Josh Duggar attorneys seek dismissal of child porn charges because prosecutors didn't save evidence that could have proved his innocence - and claims pictures were from employee who 'stayed at business overnight'
The legal team representing embattled 19 Kids and Counting star Josh Duggar said it wants its client's child pornography charges dropped because the government failed to preserve evidence that might have exonerated the celebrity.
Moreover, his lawyers said in an August 20 court filing that other people had access to Duggar's used car sales lot, where one admitted to watching porn.
The Springdale, Arkansas, business was previously the target of Department of Homeland Security investigators , who searched the electronic devices of people who had access to the wireless internet at Wholesale Motorcars.
About a month after executing its first search warrant at the car lot, investigators learned that one person had on 'several occasions' slept overnight at Wholesale Motorcars, where he entertained himself with adult content, the court filing said.
'The admitted to viewing adult pornography through websites he accessed through the internet on his cellular phone and, when asked by federal agents, denied viewing child pornography,' the court document said. 'Based on HIS's official report, the cellular telephone was examined for evidence of child pornography… with negative results.'
Josh Duggar, who appeared in TLC's 19 Kids and Counting, is accused of downloading and keeping porn depicting sexual abuse against children younger than 12
The Arkansas native's legal team says his charges should be dropped due to the government's failure to hang onto crucial evidence that might have exonerated Duggar
Investigators questioned two others connected to the lot, searched their cellular phones, and found no evidence of criminal activity, according to the court doc.
The filing said HSI did not preserve evidence from any of the three phones, including their contents or metadata.
The defense team said it wants Duggar's case dismissed based on the government's failure to hang onto evidence that might have exonerated its high-profile client.
Defense attorneys says one of the cell phones in question was used by a man who admitted to sleeping at Duggar's car lot, where he watched adult porn
'Investigators searched these electronic devices in connection with this investigation—but the government has admitted that law enforcement failed to preserve any evidence obtained during these searches, some of which were performed by federal computer forensics analysts,' the filing said. 'The Due Process Clause requires law enforcement to preserve evidence that is either facially exculpatory or potentially exculpatory.
Defense attorneys are calling on a judge to either toss the case or, at the very least, hold an evidentiary hearing 'to determine what can be determined based on the searches performed and to explore the possibility of alternative remedies.'
Duggar, 33, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of child pornography. He was arrested April 29 in Springdale, Arkansas on allegations he downloaded child pornography depicting the sexual abuse of victims younger than 12. Prosecutors have said he had the material since May 2019.
Other filings made by Duggar's legal team last Friday included three motions of suppression, including a request to exclude from evidence 'warrentless' photos of their client's hands and feet following his arrest.
Court filings previously submitted by the prosecution allege Duggar, pictured with wife Anna and children, hid a stash of child pornography on his work computer behind a wholesome family portrait
A separate motion to dismiss filing alleged that the two acting secretaries of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security weren't properly appointed at the time of the Duggar investigation.
Previously filed court documents alleged Duggar kept a stash of child pornography on his work computer, hidden behind a screenshot of his family. The PC's home screen featured a portrait of Duggar, his pregnant wife Anna, and their six children, prosecutors said in a court filing.