Supreme Court Upholds Price Sex Convictions
By Laura Harvey
The Commonwealth of Kentucky Court of Appeals has denied a request from disgraced Life Temple Church pastor John Price to overturn his 2001 sexual assault convictions based on a recent Kentucky Supreme Court decision he believes modified what constitutes as "forcible compulsion." Price filed his appeal with the commonwealth in 2016 after filing an unsuccessful petition with Hopkins Circuit Court contending that the prosecution failed to produce sufficient evidence that he physically forced sexual contact with his victim, a female member of his church. Price, now 62, was found guilty by a Hopkins County jury in 2001 of two counts of first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, first-degree attempted rape and five counts of first-degree sexual abuse in events stemming from numerous sexual encounters that took place from approximately 1983-1993. According to the appellate court's narrative, Price was a full-time pastor at the church and his victim, "F.P.," began attending when she was 7 years old. As F.P. aged and became progressively more involved in church activities, she began spending more time with Price, his wife and the couple's four children. F.P. became Price's full-time administrative assistant after she graduated high school. While the victim testified at trial that Price was never physically violent with her, she claimed her religious teachings had convinced her if she didn't give in to his sexual advances, she would either suffer accident, sickness or worse in life -- and spend eternity in Hell after she died. F.P. also claimed she feared Price's temper if she were to reject him, explaining that her hips and legs were often bruised after the encounters, and his face "flared" if and when she tried to pull away, according to a previous report. Price never denied the encounters, but maintained they were all part of a consensual extra-marital affair. Price was found guilty in October 2001 and ultimately sentenced to serve 69 years in prison. Price filed a direct appeal to the Kentucky Supreme Court claiming that he was entitled to a direct acquittal on all counts because the prosecution failed to establish forcible compulsion. That appeal was denied in 2003. The following year, Price filed a motion for post-conviction relief in Hopkins Circuit Court, which was eventually granted with respect to the sodomy charge and his total sentence was reduced to 49 years. The local court continued to deny his challenge that the prosecution failed to establish force, however. In 2009, a federal district court ordered two of Price's sexual abuse convictions be vacated because the sex "involved surprise" but did not rise to the legal standard of forcible compulsion. According to the appellate court, "forcible compulsion" is defined as "threat of physical force, express or implied, which places a person in fear of immediate death, physical injury to self or another person, fear of the immediate kidnap or self or other person, or fear of any other offense under (KRS Chapter 510)." This was discussed through Yates v. Commonwealth (2014), where the Supreme Court overturned a rape conviction for a defendant who told his 14-year-old stepdaughter he would tell his wife she was dating an older boy unless she had sex with him as well. "The Supreme Court held that there was insufficient evidence of forcible compulsion by physical force because the victim voluntarily acquiesced in sex with the defendant," the narrative said. "It further held there was insufficient evidence of forcible compulsion by implied or express threat because the threat did not place the victim in fear of immediate death or physical injury to herself or another." It was this decision that led to Price's most recent appeal. In its denial, the court stated that because F.P. testified that she struggled to break free of Price at times, that he moved, grabbed and held her back during intercourse, and because the church environment caused her to fear imminent death or injury, the definition of forcible compulsion still applies. "Price counters the import of this forcible compulsion evidence, arguing that, because F.P. testified that she feared God's physical punishment -- no evidence shows that she feared Price -- and according to him, a fear of God alone cannot sustain convictions for forcible compulsion," the decision said. "The record reasonably reflects, however, that F.P. also feared physical abuse at Price's hands. He painfully touched her multiple times. When asked by the prosecutor at trial whether she was 'afraid he would hurt' her during one incident, she responded, 'Yes, I didn't know what he would do. If he would do this, I didn't know what the man would do.' "Her response shows that, though not knowing precisely how Price could harm her, she nevertheless feared physical abuse," the decision added. Price continues to serve his 49-year sentence in Luther Luckett Correctional Complex in LaGrange. He is expected to be released Sept. 3, 2051, according to the Kentucky Department of Corrections. Contact: lharvey@the-messenger.com
|
.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.