Joseph Duggar and his wife Kendra are facing several child endangerment charges in Arkansas, but just before they were set to make their first court appearance, the reality television personality and his spouse withdrew their not guilty pleas.
The couple instead submitted a plea by order of the court, allowing them to plead guilty or no contest, People magazine reported.
The Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette said the case can be diverted for a year but will remain open.
They were charged with four counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a minor and four counts of second-degree false imprisonment.
A judge has to sign off on the plea and will determine the punishment, which could include jail time of up to eight years and thousands of dollars in fines.
Joseph Duggar was arrested on March 18 in a separate case from Florida, accused of lewd and lascivious molestation of a victim less than 12 years old and lewd and lascivious behavior conducted by a person 18 years or older, People reported.
He was accused by a 14-year-old girl who said he touched her inappropriately multiple times when she was 9 years old. She said he apologized for it and the alleged abuse stopped, according to US Weekly.
Joseph Duggar was extradited to Florida, where he pleaded not guilty and asked for a jury trial. He was released on a $600,000 bond and returned to Arkansas that same month.
Tontitown Police and the Arkansas Department of Human Services searched the couple’s home, after which they charged Joseph and Kendra Duggar in the endangerment case.
Neither Duggar has commented on the charges from either case.
Joseph Duggar is part of the Duggar family of the “19 Kids and Counting” TLC show that followed the large family’s home life. The show was canceled in 2015 when his brother Joshua confessed to molesting several sisters and another girl as a teen. The statute of limitations had run out. Joshua was convicted on federal charges related to the possession of child sexual abuse material and was sentenced to 12 1/2 years in federal prison in 2022.
Kendra Duggar was on 79 episodes of the spinoff “Counting On” from 2015 to 2021. Joseph and Kendra Duggar married in 2017 and they welcomed their first two children during the show’s filming, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette reported.
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