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Child Sexual Abuse Material / Solicitation of a Minor

1195: John McCall

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John Justin McCall

John Justin McCall was a worship leader at Grace River Community Church until he was arrested in October 11, 2023, for trying to solicit a minor online. The pastor said they did a background check and interviewed former employers. He worked at Ark Encounter, a creationist theme park

According to his son who filed a petition for a protection order, the police showed him conversations with five girls from ages 6 to 12. They told him he was talking with dozens more. His request for a protection order was denied.

Before He was also charged with failing to register as a sex offender.

Later in the month, he was charged with additional charges including possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material. He is currently in custody with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.

The investigation involved the Department of Homeland Security, Alabama State Bureau of Investigation, Madison County Sheriff’s Office, the Huntsville, Madison and Decatur police departments and members of the Internet Crimes Against Children task force.

Ex-Decatur worship leader charged again, this time with 10 counts of child porn October 27, 2023 | Decatur Daily, The (AL) Author/Byline: Eric Fleischauer Executive Editor | Section: Decatur 502 Words | Readability: Lexile: 1560, grade level(s): >12 Read News Document The former worship leader of a Decatur church, already charged this month with electronic solicitation of a child and violation of his notification requirements as a registered sex offender, was booked Thursday on 10 counts of possessing child pornography. John Justin McCall, 51, of Madison, was worship leader at Grace River Community Church on Cleveland Avenue Southwest until he was charged Oct. 11 by Madison police on a charge that he used a computer to seek sexual conduct with a minor. He was charged at the same time with violating the Sex Offenders Registration and Community Notification Act (SORNA). He was released from the Madison County Jail on Oct. 17 after posting a $43,000 bond. On Thursday, according to jail records, McCall was again arrested, this time on 10 counts of possession of child pornography. He remained in the Madison County Jail on Thursday afternoon in lieu of a $150,000 bond. No police affidavit detailing the new charges had been filed in court as of late Thursday. On Wednesday, according to court records, his 18-year-old son filed a protection-from-abuse petition against McCall, which a Madison County judge denied the same day without comment. In the hand-written petition, the teen notes his father's Oct. 11 arrest. "Law enforcement showed me evidence of conversations of 5 girls he was talking to ages 6-14 and they told me he was talking to 'dozens more,'" according to the petition, filed in Madison County Circuit Court. The teen claims in the petition that McCall "is trying to blame it all on me and is manipulating my sister and trying to get her to take his side." The son also said in the petition that he feared he would be harmed by McCall. "He is bipolar, has bad anger issues and is violent, also says he has a bad past," the son wrote. "He has raised his fist to me before getting ready to hit me and has done the same to my sister," the petition said. "I want no visitations or contact with John McCall." In the petition, filed before McCall was re-arrested, the teen lists McCall as living in a Madison hotel. Police said they searched his Evalyn Street residence in Madison shortly before his arrest The lead pastor of Grace River, Barry Sempsrott, on Tuesday said in a text that the church had done a "background check" before hiring McCall "that included calling references and former employers listed on his resume." Sempsrott said McCall had worked at Ark Encounter, a creationist theme park in Williamstown, Kentucky, for 10 years prior to his employment at Grace River. The SORNA charge filed by Madison police was predicated on an alleged prior conviction for a sex offense. Sempsrott said the previous conviction "happened more than 30 years ago." Sempsrott said that, to his knowledge, no members of the church were harmed by McCall. He said McCall is no longer associated with the church. A LinkedIn profile for McCall lists his position with Grace River as "worship pastor" since July 2022. His duties included overseeing youth groups and teaching new songs, according to the profile.
Decatur Daily, The (AL)
October 27, 2023

0 thoughts on “1195: John McCall”

  1. Team SheepdogBloodhound.org Internet Safety are the volunteer team that alerted authorities regarding McCall. The result is as published, and at least one child identified at the time reported to those law enforcement professionals.

    Reply

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