NASHVILLE (TN)
Baptist News Global
July 3, 2019
A former Southern Baptist missionary and denominational worker on Tuesday pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault 11 years after the denomination’s International Mission Board substantiated allegations of sexual abuse against him but did not report it the police.
Mark Aderholt, who resigned as associate executive director and chief strategist for the South Carolina Baptist Convention shortly before his arrest last July on charges of sexual assault of a minor, was ordered to spend 30 days in jail and pay a $4,000 fine.
After that, if he successfully completes 24 months of deferred adjudication, a form of probation, the conviction will not remain on his criminal record. Aderholt, 47, is currently in custody at the Tarrant County Correction Center.
Anne Marie Miller, the woman who told police that Aderholt sexually abused her when she was 16 and he was a 25-year-old student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1996-1997, said many people have expressed the opinion that he deserved a stiffer sentence, but she felt vindicated by hearing his admission of guilt.
“Over the last year, I have learned how unspeakably complicated the criminal justice system is,” Miller, an author of several books, said in a statement on her website. “So many variables go into each and every case.”
“While I think we all can agree that Mr. Aderholt is not facing the criminal penalty he should be, the DA’s office asked for my input and wishes during plea negotiations,” she said. “This included taking into consideration the emotionally charged prospect of a jury trial, facing a relentless and brutal cross-examination by his defense attorney, the impact of a trial on my family and a potential verdict of not guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. I fully trust the prosecuting attorney and the final outcome.”
In a victim’s impact statement she read to Aderholt in court, Miller said nine years ago she was diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder because of what he did to her.
“You sexually abused me,” Miller said. Despite that, Miller said she has forgiven Aderholt and grieves over the pain his actions have caused his family.
“I used to believe that in order for this ordeal to be over, you needed to tell the truth and ask me to forgive you. I know now that’s not the case,” she said. “This is over because I have spoken the truth. It’s over because I have forgiven you. Your lies have no more power.”
“This is over, Mark. This is the end.”
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