Another Bentonville Pastor Arrested

Arkansas: This is the second time a local pastor has been arrested during one of the Bentonville Police department's undercover prostitution stings.

Back in August, Bentonville police arrested Thirty-seven-year-old pastor Joshua Wisdom during a sting at a local hotel.

Last night and this morning seven people were taken into custody on charges related to prostitution, loitering, and sexual solicitation. Included in those arrests is pastor Joe Burnham of Faith Lutheran Church in Bentonville.

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Burnham was released on citation following his arrest.

Westboro Baptist To Picket Elizabeth Edwards' Funeral

Members of the Westboro Baptist Church announced Thursday plans to picket Saturday's funeral for Elizabeth Edwards in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The Kansas-based Church - monitored by anti-hate groups such as the Anti-Defamation league and the Southern Poverty Law Center - is known for its extremist opposition to homosexuals, Jews and other groups.

According to the church's website, members will hold a protest from 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m.

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Edwards, the estranged wife of presidential candidate John Edwards, died Tuesday after a six-year battle with breast cancer.

Pastor Guilty In Sex Abuse Case

Alaska: A former Alaska pastor has been found guilty of sex abuse. Shawn Anthony Justice, 32, was found guilty of eight counts of sexual abuse of a minor.
Justice was charged with abusing a 15-year-old girl while he was the pastor of Corinthian Baptist Church in Fairbanks. During trial, she testified that Justice began sending her text messages of a sexual nature and they began a relationship in 2009.

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Sentencing has been set for March 24.

Minister, Elders Guilty Of Not Reporting Abuse

New Hampshire: The minister and two elders at a local church have been found guilty for failing to report a case of suspected child abuse last year.

The three -- Pastor Timothy Dillmuth, 34, of Stowe, Maine, and elders Richard Eland, 62, and Robert Gagnon, 70, both of Brownfield, Maine -- are all members of Valley Christian Church on East Conway Road in Redstone. They will be sentenced Dec. 21 on the misdemeanor charges in the District Court of Northern Carroll County.

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The men were arrested in early February by Conway police and charged that they had reason to suspect a girl had been sexually abused by a member of the church but did not report it as required by state law.

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From our friends @ Christian Nightmares

Pastor Gets 90 Years In Prison For Soliciting Sex

Virginia: A Louisa County judge yesterday sentenced an 82-year-old former pastor to 90 years in prison for soliciting sex with a minor.

The sentence appears to be the second-longest prison term received by a Virginia defendant for using a communications device to solicit sex with a child.

Sentenced yesterday was Irvin "Pete" Baldwin of Mechanicsville. A jury found him guilty in August of three counts of soliciting sex with a minor and recommended 90 years -- 30 years for each count.

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Authorities allege that Baldwin communicated over the Internet with someone he thought was a 13-year-old girl but who actually was a Louisa investigator. Baldwin was arrested in December after traveling to Louisa to meet the girl.

Pastor Charged With Child Sex Crimes

Missouri: A mid-Missouri pastor is charged with sex crimes against children.

Prosecutors charged Travis Smith with 2nd degree child molestation and 2nd degree statutory rape. Both cases involve girls who attended his church in Stover, Missouri.

According to court documents, a girl, 14, told officials in July that Smith, 40, touched her inappropriately. The minor said the incident happened at the end of May, right after she turned 14.

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The detective said these allegations reminded him of previous accusations against Smith that were made in 2008. That prompted the detective to review the previous case.

He interviewed the woman who made those allegations. She’s now of legal age. She told him she had a sexual relationship with Smith, which started when she was 15 years old. Smith was 33 at the time.