Jana Duggar, former star of the reality series "19 Kids and Counting," has settled her child endangerment charge outside of court.
Duggar, 31, was charged in Arkansas with a misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child in September.
The alleged violation happened Sept. 9, and a trial by judge was scheduled for Jan. 10.
According to updated documents obtained by TODAY from Elm Springs District Court, Duggar pleaded guilty on Dec. 15 and was fined $880.
In December, the eldest Duggar daughter addressed the charges, stating she was babysitting a few months ago when one of the children wandered outside alone.
“A passerby who saw the child called the police. This resulted in a written citation, as well as a follow-up with child welfare who concluded that it was an accident and the child was unharmed,” she posted in an Instagram Story.
The former TLC personality, who appeared in both “19 Kids and Counting” and the show “Counting On,” ended her statement by saying that she is thankful for law enforcement and “those who protect and serve our community,” and stated she was never arrested.
“In the end, I was just upset at myself that it had happened at all, but so thankful it all ended safely and that’s truly what mattered the most to me,” Duggar concluded.
Hours before Duggar released a statement via Instagram, her sister, Jessa Seewald, shared her own statement on her Instagram stories in support and defense of her sister.
“Getting messages about headlines about Jana. Bottom line — it was an innocent mistake. She was babysitting and one of the kids slipped out the door unnoticed, but it ended safely. Could’ve happened to anyone,” Seewald, 29, said. “The media is sensationalizing this because of other current family circumstances and it makes me so mad.”
On Dec. 9, the siblings’ oldest brother, Josh Duggar, was found guilty on one count each of receiving and possessing child sex abuse images. The 33-year-old faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 for each count.
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