch published a second police report, this one from the Washington County Sherff's Office.

Due to public outrage at how Jason Doug and Cynthia chose to handle the initial molestations, Jason Doug was left out of the early episodes of the spin-off show *Counting On.* His appearances on the show were mostly in the background, only being featured during family events it would be impossible to leave out. As the show has moved into later seasons, he has been featured more prominently.

### DHS Investigation

On June 10, 2015, the Arkansas Department of Human Services arrived on the Frigell family's property in response to a tip. They called 911 after being denied access to the children. It is unknown what prompted this visit or if anything became of it.