Jana Duggar, the eldest of the Duggar siblings who starred in the TLC reality TV series "19 Kids and Counting" has been charged with endangering the welfare of a minor, court documents filed at the Washington County, Arkansas court revealed. The child endangerment incident allegedly occurred on September 9 this year.
While no details of the child endangerment incident were divulged in the court document, Duggar has pleaded not guilty in response, USA Today reported. The 31 year old is set for a hearing on January 10.
Duggar is the eldest daughter of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, who starred in the reality TV shows 19 Kids and Counting" and "Counting On," which highlighted the family's super conservative Christian faith. It all came crashing down in 2015, however, when it was revealed that Josh Duggar had molested four of his sisters and a babysitter when he was a teenager. TLC then canceled "19 Kids and Counting."
Now, Josh faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 after he was found guilty of downloading and possessing child abuse images and child pornography. Jana on the other hand, may face 90 days in prison or a fine of $1,000 if convicted for misdemeanor for endangering the welfare of a child, which is defined by Arkansas law as "conduct creating a substantial risk of serious harm to the physical or mental welfare of a person known by the actor to be a minor," the Christian Post reported.
Meanwhile, the Duggar siblings' cousins, Amy Duggar King took to Instagram Stories over the weekend to defend Jana from the backlash she'd received after news of her misdemeanor for endangering a child had spread. According to E! News, the outspoken Duggar cousin wrote, "I will call out what is right and I will call out what is wrong. This couldn't have been intentional."
"I bet you were exhausted, stressed and just emotionally worn out. Watching multiple kids is hard! [Because] there's so many of them and you only have two eyes!!" she continued. "It's a very sad situation going on and my heart goes out to @janamduggar love you." Amy alleged that "the child was okay and found" but did not indicate whose "child" she was referring to.
The Duggar family's challenges come in the midst of Jim Bob's bid to win the Senate special election in Arkansas. He first announced that he was running for the Arkansas State Senate in October despite Josh's child pornography trial. According to Radar Online, the former reality TV star was running a "pro-family, pro-business, pro-gun and pro-life" campaign.
Arkansas Online reported that Jim Bob's campaign had spent more money in special primaries for state Senate District 7 versus his competition. As of Monday, Jim Bob spent $37,631, while his campaign revenue included $25,000 in loans, filings showed. Among his advocacies are the pro-life and anti-vaccine movements.
"I'm running for State Senate because these are unprecedented times in our nation," Jim Bob declared in a release. "Out-of-control bureaucrats have put politics over common-sense policy with government mandates that force people to choose between earning a paycheck and violating their personal rights and beliefs."
