Steve Sword is a Tennessee Criminal Court judge appointed by Governor Bill Haslem, a Republican. Since his appointment, he was re-elected in 2012 and 2014 and he was unopposed in 2022. In 2019, he presided over a trial that ended in the conviction of David Lynn Richards Jr,. a former pastor, for repeatedly raping his adopted daughter.
She testified in her victim’s statement that not a day goes by that she does not think of what he did to her. He tried to paint her as a defiant teenage liar, but his seminal DNA was found on her bed frame. He was found guilty of nine felony counts, including rape, incest and sexual battery by an authority figure. Prosecutors asked for a 72-year sentence. However, Judge Sword thought that since Richards was such a good Christian, he sentenced him to only 12 years, making him eligible for parole in nine years.
- Knox News: Former pastor sentenced to 12 years in prison for repeated rape of adopted daughter
- The Daily Herald: Judge faces backlash over sentence in rape conviction of former pastor
The Tennessean
Nashville, Tennessee · Sunday, May 19, 2019