It's been a long road for Collin Gosselin, Jon Gosselin, and the multiple custody battles he's endured, but lately, things haven't showed any signs of getting easier for the former Jon & Kate Plus 8 family. In September, Collin, one of the couple's sextuplets, accused Jon of abuse in a heated Instagram post, which, ultimately, led to Jon being investigated. According to the results of the investigation, Children & Youth Services was able to consider the claims Collin made against his dad "unfounded," but by no means does that indicate the drama has ended — especially where Collin's mom and Jon's ex-wife, Kate Gosselin, is concerned.
But Collin's allegations of abuse go back farther than this when it comes to his parents, though he did reportedly beg to live with his father — before Jon won his 2018 custody battle — and accuse Kate of abuse, too. Now, the tables are turned on Jon, and thanks to Jon and Kate's constant stream of comments in the media, it doesn't seem like a happy ending here is possible.
Here's everything to know about Collin's abuse allegations, both past and present. Hopefully, the situation will be able to be sorted out, and Collin will be able to be happy and safe — no matter what the outcome is — because that's what matters most.
2017: Collin Is MIA
Long after filming had wrapped on Kate Plus 8, fans were wondering where Collin was, since he never appeared on any of Kate's social media posts, and she seemed to dodge the question every time people asked. Eventually, it was revealed that he was at a treatment center to get help for his "special needs," but Kate's motives behind that decision were still questioned.
December 2018: Jon Wins Full Custody
Though Jon had already fought and won sole custody of his daughter, Hannah Gosselin, he kept fighting so that Collin could live with him. At the end of 2018, he finally won sole legal and physical custody of Collin, which meant that Collin was finally able to leave his treatment center and began living with Jon and Hannah full time.
2019: Jon Confirms Kate Isn't in Collin's Life
While answering fans' questions on Instagram, Jon let it slip that Kate hadn't seen Collin at all since he started living with him. At that point, it had already been a few months since Jon won their custody battle, and in response to one of his followers who asked him how many times Kate had seen him, he responded "zero."
Collin's Plea to Jon
Later in 2019, Jon became more vocal about his feelings about Kate — and the details his children had given him about living with her. He revealed that, while Collin was in treatment, he'd written Jon a letter in crayon, telling him that Kate wasn't allowing him to live with his dad and accusing her of being abusive towards him.
"She was abusive to me after I left your house," Collin wrote in the letter, according to Jon. "I'm sorry. Take this to court because … you're my dad, my savior. I'm counting on you to get me out of here. Daddy, I love you. save me. Please come FAST. I love you. Help me. BYE."
Jon's Claims Against Kate Continue
Jon continued to drop more bombshells about Kate in interviews, including one with Dr. Oz where he shared that he felt like he had to "reparent" Collin and Hannah because of everything the sextuplets had been through while living with Kate.
"A lot of stuff happened, abuse wise, mental, physical — even though they are 15, they might [behave like they're] 12. The mental abuse, the [parental] alienation, just the put-downs … Isolation is a huge one," Jon said at the time. "I make them join clubs and go to dances and football games … We all go to … therapy."
September 2020: Collin Accuses His Dad of Abuse
In a post he made on his private Instagram account, Collin accused Jon of physically abusing him, writing: "My dad is a liar. Yesterday he beat me up and thought nothing of it, he punched me in the face and gave me a swollen nose and I started bleeding. He then continued to kick me in the ribs after I was on the floor. He is a liar."
Collin & Jon Have a Blowout Fight
According to what sources told People of the situation at the time, Collin's accusations stemmed from a heated fight between him and his dad that got out of hand.
The insider told the site: "Collin got furious and was screaming and swearing. When they got home, he was still screaming and cursing and he went into the garage and got … a big heavy bottle of liquid — and hurled it at Jon’s car, denting it. Jon got out of the car enraged, put him in a headlock, punched him square in the nose, and when Collin fell to the ground, then he kicked him in the ribs."
Kate Immediately Calls Jon Out
After the allegations surfaced, Kate shared her thoughts with People, and she made it clear that she wasn't surprised to hear Collin's accusations against his father at all.
"You do not punch and kick your children," she said. "You do not kick a child. I don’t want to hear any excuses from anyone, not from his father, not from local law enforcement, not from court personnel whose job is supposedly to ensure the best interests of my children. There is a child abuse law, PA 23, section 8i states that doing any of the following, regardless of whether it causes injury, is child abuse, and first on that list is kicking. Period. I don’t want my children around [Jon]. Enough is enough."
Kate Is Ready To Fight
While talking to the magazine, Kate also made it clear that she would not hesitate to share her true feelings as the situation unfolded.
"I stayed silent for a long time as Jon has repeatedly tried to start world wars with vicious words, allegations of abuse that were always unfounded, but I never engaged — I never fought back for myself or to defend myself, because there were eight people who matter more to me," she said. "But now that it involves one of my children, I will not stay silent anymore. Say whatever you want about me, and I'll stay on the high road. But you harm my children, I'm ready to fight back."
Jon Under Investigation
Because of Collin's accusations against Jon, the Berks County Children & Youth Services in Pennsylvania, where the family lives, opened an investigation into his claims. People reported that the agency's report had the claims against Jon down as "causing bodily injury to a child through recent act/failure to act: hitting/punching," which fell in line with what Collin wrote in his Instagram post.
Jon's Official Statement
After the allegations of abuse went public, Jon wasted no time issuing a statement via his rep denying everything. This would be the first of many times he'd speak out about the situation, especially where his ex, Kate, was concerned. "Jon has never abused Collin," said the statement, via E! News. "No charges have been filed against him and there's no ongoing CYS investigation. Collin has endured severe trauma. Jon is a loving father who has worked hard to ensure that his son gets the support and help he needs."
The Investigation Determines the Claims Are 'Unfounded'
Shortly after the news broke that Jon was being investigated, Entertainment Tonight reported that Collin's claims were ultimately deemed "unfounded," according to a letter from Children & Youth Services. At the same time, Jon told the site that Kate hadn't spoken to Collin, so he wasn't sure why she was commenting on the situation.
Jon Speaks Out
While talking to ET, Jon said Kate was the abusive one, and told his side of the story. "It escalated into something, you know, I had to restrain him and I've done that a couple times," Jon admitted. "I didn't think he would call the police but he wanted to get his way and the police did their investigation and there were no charges or citations filed."
Hannah Denies Collin's Claims
While talking to the Daily Mail, Jon denied ever hitting Collin, and Hannah even confirmed to the site that she'd witnessed the entire incident go down and told investigators afterwards that her dad had never hit him.
"I really didn't want to have to come out and talk about this for Collin's sake, but when Kate is in the media attacking me, calling me a child abuser, I have to defend myself," Jon said. "I love my son and I would never hurt him."
Jon Fires Back at Kate
In the same interview with the Daily Mail, Jon admitted that while parenting a child with mental health issues was "taxing," he wouldn't give up trying to help Collin, who Jon said had been abused by his mother. "She hasn't seen Collin in five years and now she's going to try to come out as the caring mother when in fact the reason Collin is struggling with mental illness is because she abused him," he said. "He has PTSD because of her. So I'm not going to sit back and not defend myself or my family."
Kate Calls Jon 'Violent'
After Jon had his turn to speak to the press, Kate decided to get another shot in about her ex-husband — this time, talking to People once again, and proving that this situation would just continue to get messier. "I am done hiding and will say this unequivocally: Jon is a violent and abusive person," Kate told the magazine.
Where Things Stand Now
The situation between Jon and Collin has been quiet for the last couple of weeks. In fact, the fighting between Kate and Jon has even seemed to die out, too, and Jon's also been silent on social media. Hopefully, that means things are calming down for this family, and Jon and Collin will be able to find a way to get along peacefully. He's already been through so much, and it's hard to imagine what Collin must be going through.
