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Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Brooke Covington Tries to Beat the Gay Out of a Man

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brooke covington

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.

Brooke Covington, a minister with Word of Faith Fellowship in Spindale, North Carolina, is standing trial on kidnapping and assault charges. Prosecutors allege that Covington and other church members tried to beat the gay out of congregant Matthew Fenner.

The Daily Mail reports:

One of five people charged with beating a fellow church member to expel homosexual demons admitted in court that she started the physical assault by slapping the man.

Sarah Anderson testified Friday that she told other leaders at Word of Faith Fellowship she thought Matthew Fenner was unclean and sinful.

Minister Brooke Covington is standing trial on kidnapping and assault charges.

Anderson says Covington began the confrontation by screaming at Fenner after a January 2013 service at the church in Spindale, North Carolina.

She says she then slapped Fenner, and then Covington and about 30 others joined in, slapping, beating, choking and screaming at the man for two hours.

….

Previously when Fenner testified, he said he thought he was ‘going to die’ when members of the evangelical church beat and choked him for two hours to expel his ‘homosexual demons.’

Fenner, 23, said Covington pointed out his sexual orientation, saying, ‘God said there is something wrong in your life.’

Fenner said he had cancer as a child and had a biopsy one week before he was assaulted.

‘I’m frail and in my mind, I’m thinking, “Is my neck going to break, am I going to die?”’ Fenner said.

Prosecutor Garland Byers said during opening statements that Covington ‘directed and participated in’ the assault.

Covington’s lawyer, David Teddy, tried to poke holes in Fenner’s testimony, noting that Fenner praised the church in his high school graduation speech and visited a Word of Faith Fellowship church in Brazil.

‘Before I got to Word of Faith, my life was filled with sin,’ Teddy said, quoting from the transcript of one of those speeches.

Teddy also said Fenner never told anyone to stop hitting him. ‘When you’ve been emotionally abused, you cannot say stop,’ Fenner said.

Complaining would have made the punishment worse, Fenner said.

During opening statements, Teddy said the congregation gave Fenner routine prayer that lasted no longer than 15 to 20 minutes. When the prayer was over, Fenner ‘hugged everybody and left the church,’ Teddy said.

As part of an ongoing, two-year investigation into abuse of Word of Faith Fellowship congregants by church leaders, The Associated Press interviewed four former church members who say they witnessed Fenner being attacked.

Based on interviews with 43 former members, documents and secretly made recordings, it was reported in February that Word of Faith Fellowship congregants were regularly punched, smacked, choked, slammed to the floor or thrown through walls in a violent form of deliverance meant to ‘purify’ sinners by beating out devils.

The church has scores of strict rules to control congregants’ lives, including whether they can marry or have children. Failure to comply often triggers a humiliating rebuke from the pulpit or, worse, physical punishment.

Members can’t watch television, go to the movies, read newspapers or eat in restaurants that play music or serve alcohol. If church leaders believe a congregant has sexual or dirty thoughts, they can be accused of being ‘unclean’ and be punished, the former members said.

….

The sect was founded in 1979 by Jane Whaley, a former math teacher, and her husband, Sam, a former used car salesman.

Under Jane Whaley’s leadership, Word of Faith Fellowship grew from a handful of followers to a 750-member congregation in North Carolina, and another nearly 2,000 members in churches in Brazil and Ghana.

Word of Faith denies the accusations made against the church and Covington. You can read their responses here.

The Sounds of Fundamentalism: Evolution is to Blame for Everything from Racism to Murder Says David Whitney

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pastor david whitney

This is the one hundred and fifty-fourth installment in The Sounds of Fundamentalism series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a video clip that shows the crazy, cantankerous, or contradictory side of Evangelical Christianity, please send me an email with the name or link to the video. Please do not leave suggestions in the comment section.  Let’s have some fun!

Today’s Sound of Fundamentalism is a video clip of David Whitney, affiliated with the Institute on the Constitution, blaming everything from racism to murder on evolution.

In a sermon preached at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Pasadena, Maryland, Whitney stated:

“As in all public schools, evolution is inculcated and it teaches that there is no Creator God and that everything in the universe came into existence by chance and mistake, accident and is wholly without purpose and without meaning of any kind,” Whitney preached. “[Urbanski] was taught that mankind, including himself, was nothing more than a long compilation of mistakes and mutations and chance occurrences.”

“We should not be surprised then if Sean, with that background and education, concluded that life is meaningless, without any purpose at all,” he continued. “Or, if there is a purpose in life, it would be to advance and further the process of evolution; a process in which the strong destroy the weak and indeed, ultimately, that is the purpose for existence. Survival of the fittest therefore has some rather dastardly consequences which we see in the murder committed by a secular humanist of a Christian young man.”

“Evolution is also the basis of racism, [and] many assert that racism played a role in the motivation for this murder,” Whitney said. “You see, evolution is essentially racist. So where did Sean Urbanski learn racism? He learned it in his classes on evolution at the local public high school that his parents sent him to and his parents funded that school by the payment of their property taxes.”

Video Link

 

Black Collar Crime: Catholic Priest Felix Colosimo and Syracuse Diocese Sued Over Sexual Abuse Claims

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felix colosimo

Greg Mason, a reporter for the Observer-Dispatch, writes:

A former Utica-area priest and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse each are facing a $25 million lawsuit from a man who claims the priest sexually abused him as a child.

The lawsuit, filed Friday in federal court in Connecticut by California man Matthew Strzepak, accuses former priest Felix Colosimo of molesting Strzepak from 1987 to 1990. Strzepak was between 12 to 15 years old when the acts reportedly were committed, according to the lawsuit.

In a statement Friday, the diocese revealed it had stripped Colosimo, who was retired by then, of his priestly duties in 2014 when it found Strzepak’s accusation credible. The diocese stated the Oneida County District Attorney’s Office was informed of the allegation.

Colosimo served locally in the past at St. Peter’s Church in North Utica, St. Leo’s Church in Holland Patent, St. Anthony of Padua Church in East Utica and Our Lady of the Rosary in New Hartford. Now age 78, Colosimo said he retired as a priest at Our Lady of the Rosary three years ago for reasons unrelated to the abuse allegations, according to a Syracuse.com report.

When reached Saturday, Colosimo declined to comment in detail about the allegations against him.

“Again, same what I said from the very beginning, it’s not true,” he said. “The allegations are false.”

Strzepak told Syracuse.com that the abuse began in 1978 or 1979 when he was 4 years old, but New York state’s statute of limitations expired for those claims.

….

Strzepak told Syracuse.com that most of the abuse occurred in the rectory of St. Leo’s Church in Holland Patent, while some occurred at St. Peter’s Church. According to the report, Colosimo threatened Strzepak with violence if he told anyone.

The lawsuit indicates the abuse occurred in various locations in the Northeast, including Connecticut.

Colosimo raped the 12-year-old Strzepak in Connecticut in the fall of 1987, according to the lawsuit. Strzepak alleges the abuse continued until 1990, while he claims another individual — called John Doe in the court papers — also was sexually abused.

This abuse often would occur with Strzepak and Doe at the same time, with many interactions videotaped, according to the lawsuit. Doe is stated to have committed suicide sometime thereafter.

In his lawsuit, Strzepak claims he suffered serious and permanent injuries, both physical and emotional, that were exacerbated “by lack of timely treatment.” He stated this includes panic attacks, emotional distress, anxiety, frustration, disassociation, post-traumatic stress disorder and permanent psychological scarring.

In addition to the $25 million being sought from both Colosimo and the diocese, Strzepak is seeking special damages for medical expenses, past and future lost wages and other costs, according to the lawsuit.

Strzepak submitted his allegations to the diocese in writing in 2013, noting that the allegations were found credible a year later, according to the lawsuit.

In March 2016, the diocese reportedly agreed to pay for six counseling sessions for Strzepak in return for all of the treatment notes and records from his counselor. Whereas the lawsuit states counseling notes are used for insight by the diocese regarding potential legal liabilities, Strzepak indicated in the court papers that he also submitted a video recording — one depicting him and Doe shirtless — to the diocese in 2014, but the diocese has not turned over the video to law enforcement and the video’s whereabouts are unknown.

….

Baptist Church Members Excommunicated for Attending “Unsanctioned” Prayer Meeting

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mount calvary baptist church protesters

While churches should be (according to the Bible) places of love, joy, and peace, they often are anything but. Christians may love Jesus, but they don’t always love each other. A good example of this is what is currently going on at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Mansfield, Ohio.

The Mansfield News-Journal reports:

Twenty-two members of Mount Calvary Baptist Church were dismissed as members of their congregation, most of them for attending an “unsanctioned” prayer meeting, expelled church members say.

“We were summarily locked out and prohibited from coming onto the property,” said Yolanda Allen, who with her husband Peter was one of the first two members dismissed. “Some members have been told not even to call the church.”

“Members of our church have been disenfranchised from their due process,” said John  Bessick, another dismissed member, who had been serving as an associate pastor.

At least 10 protesters carrying signs lined the right of way just off church property along North Main Street and Surrey Road during a May 25 event to celebrate the Rev. Derek Williams’ two-year anniversary as pastor.

Picketers returned twice on Sunday, as celebration events continued at the church at 343 N. Main St.

Protesters said at least 22 church members, in a congregation estimated as about 170 (including children), have been expelled.

Some kicked out of the congregation say they had been members for more than five decades.

Those who say they were forced out include former NAACP President Betty Palmer-Harris, former Mansfield codes and permits manager Linda Price, and Allen, who served on the city park board

Picketers said the chain of events began after Allen, who had been appointed by Williams to chair the church finance committee, raised questions about spending.

In August 2016, she said she grew concerned that some budget line items, including those controlled by the pastor, were over budget. She thought a meeting was needed to discuss how to bring overall spending into line.

“He (the pastor) did not think I should question his expenditures,” Allen said. “I said ‘It’s just a meeting.’ ”

Allen said Williams, hired at the Mansfield church in 2015 after serving as a minister in Milwaukee, told her she would not continue as committee chair in 2017.

Allen said she and her husband, a church trustee until January, were called in Feb. 14 to a meeting of most of the church’s joint board to respond to a half-dozen charges —including slander and spreading discord — then informed their names would be taken off the membership rolls.

Joint board members at the meeting included the pastor and two other ministers, three deacons, two trustees and a recording secretary.

Under Mount Calvary bylaws, Allen said “a recommendation might come from the board, but it should go to the church body to be decided.”

Church members taken aback by the Allens’ dismissal scheduled a prayer meeting inside the church around Feb. 18, then held a second prayer meeting in the parking lot the next week.

Many of those who attended the initial prayer meeting received letters dismissing them as members as well, picketers said.

Church members who were expelled included three people present at the Feb. 14 joint board meeting, associate pastor Bessick, Deacon Robert Thompson, and Price, who had served as recording secretary.

Williams said Tuesday the allegation that the situation initially stemmed from questions raised about spending were “totally untrue.”

“That’s false. They were not dismissed because of any finance person asking questions,” he said.

“To fabricate a story like that is unbecoming a Christian,” he said. “It’s a sad commentary that the individuals would use the News Journal (like that). Whatever they told you is not the truth, and we have documented the truth.

“The church and the membership and the pastor are going on in the name of the Lord,” focusing strictly on church business, he added.

Williams said he had no other comment at that point. When the News Journal attempted to reach the pastor Wednesday, he left word he was too busy to discuss the matter.

The letters in mid-April informing nearly two dozen individuals they were dismissed from membership were signed by Mount Calvary Deacon Robert D. Chapmon and interim trustee board chairwoman Denise Windham-Brown as leaders of the joint board.

“You are no longer welcome at any of our services or functions or entering on the property of Mount Calvary Baptist Church at 343 N. Main St., Mansfield, Ohio 44901 as of the date of this letter,” one dismissal letter said.

“Please do not contact Mount Calvary Baptist Church by phone or email,” the letter concluded.

….

Allen, 70, said she has been a church member since she was 12. She said they felt slightly uncomfortable when the new pastor appointed her finance committee chairman in 2015. Under church bylaws “a trustee should have been chosen,” she said.

Allen said she admits to one of the six allegations brought against her, saying she had addressed Williams as “Brother” instead of “Pastor.” But she took issue with the other charges, and said no testimony was presented on those charges, and she was not given an opportunity to have them fully heard.

Price said after the Allens were expelled, a group of 18 people “got together to pray on the situation.”

“The pastor said that it (that meeting) was not sanctioned by him, and if anyone was attending a prayer meeting (under those conditions) they would be set down or dismissed. Then the letters started going out,” she said.

….

Former deacon Robert Thompson, 80, said he’d been a Mount Calvary member for 72 years at the time he was dismissed. “We have remained silent, up till now,” he said.

“The insults, the humiliation and the beat-down,” Thompson said, adding long-time members were “exhausted” by recent events. “Where is the love? I can’t accept a pastor, under those conditions.”

….

Both sides have said they may work with attorneys concerning their options.

Picketers said when they returned on Sunday, they found horse manure in the right of way where they had been walking Friday night. It was unknown how the manure got there, they said.

….

Part of me wants to laugh hysterically, but I do feel for the people who have spent their lives as members of Mount Calvary, only to be unceremoniously kicked out of the church because of disagreements with their pastor. Stories such as this one remind us that Christians are just like the unwashed, uncircumcised Philistines of the world. All of us are capable of similar behavior if provoked or we feel our space is being threatened. I am an easy-going guy who tries to get along with others. However, threaten or attack my wife, children, or — the gods forbid — my precious, wonderful grandchildren, and I will most likely turn into bad-ass Bruce who might do bodily harm to you. What’s going on at Mount Calvary is akin to threatening someone’s family. Fuck the fruit of the Spirit and all that lovey-dovey stuff. The church’s pastor and board are trying to take away the excommunicated church members’ baby. This conflict will likely not end well. Perhaps it is time to consider doing what Solomon suggested to two women fighting over who was the real mother of a baby. Cut the baby in two, said Solomon. Perhaps love and peace will prevail, but more often than not, once lawyers get involved in the conflict, separation usually follows.

The BRCA1 and BRCA2 Gene: Susan-Anne White Condemns Women Who Have Preemptive Surgery

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Susan-Anne White, a True Christian, So True She Can’t Find Any Church Pure Enough For Her

Some of you may remember my interaction with Irish Fundamentalist Susan-Anne White. (Please read Susan-Anne White Thinks I’m a Despicable, Obnoxious, Militant, Hateful Atheist. and British Fundamentalist Susan-Anne White’s List of Politically Correct Words.) Several days ago, Ms. White decided to dispense medical advice to woman who have the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation. Here’s what White had to say:

Another group of surgeons who should have joined Mr.Paterson in the dock are those who perform mastectomies on patients who do not have cancer but were told by doctors that they carry a gene which supposedly increases the risk of them developing cancer in the future.

So, some (or perhaps many) women undergo mastectomies (sometimes double mastectomies) even though they do not have cancer and may never develop cancer. They are probably more at risk of being knocked down on the road than they are at risk of having cancer in the future.

All these surgeons should be in the dock!

The FACTS from the National Cancer Institute:

How much does having a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation increase a woman’s risk of breast and ovarian cancer?

A woman’s lifetime risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer is greatly increased if she inherits a harmful mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2.

Breast cancer: About 12 percent of women in the general population will develop breast cancer sometime during their lives. By contrast, according to the most recent estimates, 55 to 65 percent of women who inherit a harmful BRCA1 mutation and around 45 percent of women who inherit a harmful BRCA2 mutation will develop breast cancer by age 70 years .

Ovarian cancer: About 1.3 percent of women in the general population will develop ovarian cancer sometime during their lives. By contrast, according to the most recent estimates, 39 percent of women who inherit a harmful BRCA1 mutation and 11 to 17 percent of women who inherit a harmful BRCA2 mutation will develop ovarian cancer by age 70 years.

It is important to note that these estimated percentages of lifetime risk are different from those available previously; the estimates have changed as more information has become available, and they may change again with additional research. No long-term general population studies have directly compared cancer risk in women who have and do not have a harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation.

It is also important to note that other characteristics of a particular woman can make her cancer risk higher or lower than the average risks. These characteristics include her family history of breast, ovarian, and, possibly, other cancers; the specific mutation(s) she has inherited; and other risk factors, such as her reproductive history. However, at this time, based on current data, none of these other factors seems to be as strong as the effect of carrying a harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation.

Shock! White doesn’t know what she is talking about.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor A. Livingston Foxworth Busted in Prostitution Sting

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A. Livingston Foxworth, pastor of Grace Church of All Nations in Dorchester, Massachusetts, was arrested Tuesday during a  prostitution sting.

The Boston Herald reports:

The prominent Boston minister who blessed Gov. Charlie Baker after he was elected to the Corner Office was caught soliciting a prostitute during an undercover police sting that also reeled in nine other would-be johns, authorities said.

A. Livingston Foxworth, the senior pastor at the Grace Church of All Nations in Dorchester, was arraigned yesterday in Boston Municipal Court on a single charge of paying for sexual conduct. He was released without bail after a brief appearance.

Foxworth gave newly elected Baker and his wife, Lauren, a blessing in November 2014 during a Grace Church of All Nations service.

“Gov. Baker is saddened by this news and is confident the courts will examine the facts and reach an appropriate decision,” said Lizzy Guyton, a spokesman for Baker.

….

The pastor and his attorney, Hassan Williams, declined to comment yesterday.

Foxworth and nine other men were busted in the Tuesday afternoon sting, according to authorities. Detectives from the Boston Police Department’s Human Trafficking Unit conducted an “undercover online investigation into ­illegal sexual services being offered for a fee,” according to an incident report.

Detectives posing as a female on the infamous online classified ad website Backpage.com were contacted by Foxworth and the other men, according to authorities. Foxworth agreed to pay $150 for sex and went to an address on Pine Street for an illicit rendezvous, according to police.

Once he arrived, detectives called the number Foxworth provided and it started to ring, a police report states. He was placed under arrest, and his cellphone was placed into evidence, according to authorities.

“Human trafficking exists because sex buyers make it profitable,” Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a statement. “Part of our strategy is making clear that there are social, financial, and legal consequences for that behavior in Boston and Suffolk County.”

Williams tried to convince BMC Judge Thomas Horgan to drop the charges and give Foxworth a civil infraction but Suffolk prosecutor Jessica Meyer pushed back.

“This is a matter that your honor has arraigned for almost 10 other defendants today and no action was taken with them regarding a civil infraction,” Meyer said.

Horgan agreed with Meyer, and Foxworth is now slated to return to court July 26.

Foxworth’s bio states:

Archbishop Foxworth is married to Karen L. Foxworth and he is the father of six children Elizabeth, Kevin, Anthony, Ricky, Brandice and Jeremy, and the grandfather of six children.

He received his Biblical and Pastoral training through Moody Bible Institute, and has been pasturing Grace Church of All Nations for 35 years. He was consecrated to the Bishopric at the Episcopal Cathedral of St. Paul in Boston, Massachusetts in May, 2007.

Currently, Archbishop Foxworth serves a congregation of over twelve hundred members and is training pastors within the Pentecostal Episcopal Church (PEC) reformation to establish multicultural congregations throughout the United States and internationally. He is also working with uni-cultural ministries ie: Haitian, African and Latino to establish a Multicultural Christian Fellowship. This vision is in its infancy, pastor stands on the Word of God and believes that ALL things are possible and ‘we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength.’

The Sounds of Fundamentalism: Let God Take Care of Climate Change, Says Congressman Tim Walberg

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tim walberg

This is the one hundred and fifty-third installment in The Sounds of Fundamentalism series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a video clip that shows the crazy, cantankerous, or contradictory side of Evangelical Christianity, please send me an email with the name or link to the video. Please do not leave suggestions in the comment section.  Let’s have some fun!

Today’s Sound of Fundamentalism is a video clip of Michigan congressman Tim Walberg telling a group of people that there is no need for us to be concerned about climate change. Walberg ignorantly stated:

I believe there’s climate change. I believe there’s been climate change since the beginning of time. I think there are cycles. Do I think that man has some impact? Yeah, of course. Can man change the entire universe? No. Why do I believe that? As a Christian, I believe that there is a creator, God, who’s much bigger than us. And I’m confident that, if there’s a real problem, he can take care of it.

 

Video Link

Walberg, a former Fundamentalist pastor,  was educated at three Evangelical Christian institutions: Moody Bible Institute, Wheaton University and Taylor University.

Video Link

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Steve Jesmer Pleads Guilty to Sexually Assaulting Church Teen

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pastor steve jesmer

Warning! Graphic Language.

Steve Jesmer, pastor of Dialogue Christian Church in Manchester, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty today to sexually assaulting a teenage girl who attended his church.

Laura Montenegro, a reporter for NH1 News writes:

A 37-year-old former pastor at Dialogue Christian Church on Pine Street will spend at least five years in prison for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl last summer in his parish office.

At a plea and sentencing hearing at Hillsborough County Superior Court North on Wednesday morning County Attorney Michael Valentine described the facts of the case to the judge.

He said the 13-year-old girl, identified as A.I., told police Steve Jesmer picked her up to take her to a church youth group meeting on Wednesday, June 8, 2016. Jesmer brought her to the church but instead of meeting with the youth group, he brought her to his church office.

A.I. said he began to hug her and put his hands around her waist. Jesmer then began touching her breasts and pulled her shirt down. A.I. said when she looked down, she saw Jesmer had pulled out his penis and began pushing himself against her and put her hand on his penis. He then laid her down on the couch in the office where he removed her pants and underwear. She told police at that time Jesmer, “pushed himself inside me.” According to A.I., Jesmer then told her she was beautiful and said he wanted to put his penis in her mouth and ejaculate. A.I. protested but Jesmer told her she could not get pregnant if he ejaculated in her mouth and that she should finish what she started. She again protested, so Jesmer had A.I. massage his penis with her hand until he ejaculated. A.I. told police Jesmer then dropped her off at her house.

Under the plea deal, Jesmer pleaded guilty to two felony charges of felonious sexual assault against a minor, one charge for vaginal penetration the other for oral penetration, each sentence carrying a minimum sentence of five years and a maximum of 15 years. The second sentence is suspended upon good behavior. He also pleaded guilty to felony witness tampering, for telling A.I. not to say anything because Jesmer told A.I. he could lose his wife and family. The witness tampering sentence is also suspended pending good behavior. Jesmer also pleaded guilty to four counts of misdemeanor sexual assault against a minor. Those crimes include pushing his body against A.I., putting her hand on his penis, pressing his penis against his body and ejaculating on her. For those crimes, Jesmer will serve 12 months to run concurrent with his 5-15 year sentence.

Both A.I. and her mother spoke in court during victim impact statements. A.I.’s mother, reading from a prepared statement, said her daughter is not the girl she used to be, that A.I. is now depressed, and doesn’t eat or sleep. But, despite all this, A.I.’s mother said she is not angry with Jesmer and she forgives him. Adding that it does not excuse what happened.

A.I. also read a victim impact statement, directed at Jesmer.

“I told you everything about me. I trusted you and looked up to you as a father,” she said through tears. “I bet that made it easier for you to take advantage of me.”

A.I. said school has been more difficult since the sexual assault. She said a list was exposed at her school and she was rated as the “most vulnerable” and “easiest to get laid.” She said she’s missed 50 days of school this year due to anxiety attacks.

A.I. admitted that for months after the attack she would take half hour long showers saying, “I scrubbed myself until I bled.”

A.I. said in the months and weeks leading up to the assault, Jesmer and his family supported her. She said she was going through a rough time, and he was there for her when she wanted to commit suicide. During that time, he came to visit her or drive her to the church every day. A.I. said she was making great progress until the sexual assault and she hit “the lowest point I could reach.”

“I can admit that I’m broken,” A.I. said through sobs.

Despite all this, A.I. said she forgives Jesmer.

“You made a mistake just like every other human,” she said. “I don’t want to hold any resentment toward you because that’s not what God wants.”

Jesmer reacted by putting his head down and he appeared to be crying.

“I pray for you and your family’s healing daily,” A.I. said, recognizing that it has affected her and his family.

Jesmer then had an opportunity to address his victim and her family as well as the judge. Jesmer said he destroyed several people’s lives and made a terrible decision.

“I’m very sorry. I thank you for your forgiveness. I don’t deserve it,” Jesmer said to A.I. and her mom. “I failed you. I failed my city and my church.”

About 15 people sat behind Jesmer supporting him in court, and were visibly upset before, during and after the sentencing.

Superior Court Judge John Kissinger praised A.I. saying she showed incredible strength, courage and bravery. Speaking directly to her he reminded her, “There is nothing you did that remotely contributed to or caused this.”

Kissinger also spoke to Jesmer, saying although he has supported the resolution, he has some serious reservations about the light sentence, saying Jesmer was in an authoritative position as a pastor and should have been a support system.

“The reality is, I would not have accepted this but for the support of the victim’s family because I think prisons exist for a reason,” Kissinger said. “The reason is to isolate those who are the most dangerous. And anyone who would act as a predator with a child is someone who needs to be removed and isolated from society.”

Two days after Jesmer sexually assaulted A.I., he posted the following to Twitter:

steve jesmer june 10 2016 tweet

Steve Jesmer’s blog.

Black Collar Crime: Lutheran Pastor Says Church Treasurer Carol Padgett Stole From God

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carol padgett

Carol Padgett, treasurer for Unity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Des Moines, Iowa was sentenced today to eighty hours of community service for embezzling almost $59,000 from the church. Padgett is also required to pay back the money she stole.

The Des Moines Register reports:

The Rev. Donna Joseph told a Des Moines courtroom on Wednesday that she hopes God will forgive the woman who embezzled almost $59,000 from her church.

“I worry, Carol, about the state of your soul,” Joseph said.

Carol Jean Padgett, 70, of Altoona was sentenced on Wednesday to 80 hours of community service. She earlier pleaded guilty to two felony charges for embezzlement while she was treasurer of Unity Lutheran Church in Des Moines.

Padgett was also ordered to pay back the money she stole and additional fees.

Padgett, who had been treasurer for the church more than 11 years, was arrested in December 2016. She originally faced seven felony charges. In April, she pleaded guilty in a deal with prosecutors to two of those charges: second-degree theft and credit card fraud.

In a reading a victim impact statement on Wednesday, Joseph described what she knew about Padgett’s crimes and their effect on the church.

“You stole from God,” she said.

The pastor invoked her faith in her statement to the courtroom by explaining several Bible passages that caution against greed and the “evil deeds” that Padgett committed.

“Sadly, money became your false God. … The love of money is the root of all evil,” Joseph said to Padgett.

Joseph described many church members volunteering more or donating extra money to try to keep the church afloat as Padgett was embezzling.

“You took the sacrifices of so many people,” Joseph said.

Padgett had led church leaders to believe they may have to close the church because of financial problems. The church made several budget cuts over the years in response to Padgett’s advice as treasurer, including pulling donations to other organizations and cutting Joseph’s salary and insurance benefits, Joseph said.

As treasurer, Padgett was the only person to handle the church’s finances, Joseph said. But after months of financial woe, church leaders grew suspicious and eventually examined the bank statements themselves.

They found that Padgett had made ATM withdrawals without the church council’s approval, Joseph said. Padgett had also written checks to herself without approval.

When Padgett had started as the church’s treasurer, it was a paid job, but it was later changed to a volunteer position, Joseph said. If this had caused her financial problems, she should have complained or resigned years ago — it’s not an excuse for theft, Joseph said.

The church has confirmed that Padgett stole nearly $59,000, but Joseph testified that it may have been more.

“Only the Lord knows how much you really stole,” she said.

Joseph claimed that Padgett used the stolen money to buy herself a new car, an expensive vacuum, food at restaurants and other items.

Before she was sentenced, Padgett apologized to Joseph and the several other church members who attended the court hearing.

“I do apologize. … My actions were deplorable,” Padgett said. She added that she is “anxious” to pay restitution for the money she stole, and her attorney said she had planned to make a payment of $1,400 on Wednesday.

In addition to 80 hours of community service and an order to pay restitution, Padgett was sentenced to two years of probation with a suspended prison sentence of five years for each of her two charges.

….

Joseph added that she accepts Padgett’s apology.

“I just want her to be right with Christ, turn to the Lord and seek forgiveness,” she said.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Nicolas Vasquez Pleads Guilty to Sexually Molesting Three Girls

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pastor nicolas vasquez

Nicolas Vasquez, assistant pastor of Asamblea Apostolica Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, pleaded guilty today to molesting three girls and was sentenced to twenty-four years in prison.

WSOC-9 reports:

A former assistant pastor pleaded guilty Wednesday morning to molesting three young girls.

A judge sentenced Nicolas Vasquez to 24 years in prison.

Vasquez was arrested in February 2016 when the three victims came forward and a concerned family member went to police.

Detectives said the victims knew Vasquez as either an acquaintance or through his former east Charlotte church, Asamblea Apostolica Church.

Investigators also revealed the victims were between the ages of 9 and 12 at the time of the assaults, which took place for a few years.

Prosecutor Leslie Stephens told the judge that two of the victims were family members and the third was a girl he knew at the church.

All three were younger than 12 years old, and Vasquez had bribed the girls to keep them from telling on him, Stephens said.

“Your honor, this plea encompasses three different victims,” said prosecutor Leslie Stephens. “He said that he bought all three victims food and clothes so that they wouldn’t tell anyone.”

Police said they searched Vasquez’s home and found pictures and videos showing assaults, and when they confronted him with that evidence, he confessed.

“In these pictures, you can see all three of these girls in these pictures performing various sex acts on him,” Stephens said.

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