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Pastor Accused of Molesting Three Girls out of Jail

By Jim Schultz
Record Searchlight
February 23, 2017

http://www.redding.com/story/news/local/2017/02/23/pastor-accused-molesting-three-girls-out-jail/98296610/

James Crawford, shown Thursday in Shasta County Superior Court.

A Redding pastor charged with 31 criminal counts, including 22 felonies alleging he molested three girls over a seven-year span, won't be having his preliminary hearing anytime soon.

James Gladwell Crawford, who has been released from Shasta County Jail after his bail was set last week at $1 million, was back in Shasta County Superior Court on Thursday where his preliminary hearing scheduled for next week was postponed because his defense attorney will be in trial.

With Crawford now out of jail, he was ordered by Judge Cara Beatty to not have any contact with children under the age of 15 without another adult being present.

He's due back in Superior Court on March 28 to reset the date of his preliminary hearing.

Crawford declined Thursday to talk to the Record Searchlight about his case.

"I have no comment," he said as he left court..

The 55-year-old Crawford, pastor of the Westside Church of Redding off Swasey Drive, was arrested Feb. 3.

His defense attorney, Aaron Williams, said Crawford was released from jail the same day his bail was set at $1 million last week, but declined to provide further details.

Typically, 10 percent of an inmate's bail, or $100,000 in this case, is required as payment to a bail bond agent to secure their release from jail.

Crawford is charged with 22 felony counts alleging lewd and lascivious conduct with a child, as well as a series of sex crime-related enhancements and nine misdemeanors.

Although there was no sexual intercourse involved in the alleged crimes, Crawford is accused of inappropriately touching the girls, who are now 17, 16 and 11, and that he engaged in other inappropriate behavior, according to a Shasta County Sheriff's Office report.

That report says the girls told detectives that Crawford, among other things, playfully tickled — and touched them all over their bodies — as he removed their clothing.

One of the girls also told detectives he became upset at her and one of the other girls about five years ago because they wanted to ride their bikes to school, according to the police report .

"In an effort to explain what could happen to them, James Crawford threw Victim 3 against a wall and held the backside of a knife blade against her throat," the sheriff's report said.

The other girl also involved in that episode confirmed that knife account, as well as the tickling, the sheriff's report said.

According to the sheriff's report, Crawford agreed to meet with a detective the day after the alleged abuse was reported to law enforcement by a social worker.

But that detective received a phone call only a few hours later from a defense attorney who was at that time representing Crawford to say he would not be providing any statement, the report said.

Crawford, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges, faces life in prison if convicted at trial, a prosecutor has said.

 

 

 

 

 




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