On Dec. 9, Josh Duggar was found guilty of two counts of downloading and possessing child pornography, reports CBS News. The former reality personality faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 on each count. Following the jury’s decision, various members of the Duggar family have been sharing their opinions about the verdict. Counting On stars Derick Dillard and his wife Jill Duggar released a statement explaining that they had attended several days of the trial.
“We just wanted to, among other things, see the facts for ourselves,” Dillard told PEOPLE. “America is the best country to get justice,” he added tellingly.
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Prosecutors alleged that Duggar used the internet at his workplace to download child sexual abuse materials, some of which depicted the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12. The federal trial in Arkansas began last week, with the prosecution resting its case Monday and the defense resting Tuesday. The jury convened Wednesday in an attempt to make a decision but did not reach a verdict by the end of the day, extending into Thursday.
The defense argued that the child sexual abuse materials found on Duggar’s computer could have been downloaded by someone else or placed onto the workplace computer remotely, which was backed up by defense witness and forensic computer analyst Michele Bush. Bush’s credibility was called into question, however, when she acknowledged to prosecutors that the 10 years of experience she claimed as a forensic computer analyst included time as a college student, as reported by KNWA-TV. Bush was also hammered by the prosecution over her claim she had testified numerous times in court as an expert witness, admitting under follow-up questioning that the Duggar case might actually be her first.
Prosecutors alleged that Duggar used the internet at his workplace to download child sexual abuse materials, some of which depicted the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12. The federal trial in Arkansas began last week, with the prosecution resting its case Monday and the defense resting Tuesday. The jury convened Wednesday in an attempt to make a decision but did not reach a verdict by the end of the day, extending into Thursday.
The defense argued that the child sexual abuse materials found on Duggar’s computer could have been downloaded by someone else or placed onto the workplace computer remotely, which was backed up by defense witness and forensic computer analyst Michele Bush. Bush’s credibility was called into question, however, when she acknowledged to prosecutors that the 10 years of experience she claimed as a forensic computer analyst included time as a college student, as reported by KNWA-TV. Bush was also hammered by the prosecution over her claim she had testified numerous times in court as an expert witness, admitting under follow-up questioning that the Duggar case might actually be her first.
When Duggar’s molestation scandal was initially made public in 2015, TLC canceled 19 Kids and Counting, following up with Counting On, a spinoff about the Duggar family that did not include the disgraced family member. In 2015, Duggar publicly apologized for his pornography addiction and for cheating on his wife Anna Duggar, who gave birth last month to the couple’s seventh child.
