Josh Duggar's trial date was set to start in July, but is still up in the air. The 19 Kids & Counting star is on home arrest and waiting for his day in court. TLC viewers are curious as to why his legal team feels they should push the trial until February 2022.
Fans of TLC and the popular show will recall the 33-year-old was arrested back in April and pleaded not guilty to charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. If he is convicted, he can face up to 20 years in prison for each count plus a $250,000 fine. Since there are a total of two accounts, his time behind bars would be doubled to 40 years. Duggar is currently not allowed to leave his home and has to wear an ankle bracelet. He was granted unlimited contact to see his children as long as his wife Anna Duggar is present. He is not allowed around any other minor children, including his nieces and nephews.
News broke that the TLC star's lawyers had requested that Josh’s trial be moved from this July to February 2022. According to his team of lawyers, the defense and the prosecution are arguing over scheduling conflicts. According to People, the lead lawyer, Justin Gelfand, filed a motion to delay the trial in the Western District of Arkansas Court. The issue seems to be due to the defense hiring a computer forensics expert to review the case evidence. And the expert simply needs more time.
In the court documents obtained by the outlet, Gelfand wrote, "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.” The prosecution is less than happy with this move and filed a response on Monday asking for just a three-month delay. The government argued that to wait any longer would serve no purpose, and they believe there is no legally factual reason why the trial could not go ahead.
The defense also argued that there are particular key witnesses which the Government did not interview and could be a good source of evidence. Most of his large family and fellow stars of 19 Kids and Counting have condemned his crimes, but Anna feels her husband is innocent.
Source: People
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