Religion

Click2Houston reports: A woman who the FBI said forced a Southwest Airlines plane from Houston to Columbus, Ohio, to make an emergency landing in Little Rock, Arkansas on Saturday said in midflight that “Jesus told her to open the plane door,” court documents released Monday said. Documents released by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas say …

The Christian Post reports: Canadian megachurch Pastor Leon Fontaine, who garnered recent attention for his refusal to adhere to ongoing and restrictive COVID-19 lockdown orders banning churches from holding in-person or drive-in worship gatherings, has died at age 59. A video posted online featuring Fontaine’s five children confirmed that he passed away on Saturday evening, though it did not mention …

The Daily Mail reports: A former children’s minister was arrested in Alabama on 215 counts of possession of child-pornography after police were given a tip. Steve Robert Wukmer, 66, was taken into custody on Monday at his job in Fort Payne, Alabama near the Alabama-Georgia border. Before moving to Alabama, Wukmer lived in Ohio and worked as a children’s minister. According …

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports: A former Catholic priest who was arrested in 2020 after a passerby saw him and two dominatrices having sex on the altar of Pearl River church pleaded guilty Monday to a single count of felony obscenity. Travis Clark listened to 22nd Judicial District Judge Ellen Creel read the elements of the obscenity statute at the …

The Salem Statesman-Journal reports: A former Keizer pastor has been sentenced to 27 years in prison for sexual abuse of one of his church members while she was underage. Bradley Putnam, 55, also will have 41 months of post-prison supervision and has to register as a sex offender. After his prison sentence, he will spend 364 days in the Marion …

The Christian Post reports: The leadership team of Rock Church International cited Romans 3:23 Wednesday as they urged congregants to extend forgiveness to the Rev. John Blanchard following his arrest for solicitation of prostitution last fall. “As followers of Christ, we must remember that redemption, salvation, grace, mercy, and healing are all gifts given to the children of God. Although everyone …

The Houston Chronicle reports: Timothy Jason Jeltema, 31, pleaded guilty Thursday to two charges of online solicitation of a minor, one charge of indecency with a child, and one charge of sexual performance by a child, Harris County court records indicate. He is set to serve five years in state prison. Jeltema was arrested in 2018 about a month after …

Charlotte’s NBC affiliate reports: A youth leader and soccer coach at several Charlotte-area churches was charged with multiple child sex crimes on Friday, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. Police charged 36-year-old Benjamin Damron with nine counts of indecent liberties with a child and one count of sexual battery. Officers said Damron used his position to take advantage of the …

Via press release from US Catholic Bishops: On November 16, 2022, the United States Senate voted 62–37 to advance the Respect for Marriage Act. In response, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty, issued the following statement: “It is deeply concerning that the U.S. Senate has voted to …

From the Justice Department: A federal jury in Charlotte has convicted Michael Mandel Baldwin, 53, of Alexandria, Virginia, for orchestrating an investment scheme that defrauded victims of more than $800,000, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. “Baldwin’s Miracle Mansion was a house of lies,” said U.S. Attorney King in announcing the guilty verdict. …

From the Justice Department: A federal grand jury in Topeka returned an indictment charging a Kansas priest and a New York businessman in connection with a scheme to defraud a foster care organization of $10 million. According to court documents, Robert Nelson Smith, 50, of Salina is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 15 counts of …

The Associated Press reports: An investigation by Maryland’s attorney general identified 158 Roman Catholic priests in the Archdiocese of Baltimore who have been accused of sexually and physically abusing more than 600 victims over the past 80 years, according to court records filed Thursday. Attorney General Brian Frosh announced that his office has completed a 463-page report on the investigation, …

The Salt Lake Tribune reports: In an unexpected move Tuesday, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gave its support to a proposed federal law, which recognizes all legal marriages, including ones between same-sex partners. The Utah-based faith’s doctrine “related to marriage between a man and a woman is well known and will remain unchanged,” according to a statement …

Seattle’s CBS affiliate reports: A Redmond Sunday school teacher has been charged with three felony counts of possession of child pornography, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Douglas Meerdink, 70, was charged on Wednesday with three counts of possession of depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Detectives later confirmed Meerdink was an active member of a …

Austin’s NBC affiliate reports: A Round Rock pastor was arrested by the FBI on child pornography charges Wednesday, the United States Department of Justice announced. David Lloyd Walther, 56, of Georgetown, was accused of knowingly searching for, downloading, distributing and possessing child pornography, according to the DOJ. A criminal complaint filed in Austin federal court said Walther downloaded and made …

The Baptist Press reports: A former staff member of the Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services was sentenced to 22 years in prison Nov. 3 in White County Circuit Court. Daniel W. Lanning pled guilty to two counts of criminal sexual assault of a minor ages 13-17. He was arrested in April on four counts involving a teenager in his …

Pueblo, Colorado’s NBC affiliate reports: An adult youth pastor has been arrested after allegedly sending sexually explicit material to a minor in his youth group. The Fountain Police Department began investigating the report on Oct. 13, 2022. The investigation led to 38-year-old Jeffery Williams’ arrest on Nov. 10. Williams was a pastor at the 901 N. Santa Fe Ave. Salvation …

People Magazine reports:  A San Diego woman and her two parents have been arrested following the death of 11-year-old Arabella McCormack. In late August, police responded to a child in distress call at a home in Spring Valley, where they found Arabella. The 11-year-old was rushed to a hospital where she died. Arabella was covered in bruises and had suffered …

Washington state’s KWCC-TV reports: Police arrested a 69-year-old Wenatchee man on suspicion of rape Tuesday after two other men accused him of sexually molesting them while they were asleep or otherwise unable to consent. Michael E. Wilson was identified in a Wenatchee police court affidavit as the leader of a Bible study group that met at his Sunnyslope home. The …

Los Angeles’s CW affiliate reports: A man the sheriff’s department describes as a Wildomar pastor was booked into county jail Wednesday on suspicion of raping a child, sodomy and other sex crimes. Fredy Gonzalez, 54, was taken into custody at 6:30 a.m. following an investigation that began Tuesday night, according to jail records and the sheriff’s department. Jail records show …