Seth Udinski, FISM News
The trial for possession of child pornography against former TLC star and Christian celebrity, Joshua Duggar, is underway at a court in Arkansas. The 33-year-old Duggar was first arrested on grounds of possession of over 200 graphic images of child pornography in April. The trial was delayed once before its final date was set for Nov. 30. Initial arguments were presented on Wednesday.
In an intriguing development, U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks allowed Duggar’s previous child molestation case to be brought as evidence against him in this current case.
As a teenager, Duggar was accused of sexually molesting four underage girls. Investigations found the accusations were true and that the four victims were his younger sisters. Since he was also a minor at the time, he was not legally convicted but instead disciplined privately at the discretion of his parents, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, much to the confusion of many who viewed his parents as enablers of this lewd behavior. Both of TLC’s reality television shows depicting the Duggars, 19 Kids and Counting and the sequel Counting On, were seemingly canceled due to the controversy surrounding Joshua Duggar.
Judge Brooks validated the testimony of a family friend who claimed Duggar had confided in her about his actions of abuse as a teenager. Brooks said:
The child pornography victims in this case are approximately the same ages as the victims of defendant’s hands-on child-molestation offenses. Accordingly, the prior act evidence is probative of defendant’s sexual interest in underage children and his propensity for exploiting young girls.
This case is dramatic on multiple levels, aside from its nature as a trial of a Christian celebrity. First, Duggar faces potentially devastating charges if convicted, including up to 20 years in prison and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines. Second, Duggar’s defense team is arguing “aggressively and thoroughly” that their client is innocent, claiming someone else planted the pornographic images on Duggar’s computer. Duggar’s attorney Justin Gelfand called the case a “classic, old fashioned whodunit.” Third, this comes only days before Jim Bob Duggar is vying for a seat in the Arkansas Senate.
One can only imagine how the outcome of his son’s case may impact his chances in this election.