Josh Duggar not allowed near his 6 kids if released on bail after his arrest for child porn, says judge
LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS: Former reality TV star Joshua Duggar, who has been arrested on federal charges related to the possession of child pornography, will be barred from living with his wife and children at his family home in Arkansas if he is released on bail while awaiting trial, a judge has ruled.
Duggar reportedly downloaded material that depicted the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12, as per the US attorney's office. He allegedly possessed the material in May 2019. Duggar faces two charges -- one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 if convicted.
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Duggar was arrested in Arkansas Thursday, April 29. After entering his not guilty plea at a court in Arkansas on Friday, April 30, US Chief Magistrate Judge Erin L Wiedemann told Duggar that if he is released on bond, he would not be permitted to reside in a house with children.
"Given the nature of the charges against him, the court would likely require a third-party custodian that he could reside with and that would ensure compliance with conditions of bond so you all would need to get that line out and inform our probation office of who that person is so they could interview that person," Wiedemann said, adding that a probation officer would interview Duggar to determine his suitability for bail.
"They also will want to interview Mr Duggar. They won't discuss your charges Duggar but they will interview you for information to determine whether you're a good person for release, in a residence where they are no minors in the home or that would be visiting unsupervised," the judge said.
Josh Duggar lives with wife Anna, and their six children, the eldest of whom is just 11 years old. Duggar is set to appear in court again on May 5 for a detention hearing. The trial is currently scheduled for July 6, Judge Erin Wiedemann said. Duggar’s defense team said on Friday, April 30, that they “intend to defend this case aggressively and thoroughly.”
“In this country, no one can stop prosecutors from charging a crime,” his lawyers, Justin Gelfand, Travis Story, and Greg Payne, said in a statement. “But when you’re accused, you can fight back in the courtroom -- and that is exactly what Josh intends to do.”
From 2008 to 2015, Duggar and his siblings were featured in ‘19 Kids and Counting’, a reality show following the Duggars, a large Arkansas conservative Christian household. In 2015, the celebrity gossip magazine, In Touch Weekly, unearthed a 2006 police report that showed him at the center of a police investigation.
The police report said that as a teenager, Mr. Duggar had fondled the genitals of several girls both forcibly and while they slept. However, charges were never pressed because the statute of limitations had expired.