[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
Wow, that was fast. After just a day and NO family members called to the stand, the defense in Josh Duggar‘s child porn trial has already rested.
As we told you, the 19 Kids and Counting alum’s legal team seemed to consider their own computer expert their star witness. Forensic computer analyst Michele Bush testified that it was possible due to low cyber-security at Josh’s place of work that an unknown party had remotely hacked into his computer to look at the disturbing and illegal videos the prosecution’s witnesses had detailed.
Related: The Story Of The ‘Most Offensive’ Thing Josh Is Accused Of Downloading
First off, like we said, it doesn’t exactly make sense to us that a hacker would break in and create a Linux partition on the computer using Josh’s own password — the one with his birthday that was also used for the Duggar family Instagram account. And if she meant the hacker broke into the existing secret computer-within-a-computer, then why did Josh have that on his PC in the first place?
Secondly, it seemed from Bush’s cross-examination that her expertise may have been a bit exaggerated. She’d said she had 10 years experience as an analyst, but she admitted to prosecutors she had been including her years as a student in that number. According to KNWA, Bush told the defense she had testified in numerous trials as an expert witness. But when prosecutors asked how many federal criminal trials, she evaded, saying she’d have to check — before finally admitting this might be her first.
Eventually the prosecution brought back DOJ computer expert James Fottrell to rebut some of what she said — and to make clear there was zero evidence found of any remote access to the PC.
Anyway, the old “I got hacked” defense seems to be all Duggar’s team have. They rested on Tuesday having only called two witnesses total. The other was a cop who testified he had been tasked with making sure Josh was present at the Wholesale Motors dealership — he was not part of the actual search warrant execution and acknowledged he had no knowledge of it. Despite numerous family members being on the potential witness sheet, no one else got called.
Related: Jim Bob Duggar LIED For Josh, Says Judge
We obviously aren’t speaking with any legal expertise at all, but five days of prosecution witnesses detailing how the porn was viewed and hidden, what was in it, all the evidence it had to be Josh’s — not to mention family friends recounting his history molesting their prepubescent daughters — and the defense is done after a day?? Seems pretty one-sided to us. Maybe they have something else planned?
Both sides are expected to make their closing arguments on Wednesday, after which the decision will be up to the jury, who will begin their deliberations on the charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. Josh could get as much as 20 years in federal prison if convicted, though 20 years seems light when you consider the fact a 3-month-old infant is one of the victims.
We’ll be keeping our ear to the ground and let you know as soon as we can how it all turns out!
[Image via Washington County Sheriff’s Office/Anna Duggar/Instagram.]
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