Former 19 Kids And Counting TV Star Josh Duggar Found Guilty Of Possessing Child Pornography

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Former 19 Kids and Counting Josh Duggar was found guilty of downloading and possessing child pornography.

The jury in Fayetteville found the 33-year-old Duggar guilty on one count each of receiving and possessing child pornography. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 for each count when he’s sentenced.

“Regardless of wealth, social status, or fame, our office will continue to seek out all individuals who seek to abuse children and victimize them through the downloading, possession, and sharing of child pornography,” said U.S. Attorney Clay Fowlkes of the western district of Arkansas, which prosecuted the case.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks said sentencing will happen in about four months.

“We respect the jury’s verdict and we look forward to continuing this fight on appeal,” said Justin Gelfand, one of Duggar’s defense attorneys.

Duggar and his large Arkansas family starred on TLC’s “19 Kids and Counting” until the network canceled the show in 2015 following revelations that he had molested four of his sisters and a babysitter. Authorities began investigating the abuse in 2006 after receiving a tip from a family friend but concluded that the statute of limitations on any possible charges had expired.

The judge in the child porn case ruled that jurors could hear testimony about how in 2003, Duggar admitted to molesting four girls. A family friend testified that Duggar told her about the abuse.

Federal authorities said they began investigating after a Little Rock police detective found child porn files were being shared by a computer traced to Duggar. A federal agent testified in May that images depicting the sexual abuse of children, including toddlers, were downloaded in 2019 onto a computer at a car dealership Duggar owned.

Duggar’s attorney argued that someone else downloaded or uploaded the images onto Duggar’s computer. But the jury wasn’t swayed.