Josh Duggar is facing serious jail time if convicted on the child pornography charges. The former reality TV star is charged with one count of possession and one count of receiving the heinous images.
In April, Josh turned himself into the Washington County Detention Center after an arrest warrant was issued. Anna Duggar went with her husband, and he remained in custody for close to a week before being granted bail.
Now, the disgraced son of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar is asking for his trial to be delayed just weeks before it was set to begin.
Lawyers ask for a delay in Josh Duggar’s trial
According to Law & Crime, Josh Duggar’s defense attorneys asked for the trial to be continued until February 2022 to perform forensic evaluations of the evidence and look into the investigations that proceeded the HSI raid.
This comes as the initial trial date given was July 6. With that date just three weeks away, followers of the family were gearing up to see what the outcome would be and whether Josh would face significant jail time.
The news doesn’t come as too much of a shock, though. Earlier this week, it was revealed that there is a gag order in place for the minor victims who will be named in the case. The records will be sealed, and their names will be redacted. That motion was filed in federal court on June 11.
Part of the motion filed in court on July 17 reads, “The defense has retained an independent computer forensic expert who must conduct a computer forensic examination of each of the devices at issue—a time-consuming process that requires review at a government facility for the one device the Government alleges contained child pornography.”
It was also noted that Justin Gelfand, the high-profile attorney Josh Duggar hired amid his arrest, has scheduling conflicts throughout the remainder of the year.
What does this mean for the Duggar family?
As of now, there is no information about whether the judge will agree to postpone the trial. Josh Duggar is currently in the custody of Lacount and Maria Reber after being released on bail.
There have already been discussions about the couple’s safety, including a 9-1-1 call made from the home after spotting a trespasser.
Josh’s wife, Anna, is expecting the couple’s seventh child soon. They announced the news just before his arrest, and since then, she has remained silent on social media.
TLC has not announced another season of Counting On yet. It was expected to return sometime this summer, but it was not included in the latest press release for show premieres. Some think that it won’t return until after trial if it even does.
For now, followers are waiting to see what the next step in the Josh Duggar saga is, and whether the motion to delay will be approved.
Counting On is currently on hiatus.