Joseph Duggar & Kendra Change Plea In Arkansas Case

Counting On alums Joseph Duggar and his wife, Kendra Duggar, altered their legal strategy regarding their Arkansas misdemeanor case.

Plea Withdrawal

On Monday this week, the former TLC couple withdrew their previous not guilty pleas and submitted a plea by order to the Elm Springs District Court.

According to Us Weekly, this procedure “allows both Joseph, 31, and Kendra, 27, to enter guilty or no contest pleas” without physically appearing before the judge.

The case was placed into a 12-month diversion program, as reported by Arkansas Online. Under the agreement, if Joseph Duggar and Kendra don’t commit any new offenses and follow court-mandated conditions for one year, the state will dismiss all charges.

That could mean that the Counting On stars avoid a sentencing phase entirely.

The Arkansas Charges

The charges came after an investigation in Tontitown, Arkansas. Celebrating the Soaps reported that the couple faced charges including “four counts of False Imprisonment” and “four counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Minor.”

Allegations suggested that their children were housed in a setup involving locked doors that prevented standard exit, creating potential safety hazards.

Different From The Florida Case

These pleas are different from the Florida case against Joseph Duggar. Us Weekly’s report reminded followers that the former TLC star was previously arrested on charges of “lewd and lascivious behavior involving molestation of a victim less than 12 years old” tied to an incident in 2020.

Extradited, he pleaded not guilty in that case but received restrictions from interacting with children.

Undisclosed Conditions

It’s not known what the conditions of the diversion program are, per Arkansas Online. But typical Arkansas misdemeanor diversion agreements generally require people to remain law-abiding, pay associated court fees, meet with probation supervisors, or complete assigned educational coursework.

Should Joseph and Kendra Duggar fail to meet the conditions, then the case against them could be reinstated.

Readers React

When Katie Joy of Without a Crystal Ball shared the news on Instagram, plenty of reality TV fans had a chance to weigh in. One of them asked, “OMG. 😳. Are they are going to voluntarily release their children?”

Another reader said, “After this I hope that in the agreement that both of them can’t have more kids!”

Here’s a similar post, “Hopefully supervised visits and kids are never returned.”

Others were not sure how the plea impacted the children. A follower wrote, “This doesn’t square them with CPS. She’ll still have to leave him to get the kids back.”

What We Know About The Kids and Kendra

What we do know is that Kendra was temporarily prohibited from contacting the alleged victims in the Arkansas case. A judge later dissolved that order and authorized the Arkansas Department of Human Services to supervise and facilitate reunification.

Your thoughts? Join the discussion and then come back here for more celebrity justice news and updates.