Tag Archives: Branch Covidians

Anti-Vax Pastor Loses Lockdown Suit Against Louisiana

The Associated Press reports: A Louisiana pastor’s lawsuit over Gov. John Bel Edwards’ past COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings was rejected for a second time Wednesday by a federal judge. U.S. District Judge Brian Jackson in Baton Rouge said the lawsuit by Tony Spell seeking an order blocking the restrictions is moot because the restrictions expired long ago. And Jackson …

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Branch Covidian Pastor: The World Has Enough “Fag Sissy Preachers,” It Needs Men With “Callused Knees”

“The world needs manly preachers. There’s enough fag, queer, skinny-jeaned, homo-effeminate, sissy preachers out there with makeup and mascara on their eyes for the camera. “Isn’t about time you get some sweat on your forehead? Isn’t about time you get some dirt under your nails and get some grease on your hands? Isn’t about time you get some blood on …

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Branch Covidian Refuses To Wear Face Mask In Court

The Christian Post reports: Louisiana Pentecostal Pastor Tony Spell, who was charged for violating state orders by holding in-person worship services during the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns, was prevented from entering a courthouse Tuesday because he refused to wear a mask. Spell, the pastor of Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, appeared at the 19th Judicial District Courthouse as he faced …

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Branch Covidian Church Linked To 200+ New Cases

The Associated Press reports: A church in rural northeastern Oregon is now the epicenter of the state’s largest coronavirus outbreak, as 236 people tested positive for the disease, authorities said today. The largest outbreak, which was first made public Monday, is associated with Lighthouse Pentecostal Church in Union County. The Observer newspaper of La Grande reported that the church held …

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Court Boots Branch Covidian’s Lawsuit Against Gov

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports: A federal judge has rejected Central pastor Tony Spell’s lawsuit claiming that the stay-at-home order Gov. John Bel Edwards implemented to stop the spread of the coronavirus was unconstitutional. Meanwhile, Spell, who drew international attention for defying the order by continuing to hold services at Life Tabernacle Church, has been released from house arrest. Spell …

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Branch Covidian: I’ll Comply When Popsicles Sell In Hell

Baton Rouge’s NBC News affiliate reports: While on house arrest, Pastor Tony Spell put a short video together titled, “Change of Heart.” Pastor Spell says, “we will never comply with the governor’s orders to move church services outside.” As of midnight, churches are allowed to have indoor services at 25% of their State Fire Marshal capacity. Pastor Tony Spell replied …

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Branch Covidian Pastor Sues Dem Louisiana Governor

Baton Rouge’s ABC affiliate reports: Rev. Tony Spell wants a federal judge to block authorities in Louisiana from enforcing bans on gatherings against him. He’s also asking to be paid for what his attorney said are “unconstitutional restrictions” and “unconstitutional punishments.” These requests are made in a federal lawsuit filed by Spell’s attorney on Thursday, May 7. Among the claims …

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Baton Rouge Paper: Lock Up Branch Covidian Pastor

From the editorial board of the Baton Rouge Advocate: The Rev. Tony Spell’s services, during a highly contagious outbreak of a deadly disease, make the church a tabernacle of death. The many summonses and misdemeanor counts — few of the clergy are accused of trying to use a church bus to run down a protester outside services — have failed …

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LOUISIANA: No Jail For Defiant Branch Covidian Pastor Tony Spell, Judge Is Worried He Might Infect Prisoners

TMZ reports: Tony Spell showed up yesterday and falsely claimed his congregations were practicing social distancing — in fact, the video clearly shows the congregants were packed in. Spell also displayed his ankle bracelet as an act of defiance to the judge who ordered him to wear it after getting arrested for allegedly trying to run over a protester. Now, …

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Branch Covidian Pastor Defies Court, Holds Services

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports: The pastor of a Central church who has defied state orders to limit the size of crowds at his worship service violated another order Sunday — preaching from the pulpit despite a judge’s directive that he stay at home under house arrest. Wearing an ankle monitor attached after he was accused of threatening to run …

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Branch Covidian Pastor Placed Under House Arrest

Baton Rouge’s ABC News affiliate reports: Rev. Tony Spell has been placed on house arrest, East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore said. A judge on Friday, April 24, asked Spell if he’d comply with state orders that limit the number of people who can gather in one place at the same time. Spell replied by quoting a bible …

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Branch Covidian Pastor Cuffed Outside Police Station

NBC News reports: A Louisiana pastor who has defied state orders against large gatherings was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly backing his church bus dangerously close to a protester. Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle Church in the city of Central, near Baton Rouge, was charged with aggravated assault in connection to the incident that was caught on tape, police said. …

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Branch Covidian Pastor Won’t Surrender On Warrant

The Washington Post reports: A megachurch pastor in Louisiana who has defied orders intended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus by holding large worship services is facing criminal charges for driving a church bus backward toward a protester outside the church, authorities said Monday. Spell wrote in a text message that he would not surrender and that authorities would …

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Branch Covidian Pastor Wanted On Assault Charge

Baton Rouge’s ABC News affiliate reports: Police have issued an arrest warrant for the controversial pastor of Life Tabernacle Church in Central, Louisiana. The warrant accuses pastor Tony Spell of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the Central Police Department says. Police in Central say Spell allegedly backed up a church bus into the direction of a person protesting in …

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Attendance Craters At Branch Covidian Church After Death Of Parishioner, Pastor Says Head Count Is A Lie

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports: Attendance at a Central church headed by a pastor who has defied Louisiana’s attempts to restrict crowd size appears to be shrinking from recent weeks, police said Sunday, as the pastor brushed off law enforcement head counts as untrue. ” Sunday’s service at Life Tabernacle Church attracted about 130 people, down from nearly 500 who …

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Parishioner At Branch Covidian Church Dies Of COVID

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports: A 78-year-old man who attended a Central church that has bucked state stay-at-home restrictions has died from the illness tied to the novel coronavirus. The East Baton Rouge Parish coroner said Harold Orillion, a parish resident, died from the COVID-19 respiratory illness on Wednesday. Three sources told The Advocate that Orillion had ties to the …

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Branch Covidian’s Lawyer Hospitalized With COVID

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports: A Baton Rouge lawyer who is part of the legal team representing a Central church and its pastor defying state social distancing orders during the coronavirus pandemic has been hospitalized because of the coronavirus. The lawyer, Jeff Wittenbrink, attended two events at Life Tabernacle Church — an April 2 news conference and an April 5 …

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Branch Covidian: Give Your Stimulus Check To Pastors

TMZ reports: Pastor Tony Spell’s got a plan for your stimulus check — give it away to evangelists who can’t pass the offering plate while the pandemic’s closed their churches. The controversial leader of the Life Tabernacle Church in Louisiana has whipped up another controversial idea he calls the “Pastor Spell Stimulus Challenge.” His challenge also doesn’t seem to consider …

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Branch Covidians Sue Kentucky Over Lockdown: We Are Being Interned Like Japanese-Americans Were In WWII

Law & Crime reports: Three people of faith in Kentucky alleged in a class action complaint on Tuesday that Gov. Andy Beshear [photo], a Democrat, went way too far with coronavirus-related restrictions. The plaintiffs noted in the opening lines of their lawsuit that “in times of public panic and fear, egregious violations of fundamental rights have been permitted throughout the …

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DOJ Sides With Branch Covidians In Mississippi Lawsuit

Fox News reports: The Justice Department intervened in a Mississippi church’s lawsuit by saying in a court filing that it “strongly suggests that the city’s actions target religious conduct” after the church sued police for ticketing congregants during a drive-in service amid coronavirus, Fox News has learned. The DOJ is siding with Temple Baptist Church in Greenville, Miss., after Greenville …

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