Joseph Duggar’s lawyers asked a Florida court for permission to question the investigators who spoke to the now-14-year-old alleged victim in his child molestation case.
Court documents obtained by Us Weekly show that Duggar, 31, asked the court on Friday, May 1, to “issue a subpoena to compel disclosure of information obtained through the investigation of reported child abuse.” Duggar was previously charged in March with lewd and lascivious behavior involving molestation of a victim less than 12 years old and lewd and lascivious behavior conducted by a person 18 years or older.
In his latest court filing, Duggar asked for his lawyers to have access to evidence gathered by prosecutors from the Department of Children & Families, Big Ben, Child Protection Team, whose officials spoke to the alleged victim prior to the 19 Kids and Counting star’s arrest on March 18 in Arkansas. His legal team also requested the ability to question “any other law enforcement or child protection agency involved with this investigation (including out of state equivalents, specifically Arkansas).”
“The Defendant is entitled to discovery of the witness testimony, including records and evidence in the possession of the witnesses for a fair determination of the Defendant’s guilt or innocence at trial,” the legal filing read.
Us has reached out to Duggar’s lawyers for comment.
Duggar has been accused of molesting the now-14-year-old victim when she was 9 years old on a family vacation in Panama City Beach, Florida, in 2020. The alleged victim told investigators at Arkansas’ Tontitown Police Department in a forensic interview that there were “several instances of sexual abuse” involving Joseph while his wife, Kendra Duggar, was pregnant with their third baby. (Joseph and Kendra share four children.)
Per the alleged victim, Joseph “eventually approached the victim and apologized for his actions,” and the abuse “stopped occurring.”
Joseph previously entered a written plea of not guilty in his child molestation case as he was extradited to Florida. (He was released on a $600,000 bond from a Florida jail on March 31 and has since reunited with Kendra.)
Two days after Joseph’s arrest in March, he and wife Kendra, 27, were both charged with four counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, second-degree, and four counts of second-degree false imprisonment in Arkansas.
Both Kendra and Joseph have pleaded not guilty in the child endangerment case. At the time of their arrests, a source exclusively told Us that the child endangerment charges had “nothing to do” with Joseph’s child sex abuse case in Florida.
“After his charge, they automatically do a home study if minors live there. They came to [Kendra’s] house,” the source said. “Apparently, they had two rooms where the lock of the doorknob was on the outside instead of inside. They arrested her and took her kids for that, saying it’s evidence that she wrongly detains her kids.”
Meanwhile, multiple Duggar family members have spoken out about Joseph’s child molestation charges — including Joseph’s parents, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar.
“Jim Bob and Michelle are heartbroken over this entire situation,” a Duggar family spokesperson told Us in a statement on March 30. “Right now, they are focused on loving their family and helping Kendra and her children during this difficult time. They are praying for the victim. They ask for privacy and appreciate the kind words and prayers offered by so many.”
Kendra’s family broke their silence on April 15, saying via Instagram that they are “troubled and heartbroken over the alleged actions committed by our son-in-law.”
“We are devastated for the young girl, a child who was courageous in every way to share her truth. We stand by her, both in support and prayer, and forever will,” the Caldwell family wrote. “Our love for this child remains at the forefront of our family’s priorities and minds. We are proud of her for being strong enough to share her story while also retaining her own identity and joy.”
The Caldwells have since gone public about ongoing disputes with the Duggars, including allegations that they’d lost their “current housing situation and employment” in the wake of Joseph’s arrest. The Duggars have yet to respond publicly to those accusations.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). If you or someone you know is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
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