homeEntertainment

Duggar family news: Court grants Duggars' petition to have permanent custody of great-nephew

The Duggars definitely has 19 kids and counting, after reality show stars Jim Bob and Michelle had been granted permanent custody of one of their great-nephews.

Tyler Wayne Hutchins posed with Josh Duggar's son Michael. | Facebook/duggarfamilyofficial

Entertainment Tonight reported that the Duggars will legally open their home to the eight-year-old son of Michelle's niece Rachel Hutchins.

The report mentioned that the Duggars were first granted with temporary guardianship after they filed an emergency petition on Aug. 26. Then they were allowed to make Tyler's new living arrangement with the family permanent after the court's ruling that was released on Nov. 21.

According to the documents that were made public, the Duggar family attorney Travis Story claimed that Rachel "recently exhibited a pattern of behavior demonstrating that she is presently unable to meet Tyler's health, safety, and other needs."

The 23-year-old mother, who happens to be the daughter of Michelle's sister Carolyn, is also reportedly unemployed and does not own any means of transportation. She is also revealed to be on probation at the moment after being arrested for felony back in April.

The legal documents also mentioned that Rachel decided to sign off on the guardianship and agreed to have supervised visits to see her son.

The Duggars were reportedly happy with the court's decision, and they managed to make Tyler feel right at home when he first arrived in the family's house in Arkansas. "Jim Bob and Michelle have made the child feel right at home. They treat him like their own and he looks up to them as parents," a source told InTouch Weekly.

Aside from Tyler, the Duggars will also have another baby on the way since Jim Bob and Michelle's fifth child Jana and her husband Ben Seewald are waiting for the arrival of their second baby.

The family used to be featured on TLC's "19 Kids and Counting," until the network canceled the show in 2015 after the eldest Duggar son Josh was involved in several controversies.