Judge allows video evidence found on electric devices of Josh Duggar, who faces up to 20 years in prison

A federal judge will allow videos found on electronic devices used by Josh Duggar to be used as evidence in his child pornography case.

Duggar, who appeared on the TLC reality show "19 Kids and Counting" with his parents and siblings, was charged with two counts of downloading and possessing child pornography earlier this year. The 33-year-old faces up to 20 years in prison and fines up to $250,000 if convicted on each count.

Duggar's attorneys filed a motion to suppress video evidence found on his devices, arguing the case had become "stale" since so much time had passed between the time federal agents downloaded the files and the time they obtained a search warrant, the Associated Press reports. 

U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks said the motion isn't warranted and that courts, on numerous occasions, have found that evidence in child pornography cases doesn't become stale, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Even though time has elapsed between the downloading of the files and the search warrant, Brooks said the investigators did not take too long to review the electronic devices. He said these searches are complicated and can take a while.

According to court documents, in May 2019, Duggar allegedly used the internet to download child pornography, some of which depicts the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12. 

In 2015, In Touch magazine published a 2006 police report that claimed Duggar sexually molested five girls as far back as 2002. The incidents were not reported to police until 2006 and authorities could not pursue charges because the statute of limitations had passed.

Duggar, the oldest of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar's 19 children, resigned from his position at the Family Research Council in Washington, a nongovernmental organization that says its mission is to "advance faith, family and freedom in public policy and the culture from a Christian worldview."

The family's reality show was canceled by TLC in July 2015. That same year, Duggar was accused of having an account on Ashley Madison, a popular website dedicated to discreet encounters and extramarital affairs. In a statement he said he was the "biggest hypocrite ever" by being unfaithful to his wife, Anna Duggar. 

In April 2021, Anna announced she was expecting their seventh child.