Ap Woman in Rape Case Says Pastor Advised She Be Church disciplined, Lynne Tuohy, New Hampshire Union Leader, May 27, 2010

Ap: Woman in Rape Case Says Pastor Advised She Be "Church-disciplined"

By Lynne Tuohy
New Hampshire Union Leader
May 27, 2010

http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Woman+in+rape+case+says+pastor+advised+she+be+%27church-disciplined%27&articleId=cea62145-bc61-4ffb-a7e2-2f641e11dd69

CONCORD – Tina Anderson was a scared 15-year-old when she was summoned by church leaders to stand before her congregation and apologize for getting pregnant out of wedlock.

Just minutes earlier in that evening service in 1997, Ernie Willis, a longtime church member, admitted publicly that he had been unfaithful to his wife.

Now, 13 years later, Willis is charged with raping Anderson, and police are investigating what church leaders knew about the assault and whether they shipped Anderson out of state to keep the matter quiet.

When the pastor heard Anderson's allegations, he told her that if she had "lived in the Old Testament," she would have been stoned to death for not reporting the attack sooner.

"He also said I had 'allowed myself to be put in a compromising situation,' Anderson said. The pastor decided she needed to be "church-disciplined."

"I was completely humiliated," Anderson said, her voice quavering at the memory. "I hoped it was a nightmare I'd wake up from, and it wouldn't be true anymore."

The Associated Press does not generally identify victims of sexual assault, but Anderson asked that her name be made public. Several witnesses to the church service involving Willis and Anderson recounted details to The Associated Press.

WILLIS

Willis, 51, of Gilford, will be arraigned June 16 on sexual assault charges. He was released on a $100,000 personal-recognizance bond after his arrest last week. A message left on a cell phone linked to him was not returned. A woman who answered the phone at a number listed to him said he no longer lived there. Court documents do not list an attorney.

Concord police also are weighing whether to bring obstruction-of-justice charges against anyone who may have concealed the girl's location during the initial investigation, which authorities say they were forced to shelve when there was no victim to testify.

In a statement on their website, the church said its role has been misrepresented and that Anderson's whereabouts were never kept secret.

"Trinity Baptist Church is obligated to correct the misstatements of the past coverage of this horrible event," the statement reads. "We do not intend to make any further comments as we seek to respect the court process."

"Recent reports concerning the 1997 leadership of Trinity Baptist Church and its cooperation with the Concord Police Department have been inaccurate and misleading," the statement reads. "In the following weeks there were multiple documented calls made to the Concord Police Department investigators who were leading the investigation at that time. These investigators were told of the location of the young woman so that she could be reached and interviewed.

"It’s important to note that in the 13 years following this appalling crime, there has never been one documented call to Trinity Baptist Church seeking the current location of the alleged victim nor a desire to further the investigation," the statement goes on to say. "Her location was never a secret and no efforts were ever made to withhold her contact information or hinder any investigation."