The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.
Marvin Scales, a youth pastor at an unreported church in Waxahachie, Texas, was recently sentenced to fifty years in prison without parole after pleading guilty to four felonies including two counts of continuous sexual abuse of a young child, one count of aggravated sexual assault of a child, and one count of sexual assault of a child. He is also accused of impregnating a fourteen-year-old child.
Astoundingly, Scales was a registered sex offender, stemming from a 1998 conviction of sexually assaulting an eleven-year-old girl and sexual indecency with a thirteen-year-old girl. Oh, the grace of God and unconditional forgiveness, right? Scales spent ten years in prison for his crimes. How in the hell, did a church, any church hire him as a youth pastor? It took me all of TEN SECONDS to find Scales in Texas’ registered sex offenders database. The church in question is culpable in Scales’ crimes. Absolutely NO EXCUSE.
A Waxahachie youth pastor who impregnated a 14-year-old girl was sentenced to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to sexually abusing four minors.
Marvin Scales, 53, received a 50-year sentence on Monday after pleading guilty to two counts of sexual abuse of a young child, one count of aggravated sexual assault of a child, and one count of sexual assault of a child.
An investigation into Scales began in August 2023 when a 14-year-old girl gave birth at Baylor Scott & White – Waxahachie.
Hospital staff tipped off police when Scales went to the hospital with the young girl and was “overly involved” in the delivery process.
Waxahachie police then obtained a warrant for the newborn’s DNA and confirmed Scales was the biological father.
Scales was the youth pastor of a local church. However, authorities did not specify the name or location of the church.
Once church members learned about the first victim, several more came forward.
The DA’s office says Scales would regularly have children from the church on overnight trips and would have them sleep over at his house.
Victims told investigators Scales would have sex with them on the trips and overnight stays.
Investigators say Scale had an extensive security system at home that caught several of the sexual assaults. They say he even recorded several of the assaults himself and kept them at home.
The security footage helped authorities find even more child sex abuse victims.
According to the Texas Public Sex Offender website, Scales first became a registered sex offender in 2006. He verified his registration with the Waxahachie Police Department on June 5, 2023.
Online records show Scales was convicted of three child sex abuse crimes in 1998 and was released from jail after 10 years.
It’s unclear when the local church hired Scales or if they knew about his sex offender status before hiring him.
Scales is not eligible for parole.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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Jebus will forgive of course. What a shame. Sadly he won’t be able to continue his ministry on the outside. I hear molesters attract plenty of congregants on the inside where he can get a taste of his own brand of ministry.
Good point. People remember such things. Especially with abuse of children..