Josh Duggar from 19 Kids & Counting and his lawyers are petitioning to postpone his child pornography trial until 2022. Josh and his family rose to popularity when their show starting airing on TLC in 2008. The show lasted 10 seasons, but it came to an end after a molestation scandal involving Josh came to light. In 2015, reports were unearthed that Josh molested five girls when he was a teenager, four of them being his sisters and one of them a former babysitter. Fans were critical of the family for the way the incident was handled. The matter was handled internally, with his parents taking matters into their own hands. Many believe this incident is the reason for the strict rules about male and female interaction within the family, like the side hugs only rule.
In 2015, Josh also came out with the admission that he has an addiction to pornography but later denied it. Fast forward to April 2021 when Josh was arrested in Arkansas and indicted on child pornography charges, to which he pleaded not guilty. If convicted, Josh can face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each count he is guilty of. In a May hearing, Josh was released on bond but was told he could not go home because he has young children. His wife Anna is currently pregnant with their seventh child. While he can't live with them, he is allowed to have as much contact as he would like with them, as long as their mother is present. He cannot be around any other children, but he can go to work, church, legal appointments, and to the doctor if he needs it.
With his trial rapidly approaching, Josh and his legal team have petitioned the courts to have his trial postponed until February 2022. His trial is supposed to start on July 6, with pretrial proceedings beginning on July 1st. As reported by Law and Crime, the defense wants more time, in order to look into the investigations which took place locally that ultimately led to federal involvement. They have hired their own private investigator who will look into the evidence on each computer the feds confiscated, and review some other evidence. Josh's lawyer, Justin Gelfand, claims he has scheduling conflicts that would prevent him from postponing it prior to February 2022.
Josh's attempt to postpone the trial suggests he is planning on defending himself against these allegations based on evidence he is able to gather. He is going for what Law and Crime refers to as a constitutional defense. According to Josh, the government never provided him with any evidence uncovered from the local investigations. He hasn't seen any evidence, including a police report that would show how the Little Rock Police Department has any connection to his case in any way. Josh also claims, he and his team only recently found out about the other two Arkansas law enforcement agencies that participated in the investigation in some way.
It will be interesting to see whether or not the courts will grant Josh his request to postpone his trial. The prosecutors have said the evidence they saw when combing through his computer are some of the worst they have seen in their careers. Everyone deserves the right to a fair trial, but given the nature of Josh's crimes, the judge might not be too open to giving him any breaks. While 19 Kids & Counting was canceled, it will be interesting to see if the family will discuss Josh and his arrest in their new show Counting On.
Source: Law and Crime
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