Josh Duggar's Appeal Denied, Will Stay in Prison Until 2032

Josh Duggar will continue to stay in prison after his appeal to overturn the verdict in his child pornography case was denied. The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit denied the former 19 Kids and Counting star's appeal in Oct. 5 court documents obtained by E! News, meaning the eldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar will continue serving his prison sentence of 12.5 years.

Josh, 35, was convicted of one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography in December 2021 after pleading not guilty to the allegations against him. The following May, he received his sentence, which had two additional months added to it in March. Josh – who shares seven children with wife Anna Duggar – is currently scheduled for release on Oct. 2, 2032. Josh was also fined $10,000 and will be placed on 20 years of supervised release following his prison sentence.

When police reports surfaced in 2015 that Josh had molested multiple young girls as a teenager, 19 Kids and Counting was canceled on TLC, and Josh's sisters Jessa and Jill Duggar would come forward to speak as victims. Jill and Jessa would go on to star in TLC's spinoff series, Counting On, but that show was canceled in the aftermath of Josh's arrest on child pornography charges in April 2021. 

"It's been tough. It's definitely something that's super difficult to talk about," Josh's sister Jinger Duggar told PopCulture.com in February. "When anybody walks through a challenge in life, it's hard enough, but then doing that in the public eye is next level and it's challenging." She added, "But I will speak to just my brother's situation. It's so heartbreaking and my heart just really breaks for the victims. I'm grateful for the justice system that is in place."

While Jinger is "grateful for the justice that is being served at this time," she said it's been a painful time for her and her family. "If you stop and think about it, it's really hard," she added. "It still is painful because anytime there are family things like that, it's hard. It's just hard. So I am grateful though that I just lean in harder to God and turn to my faith in him, and that's what gives me the strength to move forward every day."