Josh Duggar heads to trial later this month, and his defense attorneys are trying to ensure his past molestation scandal doesn’t get brought up.
The former reality TV star was arrested on child pornography charges in April. He was charged with possessing and receiving child sex abuse material and spent a few days in the Washington County Correctional Facility while waiting for his bond hearing.
Since May, Josh — who pleaded not guilty to the charges — has lived with family friends Lacount and Maria Reber. They were appointed his third-party custodians while he awaits trial on November 30.
Prosecution wants to bring up Josh Duggar’s molestation scandal
According to People, Josh Duggar’s past issues could come back to bite him when he stands trial on the child pornography charges at the end of the month.
New court filings reveal that the prosecution wants to introduce evidence about his previous molestation scandal as part of their case.
Josh’s legal team responded with a motion to exclude that from being discussed when proceedings begin.
Josh’s attorneys said in a filing, “The existence of juvenile allegations—which did not lead to charges, much less convictions—does not have any tendency to make it more or less likely that Duggar committed the crimes with which he presently stands accused.
“Specifically, an allegation concerning alleged conduct by Duggar as a juvenile sheds no light on whether Duggar knowingly received or possessed alleged child pornography on three days in 2019 as the indictment alleges.”
The prosecution has also said they may bring up an apology Josh made after it previously emerged that he had cheated on his wife via the Ashley Madison website; however, the defense responded by asking a judge to exclude that evidence as well.
What happened during Josh Duggar’s molestation scandal?
In 2015, it was revealed that Josh Duggar had as a teenage boy been investigated for molesting four of his sisters and a family friend, who were all underage girls at the time.
TLC canceled 19 Kids and Counting following the news; however, the Duggars were later given a spin-off with Josh not allowed to participate. Counting On was born out of Jill and Jessa Duggar talking about their experience as his victims.
They downplayed what happened, but a few years later, Jill walked away from the show along with her husband, Derick Dillard.
Josh was never charged with any crimes, and the Duggars appeared to sweep the incident under the rug. A few weeks later, the world found out Josh had been using Ashley Madison when the extramarital affair website was hacked and details of users leaked.
His parents, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar sent Josh to a rehab facility in Rockford, Illinois, to get him treatment, where he stayed for several weeks.
The judge in his child pornography case has yet to make a decision on the latest motions, however with the trial just a few weeks a way a ruling can be expected soon.