Josh Duggar Has 22 Cents in Prison Bank Account

Us Weekly has confirmed that Josh Duggar’s prison bank account is almost empty amid reports that his family has stopped supporting him financially.

Court documents obtained by Us indicate that Duggar recently filed new paperwork in his ongoing appeal to his 2021 child pornography conviction that suggests his financial situation is dire. The former 19 Kids and Counting star requested financial aid for his appeal efforts because he only has a balance of 22 cents in his inmate bank account — as well as a 2-cent debt — at the Federal Correctional Institution in Seagoville, Texas. The Sun first reported that Duggar’s family did not send him any financial support during the most recent reporting period.

Duggar reported in his letter to the court that he made zero purchases at the prison commissary for the year to date. In a separate section of his appeal petition, the disgraced reality star confirmed he is unemployed and has no monthly income at all plus no additional support from “any other sources,” such as savings or property assets.

“[Josh] currently performs a prison work assignment but does not receive any pay for compensation. Therefore, [he] has no employment income to report,” he wrote. “[Josh] currently has no personal or real property possessions in his ownership.”

While Duggar acknowledged he’d been sent “money from family and friends” in the past, he said he’d received nothing from them during the current reporting period.

Duggar previously sought financial and legal assistance in May as he tried to overturn his 12-year prison sentence. (He was found guilty on one count each of receiving and possessing child sex abuse material.)

Earlier this year, Josh asked a court “to help evaluate” whether his case involved “constitutional violations” in addition to “[preparing] a motion to vacate, set aside or correct my conviction and sentence” if appropriate.

“New legal theories and strategies have emerged in public discourse that may be relevant to the Defendant’s case,” he wrote in May. “In light of these developments, the Defendant seeks to consult with counsel to fully evaluate the potential of these emerging strategies and how they may support a motion for relief.”

The former TLC star was originally arrested in April 2021 over suspicion of possessing and receiving child pornography, and he was subsequently convicted in December 2021 following a two-week trial. In addition to his 12-year prison sentence, Duggar was ordered to pay $50,100 in fines and special assessments in May 2022.

Josh shares seven children — Mackynzie, 16, Michael, 14, Marcus, 12, Meredith, 10, Mason, 8, Maryella, 5, and Madyson, 4 — with his wife, Anna Duggar, who stood by the former political activist following his arrest.

He is reportedly estranged from several other members of his family. Josh’s sister Jill Duggar admitted in September 2023 that she had “no idea” why Anna chose to stand by the disgraced reality star after his child pornography conviction.

“I have seen [Anna] on a few occasions, but I also want to respect [her]. I know she’s asked for some space, so we want to respect that as well,” she told Access Hollywood.

Earlier this month, Anna shared a rare look inside the $1 million, 6,318-square-foot Arkansas home that her father-in-law, Jim Bob Duggar, reportedly purchased for the family in April. The property features six bedrooms across 10 acres of land in Fayetteville, Arkansas, near where her in-laws live in Tontitown.

Prior to his April 2021 arrest, Josh was involved in a separate scandal in 2015 when a resurfaced police report alleged that he molested five girls, four of whom were his sisters, when he was a teenager. Josh released a statement at the time to apologize for acting “inexcusably.”

“I confessed [my actions] to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation,” he said in a 2015 statement. “We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing, and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life.”

He went on, “I would do anything to go back to those teen years and take different actions. I sought forgiveness from those I had wronged and asked Christ to forgive me and come into my life. In my life today, I am so very thankful for God’s grace, mercy and redemption.”

Josh was later embroiled in the Ashley Madison leak when his name turned up on a list of clients who allegedly used the service to pursue discreet affairs.

“I have been the biggest hypocrite ever,” he wrote via his family’s website in August 2015. “While espousing faith and family values, I have secretly over the last several years been viewing pornography on the internet and this became a secret addiction and I became unfaithful to my wife. I am so ashamed of the double life that I have been living and am grieved for the hurt, pain and disgrace my sin has caused my wife and family, and most of all Jesus and all those who profess faith in Him.”