A pastor in the Pittsburgh area has been arrested and charged with corrupting a minor. The pastor, who was one of the leaders of an outreach ministry in Homestead, is accused of sexually assaulting a teenage member of that church’s congregation. The male victim, who is now 21 years old, reported to police that the pastor had sexually abused him on a regular basis over a two-and-a-half year time span.

The pastor was believed to be counseling the young man at the church but was instead allegedly using that time to commit the assaults which reportedly occurred in one of the church’s offices,  a bathroom, and one of the back rooms.

According to the criminal complaint, the assaults began in 2009 and lasted until almost the end of 2011. By that time the victim was a freshman in college and had notified the pastor at that time that he didn’t want any more counseling from him. The pastor allegedly told the boy not to inform his mother or anyone else about what had been going on because “he didn’t want to get into trouble”.

In theory, Sex Assault cases can be difficult to prove due to the lack of a confession or other particularly damaging evidence. Though there are definitely many cases of those in authority abusing their power, many sex assault cases rest solely on the testimony of the victim, standing alone, without any corroborating evidence.

Most troubling, is the reality of how sex assault cases are handled: the allegation alone can lead to an arrest, without any DNA evidence, witnesses or any other supporting information. In most occasions, the investigating officers feel obligated to proceed with the charges with the mindset, “the jury will figure it out”.  When the jury gets the case, some jurors admit that they feel compelled to convict since, “the officer arrested them, therefore something must have happened.” What is lost in the two mindsets is the fact that the Defendant should be presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Attorney Frank Walker of Frank Walker Law is a National Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer and Personal Injury Attorney with offices in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and Morgantown West Virginia.

If you or someone you love are facing criminal charges or seriously injured in an accident, contact Attorney Frank Walker immediately at 412-315-7441, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for aggressive and experienced Criminal Defense or Representation in a Civil Case.

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