By Bob Allen A Mississippi judge ruled Dec. 18 that the state’s statute of limitations does not prevent prosecution of a former Southern Baptist music minister charged with molesting five boys in the early 1980s. Hinds County Circuit Judge Bill…
Pastor charged with sexual battery
By Bob Allen A 71-year-old Southern Baptist pastor in northern Mississippi is in jail on $1 million bond on charges of sexual battery of a child. Larry Singleton, pastor of Bay Springs Baptist Church in Abbeville, Miss., was arrested by…
Trial delayed for accused molester
By Bob Allen A former Southern Baptist music minister charged with molesting five boys in the 1980s turned down a plea bargain Nov. 26 and now is scheduled to stand trial Jan. 28. That depends, however, on the outcome of…
Former youth pastor arrested
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist pastor in Oklahoma second-guessed himself after the arrest of his former youth pastor on eight counts of sexual abuse of a minor. Jeff Self, pastor of First Baptist Church in Coalgate, Okla., told CBS…
Ministry: Abuse suit harms confidentiality
By Bob Allen A network of Reformed church plants accused in a class-action lawsuit of covering up sexual abuse of children appealed to a First Amendment defense in a statement Nov. 14. Sovereign Grace Ministries, which recently relocated from Maryland…
Boy Scout cover-up sign of the times
By Bob Allen A retired Baptist state convention executive says formerly confidential files detailing decades of sexual abuse in the Boy Scouts of America reflect the ethos of a time before mandatory reporting, when a common approach was to deal…
Former minister fights molestation charge
By Bob Allen A former Southern Baptist music minister is asking a Mississippi judge to dismiss an eight-count indictment charging him with sex crimes in the 1980s, claiming the allegations are too old to be prosecuted. Lawyers for John Langworthy,…
Radio host: evangelicals ignoring abuse
By Bob Allen A Christian radio host says it’s time for evangelical churches to wake up to an “epidemic” of sexual abuse of children going on in their midst. “I don’t know how long evangelicalism can ignore this problem,” host…
Church scrutinized after pastor’s arrest
By Bob Allen Missouri Baptist Convention officials are watching a member church whose pastor was arrested recently on sexual abuse charges a year after his previous acquittal of child molestation. Travis Smith, 42, of California, Mo., appeared for arraignment Oct….