HERNANDO (MS)
ChurchLeaders [Colorado Springs CO]
February 11, 2026
By Dale Chamberlain
The federal trial of a former youth pastor and high school basketball coach accused of child sex abuse has again been pushed back. Lindsey Whiteside has already been convicted of state charges involving the same victim.
Editor’s note: This article refers to reports of child sex abuse, which some readers might find triggering and/or disturbing.
This is the third time the federal trial, which was originally set to take place in December, has been delayed. The trial is now set to begin on April 20. The trial date was pushed at the request of Whiteside’s counsel in light of inclement weather that has affected the law firm’s office.
RELATED: Former Pastor Sentenced to 10-15 Years in Prison in Multi-Victim Child Sex Abuse Case
Whiteside formerly worked at a campus of Getwell Church located in Hernando, Mississippi, as a student and outreach coordinator. She also formerly served as an assistant basketball coach at DeSoto Central High School in Southaven, Mississippi.
Whiteside was initially arrested in November 2024 after being accused of sexually assaulting an underaged girl between May 14, 2024, and Nov. 6, 2024. The victim was a student at Getwell Church Hernando’s youth group. Whiteside is accused of grooming the student and sexually assaulting her on two separate church-related trips.
Following Whiteside’s arrest, she was terminated from her role at Getwell Church, and the church told ChurchLeaders that it had cooperated with authorities in the case.
After agreeing to a plea deal, Whiteside was sentenced to three years of house arrest followed by seven years of probation and the requirement that she register as a sex offender.
The sentencing sparked backlash, as some felt it was too lenient. DeSoto County District Attorney Matthew Barton, who had recommended the maximum sentence of a 30-year prison term, characterized Whiteside’s sentence as “an absolute abomination of justice.”
RELATED: Former Pastor Already Accused of Abuse Now Booked on More Child Sex Crime Charges
Barton indicated that his office would seek resentencing and that he would work with other jurisdictions to bring forth more charges since Whiteside’s alleged crimes included transporting the underaged victim across state lines.
The judge in the case recused himself, arguing that Barton’s criticism had harmed his credibility and that Barton’s portrayal of the case was “selective and decidedly unnuanced.”
Whiteside was subsequently rearrested on federal charges. She faces two counts of transporting a minor across state lines for sexual activity and one count of coercion and enticement of a minor.
Whiteside had originally been released to home confinement to await trial for her federal charges, but she was taken back into custody at the request of prosecutors.
During the hearing in which a judge ruled against Whiteside remaining in home confinement, the judge expressed that she was “troubled” that the defense had characterized Whiteside’s relationship with her victim as a “sexual dating relationship” rather than as child sex abuse.
Whiteside’s attorney has characterized the federal charges against Whiteside as “retaliatory,” stemming from the fact that prosecutors were “really unhappy” with the sentencing ruling in her state case.
In November, Barton’s office filed a motion to resentence Whiteside for her state conviction in light of the fact that two former supporters had come forward to recant support letters.
Forty-nine people originally wrote letters in support of Whiteside in the run-up to her sentencing. However, according to Barton’s office, the two people indicated that Whiteside had led them to believe she was innocent, and one “described being under constant pressure to submit a letter of support.”
Earlier this week, a state judge denied the request of Barton’s office to resentence Whiteside for her state conviction, reportedly saying that the state cannot resentence Whiteside simply because the district attorney is “unhappy with the result” of the original sentencing hearing.
Whiteside remains in custody as she awaits her now thrice-delayed federal trial.