after steven powell's arrest, the state of washington took custody of josh powell's two little boys.e he didn't get them back. >> it's very upsetting to find out what steve was charged with and knowing that our grandchildren were there. >> chuck cox and his lawyer faced off against josh in family court. >> my clients believe it is very harmful for these children to have been in the home of steven powell, who was obviously engaged in not only procuring, but deeply involved with pornography. >> josh powell represented himself in court, denied any knowledge of his father's alleged crimes, promised to keep the boys away from him should steven somehow make bail and he went openly in court. >> i am a fit and qualified father. i am the natural father. i love my sons. and the manner in which they -- the manner in which they were behaving leads me to believe that the irreparable harm that is occurring to my sons is having taken them out of the stable and happy home. >> but then, more news. prosecutors told the judge that so far only a small portion of the evidence had been examine edd and tha

. >> reporter: so josh's husband, steven powell, interpreted susan's nature in a very different way.susan was very open and very aggressive in male/female relationships. and she called the shots. >> reporter: but behind steven powell's public theories about susan and sexuality was evidence of private activities that have landed him in jail. he's now awaiting trial on charges of voyeurism and child pornography while in family court, susan's parents fight for custody of josh and susan's little boys. >> i am a fit and qualified father. i am the natural father. i love my sons. >> reporter: the case has been in the public eye since it began. but so much remains hidden. wild allegations of abuse, religious conspiracies, sexual deviance. >> i feel like the more things come out, the more things that are -- establishes the fact that we're getting closer to whether the police can complete their investigation. >> reporter: josh powell and susan's parents are continuing to struggle over custody of those little boys. one hearing scheduled for today was canceled. josh has filed a declaration claim

. >> behind steven powell's public theories about susan and sexuality was evidence of private activities jail. he's now awaiting trial on charges of voyeurism and possessing child pornography. while in family court, susan's parents fight for custody of josh and susan's little boys. the case has been in the public eye since it began, but so much remains hidden. wild allegations of abuse, religious conspiracies, sexual deviance. >> that struggle in court by the way over the custody of the two little boys sgegt more and more intense. josh has now filed a paper in court to suggest that the coxs, susan's parents, are trying to get the boys to dislike their family. he's terribly upset by that. they say they're trying to support and protect these little boys from a strange life that they were living with the powells. so it goes, tamryn. >> so it goes, keith. thank you very much. you can watch keith's full report on "dateline" tonight at 10:00 eastern on nbc. >>> 31 states now require you to show a picture i.d. to cast your ballot, but for many people getting a government i.d. is harder than you