Josh Duggar, the eldest son of the famous reality show about the Duggar family from TLC’s “19 Kids and Counting,” was sentenced to 151 months — that’s 12.5 years — stemming from being found guilty of child pornography possession, according to The Sun.
The 34-year-old Arkansas native attempted to get a new trial but had that request denied by the judge on Tuesday. He was found guilty by a federal jury in Arkansas on charges related to the receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography, per Fox News.
Duggar faced anywhere from five to twenty years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each conviction, People reported.
U.S. Attorneys made a statement outside the courthouse after the former reality star was found guilty.
“This case represents a significant milestone for the Western District of Arkansas and our continued efforts to combat child abuse,” one of the attorneys said.
“Those who would say that children who were photographed and videoed in a manner similar to the evidence in this case are not abused and are not victims are clearly wrong. Children who are photographed and videoed in manners such as this are the victims and every time their videos and photos are traded online, uploaded, and downloaded from the internet, they are victimized again,” the attorney added.
Other members of the Duggar family have been divided on whether Josh was innocent. His wife, Anna, has stood by her husband throughout the ordeal. The couple wed in 2008 and has seven children together, including a daughter born in late 2021, just months before Josh was found guilty.
Josh’s mother, Michelle, wrote a letter to Judge Timothy L. Brooks requesting leniency in his sentencing. She said, “Joshua has a tender heart and he is compassionate toward others.”
Anna called her husband a “loving, supportive and caring father” in a letter of her own.
Josh’s wife also stood by him in May 2015 after Josh was accused of molesting multiple teenage girls, including some of his sisters, in 2002. He admitted to wrongdoing at the time and apologized. “I have been the biggest hypocrite ever,” he wrote in a statement shared on the Duggar family website, per Us Weekly.
“While espousing faith and family values, I have secretly over the last several years been viewing pornography on the internet and this became a secret addiction, and I became unfaithful to my wife.”
Hackers had found Josh’s profile on the dating website Ashley Madison, which markets to married people seeking to have affairs.
Josh’s father, Jim Bob, and his siblings Joy-Anna (Duggar) Forsyth and Jason Duggar were seen at the Western District of Arkansas Federal Courthouse in Fayetteville on Wednesday morning before proceedings began. Anna was there as well.