Disgraced former reality TV star Josh Duggar is asking a federal judge to appoint a lawyer to represent him as part of his efforts to have his child pornography possession charges vacated.
The “19 Kids and Counting” star cited “new legal theories and strategies [that] have emerged in public discourse” in documents that were filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas on Tuesday.
The filing came on the same day that it was revealed the Trump administration would pardon reality stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, following years of campaigning by their daughter, MAGA favorite Savannah Chrisley. The pair were serving a combined 19 years on fraud and tax evasion charges.
Duggar last unsuccessfully appealed his 2021 conviction in 2024. He is currently serving a sentence of more than 12 years at the Seagoville Federal Corrections Institution in Texas.
“The defendant requests counsel for the limited purpose of reviewing the record, evaluating possible constitutional claims, and, if meritorious grounds exist, preparing and filing a motion,” one section of Duggar’s filing read, reports KNWA.
Duggar said that he wishes “to consult with counsel to fully evaluate the potential of these emerging strategies and how they may support a motion for relief.”
In 2020, federal authorities investigated after police in Little Rock, Arkansas, found child sexual abuse material was being shared by a computer traced to him. Investigators testified that images depicting the sexual abuse of children, including toddlers, were downloaded in 2019 onto a computer at a car dealership Duggar owned. He was sentenced to 12 and one-half years in prison.
Lower courts have upheld his conviction, rejecting Duggar’s argument that his attorneys should have been able to ask about the prior sex-offense conviction of a former employee of the dealership who had used the same computer. Duggar’s attorneys did not ask the former employee to testify after the judge ruled they could not mention the prior conviction.
TLC canceled “19 Kids and Counting” in 2015 following allegations that Duggar had molested four of his sisters and a babysitter years earlier. Authorities began investigating after receiving a tip from a family friend, but concluded that the statute of limitations on any possible charges had expired.
Duggar’s parents said after the allegations resurfaced in 2015 that he had confessed to the fondling and apologized privately. Duggar then apologized publicly for unspecified behavior and resigned as a lobbyist for the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian group.
