NORTH CAROLINA
WFAE
[with audio]
By GREG COLLARD & THE ASSOCIATED PRESS • 13 HOURS AGO
Two prosecutors are gone from the Catawba County District Attorney’s office following allegations that they derailed criminal investigations into abuse by leaders of a church they attend.
In announcing the shakeup, District Attorney David Learner says he “cannot allow the integrity of the office to be called into question.”
The move comes after the Associated Press reported that nine former members of a church in Spindale called “Word of Faith Fellowship” said that assistant prosecutors Frank Webster and Chris Back helped derail a social services investigation into child abuse in 2015. They also said Whaley warned congregants to lie to investigators about abuse incidents.
In addition, the ex-members said that Webster and Back provided legal advice and participated in a mock trial of four church members charged with harassing a former church member. Webster is the son-in-law of Word of Faith’s leader, Jane Whaley.
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