E! News reported that it contacted Kendra’s lawyer for comment and had not received a response.
Family says her case is separate from Joseph’s Florida charges
A Duggar family spokesperson told People that Kendra’s charges are “totally unrelated” to the child molestation charges Joseph is facing in Florida.
Joseph, 31, was arrested on March 18. After his arrest in Arkansas, he was extradited to Florida, where he pleaded not guilty to one count of lewd and lascivious behavior, molestation of a victim less than 12 years old, and one count of lewd and lascivious behavior conducted by a person 18 years or older.
He was later released on a $600,000 bond. His lawyer, Albert J. Sauline III, told People in early April that Joseph had returned to Arkansas and reunited with Kendra. The attorney also said Joseph did not reunite with his children, because the terms of his release bar him from contacting any minors, including his alleged victim.
Joseph is also facing child endangerment and false imprisonment charges in Arkansas. It is not clear whether he has entered a plea in that case. E! News said it also reached out to Joseph’s attorney for comment and had not heard back.
Jail messages pointed to custody restrictions
The family’s legal situation had already surfaced in communications obtained by E! News through the Freedom of Information Act.
In a March 21 email to Joseph in jail, his sister-in-law Anna Duggar wrote that Kendra had been barred from seeing the couple’s children.
“She was strong on the phone call, except for when she talked about it being a month before she can see the kids,” Anna wrote. “My heart breaks for all of you.”
Three days later, in a March 24 jail phone call recording obtained by E! News, Kendra told Joseph she was “fighting for the kids.”
“They're my number one priority right now,” she said.
Joseph responded that he was “100 percent behind” her and agreed that she “should be fighting for them the most.”
Kendra added, “I just want you to know, through all of this, whatever happens, that's who's coming first.”
For a family long associated with reality television, the headlines are now firmly in the courthouse category. The key distinction, for now, is that Kendra has entered a not guilty plea in Arkansas while Joseph’s Florida case proceeds under its own charges and bond restrictions.
