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Joseph Duggar and Kendra Caldwell just changed things up with their child endangerment court case.
(It is an understatement to say that this court case is not Joseph’s biggest legal issue at present, as he is accused of sexually abusing a 9-year-old girl.)
Just hours before their scheduled court date, they withdrew their respective not guilty pleas.
What does this mean?
What are Joseph and Kendra’s new pleas?
People reports that Joseph and Kendra withdrew their pleas of not guilty on Monday, August 10.
Instead, they submitted a “plea by order” to the court and were able to avoid the hearing.
Presumably, this means that Joseph and Kendra plan to either plead guilty or to plead no contest to the charges.
The judge will need to review the case and the couple’s updated response to the charges, and then determine what penalty they may face.
For Joseph and Kendra, that could mean up to eight years in prison. Though perhaps they hope to get off with a lesser sentence, such as a fine, by throwing themselves upon the mercy of the court.
The pleas are for the Arkansas case involving four counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a minor and four counts of false imprisonment.
Kendra’s arrest followed Joseph’s ostensibly unrelated arrest for allegedly molesting a 9-year-old.
Authorities performed an automatic search of their home, and whatever they discovered there was enough for eight charges against both parents.
A source close to the Duggars claimed that this was due to the locks on the children’s doors, which allowed them to be sealed in their rooms like prisoners.
However, the obviously biased source is not reliable. No one has been able to confirm what authorities may have actually found inside the home of the cult members.
How does this change things?
The Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette shared a legal detail about Joseph and Kendra’s plea by order.
Apparently, this change means that their case can be diverted by up to a full year.
The local newspaper spoke to the court, who confirmed that cases against Joe and Kendra will remain open.
As a reminder, Kendra gained permission to see her four children despite the charges against her.
However, the court very sensibly denied Joseph’s request for unsupervised visits.
Remember, though Joseph Duggar and Kendra Caldwell are facing the same charges in Arkansas, he alone is also facing charges in Florida.
In 2020, he allegedly molested a 9-year-old girl. We do not know her identity (nor should we), only that she is not one of his own children and does not appear to be a Duggar.
Her father recently learned of it and confronted Joseph, leading to his reported confession. He actually confessed twice, the second time being to a detective, according to an affidavit.
In light of these reported confessions, his legal strategy remains murky, as he pleaded not guilty in the Florida case, too.
It would be nice if his upcoming plea with Kendra is a harbinger of things to come with his other case. Right now, there are fears that the victim — who is in her early teens — might have to testify in court.
If Joseph’s legal strategy is to convince prosecutors to offer him a more generous deal to avoid putting her through that … well, that’s an awful thought.
Joseph Duggar & Kendra Caldwell Abruptly Withdraw ‘Not Guilty’ Pleas in … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.