MISSISSIPPI
Associated Baptist Press
By Bob Allen
A Mississippi judge ruled Dec. 18 that the state’s statute of limitations does not prevent prosecution of a former Southern Baptist music minister charged with molesting five boys in the early 1980s.
Hinds County Circuit Judge Bill McGowan rejected a motion to dismiss an eight-count indictment against John Langworthy, associate pastor of music and ministries at Morrison Heights Baptist Church in Clinton, Miss., prior to his arrest in September 2011.
After turning down a plea bargain, Langworthy is scheduled to stand trial Jan. 28 on eight counts of gratification of lust, but according to the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, the impending holidays might necessitate a new date. Originally put on the docket for April 2, the trial has already been postponed three times while Langworthy is out of jail on $700,000 bond.
In August 2011, Langworthy confessed to the Morrison Heights congregation of “sexual indiscretions with younger males” prior to coming to Clinton 22 years earlier. After that, prosecutors say six victims came forward to report they had been molested by Langworthy when they were children.
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