FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. The selection of the jury begins Tuesday in former reality TV star Josh Duggar’s trial over federal charges of child pornography.
Duggar, who appeared in TLC’s “19 Kids and Counting”, was charged in April with two counts of downloading and possessing child pornography.
Duggar, 33, faces up to 20 years in prison and fines up to $ 250,000 on each charge if convicted.
Duggar has pleaded not guilty in the case, and his lawyers have said they plan to defend his case “aggressively and thoroughly.”
Duggar has also apologized for his pornography addiction and for being unfaithful to his wife Anna Duggar.
Duggar’s trial begins as his father, Jim Bob Duggar, faces a special election for a vacant state Senate seat in northwest Arkansas. Jim Bob Duggar was also prominent on the TLC show and has previously served in the Arkansas House. The primary election for the open seat is December 14th.
More:’19 Kids and Counting ‘star Jim Bob Duggar announces candidacy for Arkansas State Senate
It also comes just weeks after Anna Duggar gave birth to the couple’s seventh child together.
The trial was originally scheduled for July, but was adjourned until November after a federal judge granted a request from Duggar’s defense team.
Here is everything we know so far.
Why was Josh Duggar arrested?
Duggar was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service, according to online government records, and booked in jail on April 29 in Washington County, Arkansas.
A federal grand jury in the western district of Arkansas accused Duggar of claiming that in 2019 he “deliberately” received pictures of children under 12 years of age.
“Duggar allegedly possessed this material, some of which depicts child sexual abuse,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
The case is being pursued in part by the national initiative Project Safe Childhood, a program launched in 2006 by the Ministry of Justice to protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse.
Is Josh Duggar in jail?
No. Duggar was released from prison in May after appearing practically in a federal court in Arkansas for a detention hearing on the charges.
After a three-hour hearing, U.S. District Judge Christy Comstock ruled that Duggar would be released as “third-party guardians” – family friends of his parents – and could have no contact with minor children except his own children and then only in the presence of their mother. Anna Duggar.
“I can not in good conscience send you home,” Comstock said. “There are five or six minor children in your parents ‘house, in your house and in your grandparents’ house.”
The judge said he could not possess or view any pornography or erotica of any kind and he is barred from accessing the internet through any device. The judge also ordered electronic GPS monitoring and said Duggar should remain with the resident of Rebers, longtime friends of his parents, at all times except certain activities such as work, doctor visits or meetings with his lawyers.
Josh Duggar released pending lawsuit:Everything we know about his child pornography accuses
Does Josh Duggar have children?
Duggar’s arrest came less than a week after his wife announced on Instagram that she was pregnant with their seventh child.
In a video posted on Instagram on April 23, the couple is standing in a field with their six children running in the background. Duggar opens an umbrella over himself and his wife and drops pink confetti over them.
“It’s a GIRL !!!!!,” Anna wrote in the caption. “We are very happy to announce that baby seven is on the way and we can not wait to hold her in our arms until the fall!”
On November 16, she announced the birth of the little girl with a picture of the newborn on her Instagram along with the caption “Meet Little Madyson Lily Duggar!”
The couple have been married for 13 years and share children Mackynzie, 12; Michael, 10; Marcus, 8; Meredith, 6; Murer, 4; and Maryella, 2.
More:Josh Duggar’s wife Anna announces birth of seventh child two weeks before his child porn trial
Who is the Duggar family?
The Duggar family became famous with their TLC show “19 Kids and Counting”, which portrayed the personal life of Arkansas parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. Josh is their eldest son.
TLC canceled “19 Kids and Counting” in 2015 after a sexual abuse scandal involving Josh, who later admitted to having a porn addiction and cheating on his wife. The series’ spinoff “Counting On” features story lines that focus on his sisters and their young families.
Duggar was never charged after an anonymous tip spurred an investigation into his alleged caresses of five girls in 2002 and 2003. He admitted wrongdoing in a statement after news reports were published in 2015. His parents and two of his sisters, Jill Dillard and Jessa Seewald, later confirmed the actions.
Dillard and Seewald stepped forward, saying they were among the five girls he abused in the second part of an exclusive interview with Megyn Kelly on Fox’s “The Kelly File” in 2015.
Dillard, who was 12 at the time of the assault, said: “I was shocked. And I’m sorry because this is my older brother, whom I love a lot. I was angry at first. I thought, ‘How could that be? Spoon?’ “
Seewald said she was 9 or 10 at the time of the abuse. “In Josh’s case, he was a young boy in puberty and a little too curious about girls. And that got him in some trouble,” she said.
Duggar’s parents issued a joint statement on their family website on April 30 following the news of their eldest son’s indictment.
“The accusations against Joshua today are very serious. It is our prayer that the truth, whatever it is, will come to light and that it will all be resolved in a timely manner,” they wrote. “We love Josh and Anna and continue to pray for their family.”
“We just heard about it yesterday. It’s sad,” Duggar’s sister Jill said of his arrest in a statement to USA TODAY.
On May 1, Duggar’s sister Jessa Seewald and her husband, Ben, posted identical statements about the arrest on their Instagram Stories.
“We’re sorry to hear about the charges against Josh,” the statement read. “As Christians, we oppose any form of pornography or abuse, and we want the truth to be revealed, whatever it may be. Our prayers go out to their families as they go through this difficult time.”
That same day, Jinger Vuolo, another of Duggar’s sisters, posted a statement on Instagram in which they wrote that her family is “concerned about hearing about the charges against Josh.”
“While this case needs to go through the justice system, we want to make it clear that we absolutely condemn any form of child abuse and fully support the authorities and the judicial process in their pursuit of justice,” she wrote.
More:Judge rejects Josh Duggar’s proposal to dismiss charges of child pornography, evidence
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