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Earlier this year, the Federal Bureau of Prisons began a game of hot potato.

Disgraced former reality TV personality Josh Duggar has been shuffled between prison facilities.

He is now in yet another prison. This time, in yet another state.

Fourth time’s the charm? Why is this happening?

Fourth prison facility and third state in three months

The Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette reports that Josh’s latest digs are the Elkton Federal Correctional Institution.

If that doesn’t sound like it’s in Texas or in Oklahoma — the previous two states where he was incarcerated — then, well, you’re right.

EFCI is located in Lisbon, Ohio.

Elkton is about 90 miles southeast of Cleveland.

As for EFCI itself, the facility is reportedly low-security with a nearby low-security satellite prison.

So, even though he’s been exiled to Ohio, it could still be worse for him.

For a few years now, Josh has been locked away at FCI Seagoville in, you guessed it, Seagoville, Texas.

Then, in May, he was abruptly transferred to a medical facility in Forth Worth.

(Notably, that is the same place where infamous Netflix villain Joe Exotic is serving his own well-deserved sentence.)

In June, he was moved to a third facility, this time in Oklahoma City. No public explanations were offered by the FBP.

Why is this happening?

As for why this is happening … even if Federal Bureau of Prisons officials don’t want to share, Josh’s attorney has his own theory.

He has alleged that this is straight-up retaliation after he and Josh exposed alleged wrongdoing by prison officials in opening his legal mail.

(As in, his mail that is related to legal procedures, including filings, which may have caused Josh to miss a filing deadline.)

These moves are not only disruptive to Josh’s day, they are a psychological attack — making it harder for him to stay in contact with remaining loved ones, not to mention his attorney.

Moving is hell even when you get to choose the place to which you’re moving and bring your stuff with you. For Josh, he’s being uprooted and jerked around from place to place.

As we have previously discussed, Josh is not a sympathetic victim of this alleged abuse of power.

But that doesn’t change what appears to be happening.

We should remember that most people behind bars are not evil like Josh. Or like his father or his brother. Or his paternal grandfather.

In fact, many people in prison are innocent. That’s not conjecture. Many people either committed no crime or violated laws that should not exist.

We should structure our society in such a way that the lowest scum — like Josh — receive basic civil rights protections even while in prison, to assure that the innocents behind bars also cannot be mistreated.

Just because no one in their right mind pities Josh doesn’t mean that what’s happening is right.