FAYETTEVILLE -- A jury was selected in federal court to hear Josh Duggar's child pornography case Tuesday evening, with opening statements and the evidentiary portion of the trial set for this morning.
Duggar, 33, of Springdale is charged in federal court with two counts involving receiving and possessing child pornography. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 on each count.
Members of the media were not allowed in the courtroom during jury selection. An audio feed was connected to a downstairs courtroom where media members were allowed to listen to the proceedings.
At some point in the afternoon, while jurors were being questioned privately in the judge's chambers, the courtroom audio feed was turned off and was never turned back on. While the audio was off, a jury was selected and those who were in the courtroom left the building.
Cellphones, computers and other electronic devices are barred from the courthouse during Duggar's trial.
Duggar, best known for being part of his family's cable television reality show, is accused of using the internet in May 2019 to download and possess the material, some of which depicts the sexual abuse of children younger than 12, according to court documents.
Federal prosecutors have said many of the 200 or more images Duggar is accused of downloading showed children ranging from toddlers to 12-year-olds. At least three police officers downloaded file shares of child pornography from Duggar's computer, according to prosecutors.
In November 2019, reports surfaced that federal authorities had served a search warrant at the address of a used-car dealership, Wholesale Motorcars, run by Duggar.
In court filings, prosecutors said detective Amber Kalmer in Little Rock used a law enforcement tool to download files depicting the sexual abuse of children directly from Duggar's computer. The detective then sent a lead related to her undercover downloads to Special Agent Gerald Faulkner with Homeland Security Investigations, who determined that the IP address was assigned to Duggar's small used-car dealership in Springdale.
Faulkner obtained a warrant to search the business. The dealership's computer and multiple electronic devices belonging to Duggar were reportedly seized. Based on forensic evidence found on those devices, among other evidence, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment charging Duggar with receipt and possession of child pornography.
Leading up to the trial, U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks said he would allow the defense to argue that others had access to the computer used to download the child pornography and to bring up those who might have done it, such as employees of the car lot.
Brooks ruled that a previous statement by Duggar on social media about having a pornography addiction was inadmissible.
Still pending from a Monday hearing was whether Brooks would allow testimony that Duggar sexually assaulted a girl in March 2003.
Prosecutors contend that Duggar confessed the assault in 2003 to his father, former state Rep. Jim Bob Duggar, and to Jim and Bobye Holt. Jim Holt is a former state senator.
Bobye Holt testified during a pretrial hearing that Josh Duggar told her more details about the incident a couple of years later.
Prosecutors want Bobye Holt and, possibly, Jim Bob Duggar to testify during the trial.
The defense argued that the 18-year-old allegation never resulted in charges and has no relevance to the charges Duggar faces now. They also maintain that the meeting was between elders of the church that the Duggars and Holts attended and that the testimony should be excluded.
"The testimony adduced by the parties at the evidentiary hearing reveals that any statements made to Bobye Holt and/or Jim Holt by Duggar or Jim Bob Duggar were made to them in their capacity as spiritual advisors with the expectation that the communications would be kept confidential," according to a brief filed Tuesday morning. "As such, any such statements are shielded from disclosure by the clergy privilege."
Jim Holt and Jim Bob Duggar were church elders of the Bible Grace Fellowship Church, a non-denominational religious institution whose services were held inside its members' homes, according to the brief.
Jim Bob Duggar testified Monday that he told the Holts that the conversations were to be kept confidential. Bobye Holt testified that the meeting was two families talking about their children.
Prosecutors argue that Bobye Holt was not an elder because women were not allowed to serve as leaders in the church. They also argue that Duggar waived that privilege.
"Here, the defendant and his father have publicly acknowledged the details of their conversation with the Holts in press releases, other court cases, and, in the case of the defendant's father, a televised interview in which he discussed seeking the help of his friends-- the Holts -- to address the defendant's inappropriate touching of minors," according a brief by prosecutors. "Any claim from the defendant now that he thought his admissions to Mrs. Holt were privileged has been vitiated by his and his family's face-saving press tour."
Prosecutors say the assault allegation is one part of behavior by Josh Duggar that witnesses could testify to, including fondling of other girls dating back to the autumn of 2002, according to arguments in court.