The testimony has concluded in the trial of Josh Duggar, The former reality star charged with two counts of downloading and possessing child pornography, and jury deliberations began Wednesday.
According to court documents, in May 2019, Duggar allegedly used the Internet to download child pornography, some of which shows the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12.
The federal trial in Arkansas began last week and the prosecution rested its case on Monday, according to the Associated Press. Duggar’s attorneys began calling witnesses and the defense rested Tuesday.
Duggar’s lawyers questioned forensic computer analyst Michele Bush, according to the AP. Bush said the computer where the child pornography was downloaded could have been remotely accessed and his lawyers argued that someone else could have placed the pornography on the device.
The computer was used at Duggar’s workplace. In October, his attorneys filed a motion to suppress the video evidence found on their devices, arguing that the case had become “outdated” because so much time had elapsed between the time federal agents downloaded the files and the time. in which they obtained a search warrant, The Associated Press Reports.
However, a federal judge decided to allow videos found on electronic devices used by Duggar to be used as evidence in the case. Despite a time lag between the files being downloaded and the search warrant, US District Judge Timothy L. Brooks said investigators didn’t take long to go through the electronic devices. He said these searches are complicated and can take time.
On Wednesday, final arguments will be followed by jury deliberations, AP reports.
A friend of the Duggar family testified this week that Duggar admitted in 2003 to sexually abusing four girls, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.
In 2015, In Touch magazine published a 2006 police report that claimed Duggar sexually abused five girls as early as 2002. The incidents were not reported to the police until 2006 and the authorities were unable to press charges because the statute of limitations had been approved.
After the report on Duggar’s sexual abuse allegations was made public in 2015, the family’s reality show “19 Children and Counting” was canceled by TLC. Duggar is the eldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, whose family appeared on the show.
That same year, Duggar was also charged to have a account about Ashley Madison, a popular website dedicated to discreet encounters and extramarital affairs. In a statement, he said he was the “greatest hypocrite of all time” by being unfaithful to his wife, Anna Duggar.
Just a few weeks ago, Anna Duggar announced on Instagram that she had given birth to the couple’s seventh child, Madyson Lily Duggar.
Caitlin O’Kane
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