Federal Judge Crushes Josh Duggar’s Dreams?

Counting On star Josh Duggar was sentenced to 151 months in prison after being convicted on child sex abuse material charges. Since that time, he has appealed the conviction three times. He attempted his fourth appeal of the charges and made an appearance virtually in court on April 15. However, a federal judge may have just crushed his dreams. What happened?

Counting On: Josh Duggar Appears In Front Of Judge

Counting On and 19 Kids and Counting star Josh Duggar is currently in his fourth year of serving his lengthy prison sentence for downloading and possessing material that revealed child sexual abuse. He is in the FCI Seagoville, located just 10 miles south of Dallas. Since a jury convicted him in 2021, he has been trying to appeal the decision and has so far failed.

Now, he put in for a fourth appeal. However, after appearing virtually in front of a Federal Judge last week, Duggar may have just had his dreams completely shattered. When he spoke with the judge on April 15, Duggar was told that his appeal might not be valid.

In Wednesday’s appearance, Josh attempted to submit eight arguments as to why he should be granted a new trial or have his current conviction overturned. However, prosecutors and the judge might have just crushed any chance he has. It is being argued that Duggar’s appeal request was not submitted by the due date.

When Should The Appeal Have Been Submitted?

According to reports, prosecutors at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Arkansas filed a motion in August 2025 after Duggar’s appeal was received by the federal court clerk’s office that questioned the date that the appeal was mailed. Duggar and his attorney argue that the appeal request was mailed on June 24, 2025. This was the last day a request could be made because it was one year since the Supreme Court denied his writ of certiorari for his third appeal.

Mail logs from the prison Josh is being held in revealed that there were only two things mailed on June 24, and neither was from Duggar.

The appeal will not move forward until dates can be verified. If it’s proven that it was not submitted on or before June 24, the judge will not even look at the arguments Duggar presented to the court.

What Are Josh Duggar’s New Arguments?

Josh Duggar was set to submit eight new arguments to help him in his appeal. Part of their claims includes Josh’s previous attorneys’ failure to question an individual who also had access to the computer where the illegal images were discovered. Plus, there is a Department of Justice expert whom Duggar accuses of lying under oath during the trial.  Another DOJ expert allegedly presented “prejudicial information.”

Duggar also claims that the release of a police report filed after he allegedly molested four of his sisters made the trial unfair. Josh is accused of molesting four of his sisters. He never faced charges for the sexual misconduct. However, a few of his sisters have spoken out about their ordeal with Josh.

Right now, the future of Duggar’s fourth appeal lies in the hands of prosecutors and a federal judge. Will Josh and his attorney find proof that they mailed the appeal on time? Or, will Josh’s dreams of a new trial be crushed?

Do you think he and his attorney mailed the documents on time?