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.
Kenneth “Ken” Daniel, pastor of First Baptist Church in Chalkville, Alabama, stands accused of sexually assaulting at least two children.
Daniel now is facing charges in Shelby and Jefferson County counties involving the same victim, Blount County Sheriff Mark Moon confirmed Friday.
He is charged in Shelby County with four counts of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 with bonds totaling $240,000.
Alabaster police obtained the warrants against Daniel. Chief Curtis Rigney said the alleged abuse took place between 2020 through September of this year.
The chief said Daniel was friends with the girl’s grandparents from church and would have the girl come stay with him at his Alabaster home.
Daniel is also charged in Jefferson County with sex abuse by force and sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 in Jefferson County. Those charges stem from allegations of abuse taking place at Daniel’s church.
According to the Blount County charging documents against Daniel, the investigation began when the victim told her grandfather that Daniel had been sexually abusing her.
The girl reported that Daniel had touched her numerous times on her private parts and that it had happened at his residence, a pool party and at the church between 2020 and September.
The victim and her grandfather live in Blount County. Blount County authorities arrested Daniel at the church.
“Daniel contacted the grandfather by phone for arrangements to bring the victim to the locations of disclosed sexual abuse,’’ records state.
Daniel also provided the grandfather with directions to those locations.
A former Chalkville pastor was released from one jail and taken to another on charges of having sex with a child.
Kenneth Daniel,64, of Alabaster was the pastor of First Baptist Church of Chalkville in Jefferson County.
He was arrested and indicted in October in Blount County on charges of facilitating solicitation of unlawful sexual conduct with a child.
Daniel remained in the Blount County jail until his release Monday when he was taken to the Shelby County jail.
He is charged with four counts of sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old. He is being held on $240,000 bond.
A hearing is set in Shelby County on March 22.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
In 2020, Stricjavvar “Strick” Strickland, pastor of Second Baptist Church (website not active) in Kalamazoo, Michigan was accused of sexually assaulting four teenboys, paying them to have sex with his wife while he watched.
Strickland faced two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct on a student, another on a person age 13-15, and another by force or coercion. The good pastor also faced four counts of human trafficking of a minor for commercial sexual activity and three counts of child sexually abusive activity.
A Kalamazoo pastor accused of sexually assaulting four male victims between the ages of 15 and 17 is said to have paid the children to have sex with his wife while he watched.
The Rev. Stricjavvar “Strick” Strickland, of Kalamazoo’s Second Baptist Church, has been charged with 11 felonies connected to alleged incidents spanning from Aug. 1, 2015- Aug. 31, 2018, according to a probable cause affidavit filed last week in Kalamazoo County District Court.
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A warrant for Strickland’s arrest was issued Aug. 21. As of Tuesday, Aug. 25, the pastor was yet to turn himself in. His attorney, Michael Hills, told MLive early Tuesday, that the two were making arrangements for the pastor to turn himself in.
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“It has been two years since these allegations first came forward and Pastor Strickland has remained in contact and available. He is not running from this,” Hills said. “Pastor Strickland remains ready to turn himself in and deal with these charges accordingly.”
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If convicted, the pastor faces a potential penalty of 15 years in prison on each of the first four charges, and 20 years on each of the other seven charges, according to his warrant.
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In a bond recommendation, filed with the court along with the arrest affidavit, Kalamazoo County Assistant Prosecutor Christin J. Mehrtens-Carlin recommends the court not allow the pastor to have any contact with the four alleged victims, his wife Jazmonique Strickland, or anyone under the age of 18.
“Per the reports, the defendant and his wife would use their employment at Phoenix High School (in Kalamazoo) and to some extent, the defendant would use his work as a pastor, to find male teens to engage in sexual activity with the wife, while the defendant watched and masturbated,” Mehrtens-Carlin writes in her bond recommendation.
Pastor Strickland called the charges against him “absolutely preposterous.” Strickland added, “All I can say for now is that we are prepared for this fight. God will prevail.”
It is doubtful that God will show up on the scene to deliver Pastor Strickland from his predicament. Hopefully, justice will prevail. Kudos to Michigan state police and prosecutors for not letting Strickland’s notoriety stand in the way of seeking criminal charges against him.
According to an archived bio page for Strickland:
Pastor Strick Strickland succeeds Rev. Matthew W. Wright as pastor of Second Baptist Church and was elected January 22, 2012. Strickland has been preaching since age 19, a year after he got saved. He says that although he grew up in the church in Warren Hill, Mississippi, he didn’t really accept Christ until age 18. Apart of what helped him make his decision in the end was seeing his peers struggle on the streets where he grew up. In fact, he mentions that he had strayed away from church for a while. He got into trouble and landed in an alternative school. However, even there he excelled academically and tested in the top 5 percentile of students across the nation. He was in a gang and was labeled “Expected to fail”. Thus, Pastor Strickland’s story is one of how God is still a God of miracles, even today.
When asked how he knew he was called to preach, he replied, “Because it was the last thing I wanted to do”. He says that it was not only that he didn’t want to preach, but it was also that he didn’t relish the lifestyle of a preacher.
Prior to accepting the position as Pastor at Second Baptist Church, Pastor Strickland pastored at Pen Oak Missionary Baptist Church from 2005-2008, then went on to lead Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Collins, Mississippi. Second Baptist Church and the city of Kalamazoo hopes this is the beginning of a long stay at Second Baptist. Prior to accepting the position as Pastor at Second Baptist Church, Pastor Strickland pastored at Pen Oak Missionary Baptist Church from 2005-2008, then went on to lead Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Collins, Mississippi. Second Baptist Church and the city of Kalamazoo hopes this is the beginning of a long stay at Second Baptist.
Pastor Strickland is also a national recording artist and the lead singer for a group called the True Believers. We hope that through his preaching and singing many souls will be won for the Kingdom of God. Since his election at Second Baptist Church, he has been involved in the Spiritual Awakening Services at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, the Jump Start Revival at his church, and spoke on 95.5 FM radio. As a young pastor, this is an example other young people that want to become pastors, ministers, singers or entrepreneurs can learn from.
Pastor Strickland relocated to Michigan, while most of his family lives in Mississippi where he was raised by his grandmother as an only child. His grandmother was a spiritually-oriented woman who helped him with his homework every night. He was in junior high school when he found out that his grandmother could not read or write. The way Strickland learned, however was heeding her advice to “sound out the words”. His mother Ida M. Turner resides in Joliet, Illinois along with his uncle, aunt, and a host of other relatives. Strickland says he is excited to be closer to his mother as he is her only child and she is his biggest fan.
An August 2018 WWMT-3 news report alleged that Strickland had a sexual relationship Aniya Mack. Mack was later murdered by her boyfriend, Donovan Lewis. Strickland released the following statement, denying the allegations against him:
All of the things that I am being Accused of are ministry related!
1. Second Baptist under my leadership has helped more than 30 families with transportation barriers Aniya’s situation was no different.
2. We have shared thousands of dollars of resources to help members with rent, utilities, food…
3. The All Expenses Paid trip was a choir trip with 50 other people. This trip was also all expenses paid for all College Students of which there was 6-8 more! Who all shared rooms together. My family wife and kids where with us…
lastly, this is an attempt to discredit the church, the NAACP, and the black leader. However, I’m not running from this story. I am rather trying to be sensitive to the source of your information (A young man I don’t know at all. Who has killed his ex-girlfriend and is declaring himself insane!) his family deserves peace and my response to the propaganda will only disrupt their peace!
Ultimately and finally, I have no control over people’s dreams and feel that it is extremely unfair that I be held accountable for was a person thinks or imagines is happening!
In this particular case we have a young man who has confessed to murder and I’m sure that had I been a white leader here in Kalamazoo that would be no story especially based solely upon the word of a confessed killer and self-proclaimed insane suspect.
Aniya Mack’s memory deserves to be left in tack! Here is a young lady that has already lost her life and future and now she is being denigrated to nothing more than her pastor’s mistress! That’s the biggest injustice of all!
In August 2022, Strickland pleaded guilty to one count of knowingly offering to sell transportation services for the purpose of engaging in prostitution.
Last month, Judge Paul J. Bridenstine sentenced Stricjavvar “Strick” Strickland, 40, to one year in Kalamazoo County Jail after he pleaded guilty to one felony count of facilitation of travel services for purposes of prostitution.
The allegations first surfaced in August 2018 when Michigan State Police said a complainant walked in and filed a report on incidents that occurred in 2015. Following, another victim reported to authorities. Police then raided the Strickland home in September 2018.
Strickland was the pastor at the Second Baptist Church in Kalamazoo. He also worked for Kalamazoo Public Schools from 2013-2015 as a paraprofessional at the district’s alternative middle school.
Strickland’s wife, Jazmonique, was a paraprofessional at Phoenix High School in Kalamazoo until she resigned in September 2018—one day before the police raid.
After more victims came forward, authorities accused the pastor and his wife of using their positions within the church and schools to meet and coerce teen boys into sexual activity.
In August 2020, authorities charged Strickland with 11 felony counts involving child sexual assault and human trafficking. Police also separately charged Jazmonique with eight felony charges.
MLive initially reported that Strickland faced a potential penalty of 15 years in prison on each of the first four charges plus an additional 20 years on each of the other seven charges.
However, in August, a plea deal allowed the pastor to avoid registering as a sex offender or placement under probation after his release. In addition, prosecutors dropped the 10 other felony charges Strickland faced. Strickland said he took the plea deal in the best move for his family.
In May 2021, a Kalamazoo County judge dismissed all eight felony charges against Jazmonique.
“This was a witch-hunt and a lynching from the beginning,” Strickland said in a 12-minute statement at sentencing. “I am not without fault, but I am not guilty of what I’m accused of.”
Strickland maintained his innocence and blamed prosecutors for not protecting the alleged victims if the accusations had been confirmed true.
“How is the [sic] justice for the victims? One year, no registry, no probation. How is this justice for anyone involved?” Strickland continued.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
In 2017, James Rankin, a pastor associated with Bellevue Baptist Church in Hurst, Texas was charged with the possession of child pornography. The Star-Telegram reported at the time:
A Hurst associate pastor faces a child pornography charge after he took his computer to a Best Buy store, according to a Hurst Police Department news release.
Store employees called police about 8:40 p.m. Thursday after finding what appeared to be child pornography on a customer’s computer, according to the news release. After investigating, police arrested and charged the owner of the computer, 78-year-old James Rankin, with possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony. Bond was set at $5,000.
The news release said Rankin is an associate pastor at Bellevue Baptist Church in Hurst, which lists him as a staff member on its website.
James was a retired pastor before being called to his present ministry. He served churches in Tennessee, Fort Worth and Amarillo, Texas. He served as a chaplain in the U.S. Army from 1970 to 1980. He has degrees in Bible, Theology, Counseling, Church Administration and Communication.
He and his wife, Elizabeth, celebrated 50 years of marriage in 2012. They have two children and two grandchildren. They presently live in Hurst.
James is a lifelong ferroequinologist (model railroader).
In 2018, Rankin pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography. Three additional counts were dropped as part of a plea agreement. Rankins was given eight years probation and ordered to post the following sign on his home:
A former Hurst pastor who reportedly told police he kept child porn on his computer to “remind himself of what other people like to look at” has been sentenced to eight years of deferred-adjudication probation.
James Holcomb Rankin, 79, pleaded guilty last week to one count of possession of child pornography. Three additional counts were dropped as part of a plea agreement, court records show.
By Saturday, he must place a sign on his home, no smaller than 16 inches tall by 32 inches wide, with 2½-inch letters declaring “A PERSON ON PROBATION FOR A CHILD SEX OFFENSE LIVES HERE.”
Rankin was an associate pastor at Bellevue Baptist Church on West Pipeline Road at the time of his arrest, but he no longer works there.
According to an arrest-warrant affidavit, police were called to the Best Buy on Northeast Mall Boulevard in March 2017 after employees found images of child porn on his computer.
Rankin later told police that he kept several dozen such images on his computer to “remind himself of what other people like to look at” and that they had been research for “a possible lesson involving Cupid, love and human trafficking seven to eight years ago,” according to the affidavit.
The former pastor had faced two to 10 years in prison if convicted, but his lawyer told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that Rankin “probably had a shot in trial,” although the plea deal was a “fair resolution.”
Attorney Wes Ball did not, however, think his client needed to put a sign outside his house.
“If he’s a risk, he belongs in prison, but he’s a low risk,” Ball told the newspaper. “Let him go on with his life on probation.”
Rankin was an army chaplain from 1970 to 1980 and worked at churches in Fort Worth and Amarillo, as well as in Tennessee, before joining the ministry at Bellevue Baptist.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
Daniel Merrick, pastor of Congregation Yahshua Messiah Gathering, a Messianic Jew congregation in Smethport, Pennsylvania, and a Christian musician has been charged with 570 counts of child pornography involving indecent contact, second-degree felonies; 316 counts of child pornography involving nudity, third-degree felonies; and one count of criminal use of a communications facility, a third-degree felony.
Merrick told law enforcement that he had an “addiction,” and only started looking at child porn because his wife wouldn’t have sex with him. Merrick called his “addiction” a curiosity.
A Christian musician, pastor, and former Bradford store owner is in McKean County Jail, charged with more than 880 felony counts of child pornography.
Daniel W. Merrick, 64, of 858 Route 446, Smethport, is charged with 570 counts of child pornography-involving indecent contact, second-degree felonies; 316 counts of child pornography-involving nudity, third-degree felonies; and one count of criminal use of a communications facility, a third-degree felony.
According to the criminal complaint, State Police Computer Crimes received a CyberTip from Synchronoss Technologies, which is Verizon Cloud.
Between July 8 and Aug. 10, Synchronoss became aware of eight images and one video of child pornography involving indecent contact and one image of child pornography involving nudity, all of which had been uploaded to Synchronoss’ infrastructure.
Synchronoss provided to police the cell phone number which uploaded the images; the phone was registered to Merrick, the complaint stated.
On Jan. 9, Trooper Robert Whyel with the state police computer crimes unit served a search warrant for the content on the Verizon Cloud account for that phone number. The results included 178 additional images of child pornography involving indecent contact and 139 involving nudity. The images were saved on a Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G; there were numerous photos of Merrick on the account as well, the complaint stated.
On Feb. 10, a search warrant was executed on Merrick’s residence, and Whyel spoke with Merrick on the scene. He told the trooper that he “began viewing pornography due to his wife refusing to be intimate with him,” the complaint stated, which Merrick said led to a “two-month curiosity in child pornography.”
The complaint read, “The curiosity never entered the real world and was only a fantasy.”
He told police that he had an addiction and would seek help, the complaint read.
Reviewing Merrick’s phone, the trooper found 383 images of child pornography involving indecent contact and 176 involving nudity, including an image that was located on the CyberTip, according to the complaint.
Merrick was arraigned Friday before District Judge William Todd in Smethport. He was jailed in lieu of $20,000 bail. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for March 9.
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According to Merrick’s website, he holds a Ph.D., is a singer, musician, author, preacher, pastor and composer. He completed Bible college and went into the U.S. Army in 1979 serving in active duty, the reserves and the National Guard until 2004. The site indicated that Merrick is now the pastor of a Messianic Jewish congregation in Bradford and has a weekly show on The Now Network Christian Television.
Pastor of Congregation Yahshua Messiah Gathering, a messianic Jewish followship, R. Capt. Daniel W Merrick PhD hosts “Faith Radio – The Latter Rain Chronicles” on Anchor FM and “Yah’s Way TV” on The Now Network Christian Station world wide. Dan completed his first Album in 1993 entitled “Aliyah” with 17 songs which featured “Like Stephen” which charted on the “CCM Countdown with Bob Sour” on Christian Radio Stations as a top 40 in 1994. Dan was born in Cleveland Ohio and raised on “church music” singing in the choir and as a teen was in the gospel singing group “The Teen Revivers” at Aspinwall Church of God Mountain Assembly. The group opened for the singing Rambo’s in the 1970’s in Cleveland. Dan grew up listening to Al Jolson, his dad’s favorite artist from WW2 era 1900’s who was the star of the first talking (sound) movie “The Jazz Singer” in 1929. Dan began composing music in High School and after having a few songs stolen, common in the industry, in 1987 copyrighted his first song. Dan has appeared on CTV, TCT TV and has weekly shows on The Now Network entitled “Yah’s Way TV” which broadcasts to 236 million people syndicated on Cable and Statilite TV Stations in Europe, USA, Africa, Middle East, Israel and via apps online to billions. Dan’s music is a collection of styles from Rock, Jazz, Gospel and Country with a stong Classical influence. Dan is the Son of “Lowes Girl” Fox Pin-up Model and Advertising Artist Laura Sloan Merrick Aka “Lolly” cousin of Jimmy Stewart.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
Rajnal Rehmat, a religious brother who has worked in the Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin, pleaded guilty to one count of child enticement. He could face two years in prison.
As part of a plea agreement, a Dane County court dismissed a separate sexual assault charge against Rajnal Rehmat, 31, who has been in custody since December for the inappropriate relationship with the girl he met in Bible study at a DeForest-based parish.
Rehmat’s contact with the girl occurred in September and October and involved sexually touching her in a vehicle, sexually explicit video chats and kissing her in an elevator at the Basilica of St. Josaphat in Milwaukee, according to a criminal complaint. The former brother had been warned by St. Olaf/St. Joseph lead pastor Jared Holzhunter not to text with minors and Rehmat frequently remarked to the girl that their relationship was forbidden, the complaint said.
He was “warned” not to text minors? The first inappropriate text should have sent his sorry ass out of town and out of the ministry.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
Roberto Diaz is an assistant teacher and Bible study teacher at Poinciana Christian Preparatory School South in Poinciana, Florida. Diaz stands accused of inappropriately touching an eighteen-year-old student and asking her for a nude photo. According to WFTS, Diaz admitted his crimes to law enforcement.
A Bible studies teacher at a private Christian school inappropriately touched a student and asked her for a nude photo of herself on WhatsApp, according to a Florida sheriff’s office. An 18-year-old student told school staff that Roberto Diaz, 53, a ninth-grade teacher’s assistant and Bible studies teacher at Poinciana Christian Preparatory School South, sent her about six messages on WhatsApp between Feb. 6 and Feb. 14, according to a news release from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. He asked her for photos of herself, including a nude photo, according to the sheriff’s office.
The student said she refused the requests and asked Diaz to stop messaging her, the release says. On Feb. 15, Diaz put his hand on her chin and neck and “attempted to kiss her and touch her breast,” the release says.
The school’s director said in an email to McClatchy News that Diaz had been terminated. Deputies arrested Diaz on Feb. 21, according to the sheriff’s office. He faces a charge of sex offense on a student by an authority figure, the release says. He is being held without bond, according to Polk County jail records.
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Poinciana Christian Preparatory School South is a private, non-denominational Christian school serving grades K-12, according to its website.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
In the post that follows, I deliberately paint with a broad brush. If what I write doesn’t apply to your church or your pastor, then feel free to ignore my words.
Answerable to no one but God — who never says a word to them — IFB churches are often controlled by authoritarian pastors who rule their churches with a rod of iron. Believing that they are divinely called to be pastors and commanded in Scripture to rule over their churches, these so-called men of God far too often become a law unto themselves. Their churches become their possessions, their ministries given to them by God to lead, direct, and control. It is not uncommon, much as in the business world, for IFB pastors to be the CEOs of their churches for decades, and when they retire, to pass their kingdoms on to their sons. Their churches become the family business. Ask IFB congregants where they attend church and they will often reply, not First Baptist Church, but Pastor or Bro. Johnny B. Awesome’s church. IFB churches are pastor-centric. Everything revolves around the pastor and his decrees.
The church culture described above is a perfect medium for sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, and other predatory behavior. There’s little to no accountability to anyone except God, and I can safely say that he hasn’t been seen in IFB churches in a long, long time. While an IFB pastor is answerable to his church’s membership, practically speaking, unless he steals money from the church, is caught fucking the deacon’s wife in his study, or some other egregious “sin,” he is pretty much safe from being fired. Over time, such men gain more and more power, so much so that it becomes almost impossible for congregants to get rid of them. I have seen church constitutions — often written by the pastors themselves — that require a seventy-five percent “yes” vote to remove the pastor.
IFB church members are often taught to implicitly trust their pastors and ignore any rumors they might hear about them. (Please see Sexual Abuse and the Jack Hyles Rule: If You Didn’t See It, It Didn’t Happen.) Rumors swirled around Jack and David Hyles for years, yet because church members were taught (indoctrinated and conditioned) to “trust and ignore,” the Hyleses escaped being held accountable for their abhorrent criminal behavior. Yes, I said “criminal.” It is clear from the latest Fort Worth Star-Telegram report on sexual abuse in IFB churches that David Hyles committed sex crimes and his father covered them up. This story has been repeated in numerous IFB churches over the years. Don’t think for a moment that the latest report on sexual abuse is new. This kind of behavior has been going on ever since I was a teenager at Trinity Baptist Church in Findlay, Ohio, five decades ago. It was covered up back then, and it is covered up today.
Sexual assaults, rapes, predatory behavior, and adultery are covered up way too often in IFB churches. Protecting the “good” name of the church in the community becomes more important than rooting out predatory behavior. Far too often, victims are either not believed or are blamed for what happened to them. IFB pastors are known for their sermons about how women dress, and how inappropriately dressed women are culpable for how poor, hapless, weak Baptist men respond to their carnal displays of flesh. Women (and teen girls) are expected to be gatekeepers; to dress and act in ways that keep church men and teen boys from having lustful thoughts about them. When Jack Schaap, the former pastor of First Baptist Church in Hammond, Indiana and Jack Hyles’ son-in-law, was arrested for sexually assaulting a church teenager he was counseling, more than a few Schaap defenders came to this site and blamed the girl for seducing him. She was called a slut, a whore, and a Jezebel. Schaap was viewed as a tired, overworked man of God who was an easy mark. Never mind the fact that Schaap was old enough to be the girl’s father and that he, through letters, cards, and text messages, sexually manipulated this help-seeking, vulnerable, naive girl. His disgraceful fall into sin was all her fault, according to his defenders.
The title of this post asks, What Will the IFB Church Movement Do About Sexual Abuse Allegations? The answer should be clear to all who are reading: NOTHING! As long as IFB churches remain independent and accountable to no one but the silent God, sexual abuse will continue. As long as congregants are taught to revere, fear, and unconditionally obey their pastors, it is unlikely that predatory IFB preachers will be in danger of exposure or criminal prosecution. As long as IFB preachers continue to promote warped views of human sexuality and sexual accountability, it is doubtful that predators and abusers will be held accountable for their crimes. And as long as churches value their own reputations more than the innocence of their children and the vulnerability of their women, pastors will continue their wicked ways.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
In 2018, Jonathan Jenkins, a youth pastor at Starlight Baptist Church in Santa Ana, California, was accused of sexually assaulting a twelve-year-old church girl.
A Santa Ana youth pastor was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of violently sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in his church’s bathroom during a service earlier this year, police said.
Jonathan Lamont Jenkins, a 57-year-old Riverside resident, allegedly began harassing the girl at the beginning of 2018, making sexual advances toward her when she was just 12 years old, Santa Ana police said in a news release.
The victim attends Starlight Baptist Church, at 1201 W. Second St., where Jenkins has worked as a youth pastor for the last two years. The suspect has been a parishioner there since 2012, officials said.
The sexual assault occurred sometime this March, after the victim went to use the restroom during service.
The girl entered a bathroom she thought was empty and found Jenkins inside, waiting for her, according to police. She then tried to escape, but he allegedly held her against her will.
Jenkins is accused of strangling and sexually assaulting her after threatening her with physical violence.
The girl didn’t immediately come forward to authorities with her story, and continued attending the same church.
When she saw Jenkins there on Aug. 5, he allegedly confronted her and mocked her about the sexual assault. He also told her he would tell police she allowed him to sexually assault her if she reported the incident, investigators said.
Officials did not say when exactly the assault was reported.
Once it was, an investigation was launched. Detectives said they obtained evidence against Jenkins, but didn’t provide details on what it entails.
The suspect was arrested Tuesday as he was going into a liquor store in Santa Ana, police said.
He was being held on suspicion of aggravated sexual assault of a child and other child abuse crimes at the Orange County Jail on $1 million bail.
Jenkins also has a “long criminal history,” according to Cpl. Anthony Bertagna, who said his previous convictions include robbery, burglary, criminal threats and narcotics violations.
Because of that, and other factors, detectives believe the youth pastor could have additional victims, Bertagna said.
“The way he handled this child, in the manner he handled this child, in the location he handled this child, leads them to believe that potentially there are other victims out there,” he told KTLA.
Five years later, Jenkins finally had his day in court, pleading guilty to a felony count of continuous sexual abuse of a child. He was immediately sentenced to twelve years in prison.
A 60-year-old former Santa Ana church youth pastor pleaded guilty and was immediately sentence Friday to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl.
Jonathan Lamont Jenkins of Riverside pleaded guilty to a felony count of continuous sexual abuse of a child. As part of the plea deal charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child, aggravated sexual assault of a child-oral copulation with force or fear, aggravated sexual assault of a child with foreign object and two counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a minor.
Jenkins was given credit for 1,848 days in custody, or about five years.
Jenkins initially faced up to 90 years to life in prison, authorities said when he was charged in 2018.
The victim came forward to police in October 2018, police said.
Jenkins had been a member of the Starlight Baptist Church at 1201 W. Second St. since 2012, and served as a youth pastor there for two years, police said.
The victim said Jenkins started making “sexual advances toward her” in January 2018, according to police.
Sometime in March 2018, she was at a service when she went to the bathroom, where Jenkins was waiting for her. The girl tried to get away, but he locked the door, choked her and physically restrained her while he sexually assaulted her, police said.
The girl did not tell anyone and continued going to the church, police said, but on Aug. 5, 2018 Jenkins mocked the girl about the sexual assault and warned her not to tell anyone or he would claim the sex was consensual.
Jenkins touched the victim’s buttocks in January 2018 and attempted to assault her again in April, according to prosecutors. He also attempted to assault her in July of that year as well, prosecutors said.
Jenkins has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 1999 that includes robbery, assault with a deadly weapon and drug charges, police said. He has prior convictions for robbery in Los Angeles in 1983 and burglary in Orange County in 1986, according to prosecutors.
Jenkins has a forty-year felony criminal history, yet the fine people of Starlight Baptist Church deemed him suitable to be their youth pastor. The church should be held criminally liable for Jenkins’ crimes. Of course, they won’t be, and such crimes will continue until the courts punish EVERYONE involved in these crimes.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
Keenan Hord, a youth pastor at First Baptist Church in Bentonville, Arkansas, pleaded guilty to thirteen sex-related crimes involving children and was sentenced to sixty years in prison. First Baptist is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.
A former youth minister pleaded guilty Friday to 13 sex-related crimes involving children and was sentenced to 60 years in prison.
Keenan Hord, 33, of Centerton worked for First Baptist Church in Bentonville before he was arrested Aug. 24.
Hord accepted a plea deal. A jury trial in his case had been scheduled to begin March 7.
One of Hord’s victims gave a victim impact statement at Friday’s hearing. The mothers of four other victims also gave impact statements.
Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren ordered Hord to register as a sex offender and not to have contact with any of the victims or any children.
Hord will be eligible for parole in 15 years.
Bentonville police received a tip through the Arkansas State Police child abuse hotline Aug. 19, according to a news release from the Bentonville Police Department. James Boothman, a Bentonville detective, testified at Hord’s August bond hearing police served a search warrant and seized several electronic devices. Boothman said police had spoken to six victims and identified up to 30 possible victims with an examination of Hord’s cellphone.
Bentonville police Sgt. Josh Woodhams testified at the bond hearing he examined a cellphone belonging to one of the boys that revealed a romantic and sexual relationship between Hord and the boy. He said there were 5,000 conversations on the phone between Hord and the boy. Woodhams said police located a half-million text messages on the phone. As many as 30 boys had conversations with Hord, Woodhams said.
Hord has served on the staffs of at least two Southern Baptist churches, most recently First Baptist Bentonville, where he joined the staff in 2016 and became student pastor in 2018, according to Baptist Press, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Keenan Hord, 32, was arrested Thursday (Aug. 25) for sexual indecency with a child. Hord has served on the staffs of at least two Southern Baptist churches, most recently First Baptist Bentonville, where he joined the staff in 2016 and became student pastor in 2018. The church said in a statement Friday (Aug. 26) that the allegations came after Hord’s employment there had ended.
A warrant for his arrest was issued Tuesday (Aug. 23) after First Baptist Bentonville made a report Aug. 19 to the Arkansas State Police child abuse hotline.
Investigators believe there could be up to 30 or more victims, according to KTHV-TV.
“We have been devastated to learn that a former employee of our church has been credibly accused of abusing adolescents during his tenure at our church.,” First Baptist Bentonville said in a statement to Baptist Press. “While these accusations did not come to light until after his employment ended, when we learned of them we immediately contacted our local authorities, made a report to the Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline, and continue to fully support the ongoing law enforcement investigation.”
A former youth pastor was arrested on a charge of sexual indecency with a child in a case related to his time as a youth pastor at a Bentonville church, according to Nathan Smith, Benton County prosecutor.
Keenan Hord was arrested Thursday night and has been booked into the Benton County Detention Center. He is facing charges that include sexual assault and possessing sexually explicit material involving a child.
A judge set a cash bond of $500,000 in the case.
During the bond hearing, county prosecutors said there are potentially more than thirty victims.
Hord worked as a youth pastor at First Baptist Church Bentonville, Smith said. The church contacted the child abuse hotline immediately upon learning of allegations against Hord.
A detective told a judge Hord had inappropriate contact with a 15-year-old. He said law enforcement found more than 5,000 text messages between Hord and one victim.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
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.
In 2018, Russell Davis, a Methodist pastor, was accused of raping a church teenager.
A Seabrook man is being held without bail after he was accused of raping a child while he was serving as a pastor in the Methodist Church.
Russell Davis, 65, faces several charges in Massachusetts. Seabrook police said they arrested Davis Thursday on a fugitive from justice warrant. The Essex County District Attorney’s Office said he is being held without bail because he is still employed in the ministry and has access to children.
Davis pleaded not guilty in Newburyport District Court to charges out of Rowley, Massachusetts, of rape of a child with force and indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or over, and a charge of rape from Newbury, Massachusetts.
Prosecutors said the allegations involve the same victim and incidents that occurred in April 2004.
According to the New England Conference of the United Methodist Church, Davis was a licensed Methodist minister from 1999 to 2015. His first assignment was in Warren, New Hampshire.
Davis moved among several churches in Maine and Massachusetts after that until his license was discontinued in 2015. A spokesperson for the church would not say why his license was discontinued but said it was not related to sexual misconduct.
It’s unclear whether Davis has been affiliated with any churches in New Hampshire since then.
A former pastor accused of raping a child will have the chance to be released from custody as he awaits trial. A Newburyport District Court judge ordered that he be held on $5,000 cash bail, following a dangerousness hearing on Monday.
While Russell Davis, 65, of Seabrook, was found dangerous by the court, he will be released should he post bail. If released, he will need to wear a GPS monitoring device, live in Massachusetts, stay away and have no contact with his alleged victim and have no unsupervised contact with children under 16. He is due back in court May 16.
Monday’s dangerousness hearing, which is to determine whether a defendant poses too great a risk to his alleged victim or society to be afforded bail while awaiting trial, was originally scheduled for last week. But an Essex County prosecutor told Judge Peter Doyle that Davis’ attorney was not available that day.
On March 30, Davis pleaded not guilty to charges of rape of a child with force, as well as indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or over. Those offenses took place in Rowley in 2004, according to the Essex District Attorney’s office.
In addition, Davis also pleaded not guilty to a charge of rape, which allegedly occurred in Newbury in 2004, the DA’s office said. No information was available about when the allegations surfaced. Davis was arrested a day earlier in Seabrook. A judge ordered all police reports related to Davis’ arrest impounded.
Other victims came forward, reaching a total of three. It is likely there were other victims whose assaults were not prosecuted.
Five years later, Davis pleaded guilty to raping and attempting to rape the three boys. Astoundingly, Davis was only sentenced to three years in prison. Davis’s attorney wanted probation!
They were boys who’d already suffered significant losses in life: A parent to cancer, other parents to substance abuse. They had been put into foster care with other family.
In the then-mostly rural communities of Byfield, Newbury, Salisbury and Rowley, in the late 1980s, the 1990s and early 2000s, the vulnerable teens were steered toward a local United Methodist Church — and into the path of a lay pastor, a man who, though not ordained, had been given a type of license by the church to work as a youth minister.
On Thursday, Russell Woodman Davis, 70, pleaded guilty to raping and attempting to rape the three boys at various times between 1988 and 2006, in Newbury, Rowley and Salisbury.
Davis was sentenced to three to four years in state prison, a sentence that Salem Superior Court Judge Thomas Drechsler had offered if Davis opted to plead guilty before his trial, which had been scheduled for next week.
Drechsler said Thursday that he hopes the sentence balances the “profound trauma and damage” done to the three victims and Davis’ abuse of a position of trust, with Davis’ advanced age and cancer, which, he also pointed out, has been in remission.
Davis, who had been free on bail in the case, was taken into custody in the courtroom, first placed into handcuffs and then, after being led to a chair, into leg shackles.
One of his victims, as well as several family members and friends, craned their necks to watch.
On Tuesday, Drechsler heard from one of the victims, now an adult, about his ongoing struggle to recover from the trauma.
He was back in court on Thursday, where he appeared overcome by emotion at several points during the hearing, burying his face in his hands as the prosecutor detailed again, for the record, what had happened to him and the other boys.
The judge heard from one more person on Thursday, the sister of one of the victims, who had taken him in after the death of their mother from cancer.
The woman, whose name is being withheld by the newspaper so as not to identify her brother, said the abuse began within four weeks of their mother’s death.
“There is no amount of jail time that could punish him enough,” she told the judge, before saying she hopes Davis will “rot in hell.”
Prosecutor Kate MacDougall, who had requested a five- to seven-year prison term, told the judge that had the case gone to trial, she would have made a “significantly higher” sentencing request, given the “abhorrent nature of the acts and unimaginable destruction inflicted upon these men.”
Davis’ lawyer, Edward McNaught, had initially hoped for probation — a disposition previously rejected by another judge in 2021 — but sought two years in custody.
MacDougall described the facts of the case in court chronologically, though the victims came forward at different times — including one who, in 2010, reported his abuse to police. They did not pursue the case at that time.
In 1988, the first victim was 12 when his mother died and he went to live with his sister.
He met Davis at the church.
The second boy, who had been placed with an aunt, met Davis in 2003 when she brought him to her church. That boy would later introduce Davis to the third boy, who was about a year older.
Davis, said the prosecutor, “would take these young men under his wing under the guise of providing mentorship.” He would spend time alone with that boy and the others, coercing and forcing them into sexual acts to which they were too young to consent or that they did not want to engage in.
“Did you commit those acts?” Drechsler asked Davis at the conclusion of the prosecutor’s remarks.
“Yes I did, your honor,” Davis replied, with no emotion.
Davis pleaded guilty to a series of rape and attempted rape counts involving each of the boys.
But prior to trial, prosecutors were forced to drop other counts, including disseminating obscene material and unnatural acts, due to the statute of limitations having run.
Davis told the judge that he had a high school equivalency and had attended a seminary but did not finish.
Prior to working for the church, he was a U.S. Postal Service employee for 20 years, he told the judge.
In a January 2001 interview with The Salem News, Davis discussed his recent appointment as pastor of Peabody’s First Methodist Church on Washington Street — and his work with a group of 10 high school boys at a church in Byfield, where he was known as “Pastor Rusty.”
According to archived stories from The Daily News of Newburyport, Davis worked as pastor of the East Parish United Methodist Church in Salisbury and the Community United Methodist Church in Byfield, and had also served as chaplain in the Byfield Fire Department for a decade.
In a statement released after he was first charged in 2018, the New England Conference of the United Methodist Church said Davis had lost his church license to work as a pastor in 2015 but said it was unrelated to the allegations against him.
After completing the prison term, Davis will be on probation for three years, with conditions that he register as a sex offender, undergo a sex offender evaluation and treatment, and have no unsupervised contact with anyone under 18, as well as have no contact with the victims and their families.
If he violates any of the conditions of that probation he could be returned to prison for up to life.
Prosecutors may also seek to keep Davis in custody after he completes his sentence if he is determined to be a sexually dangerous person.
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen 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.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
