The criminal cases accusing members of the Word of Faith Fellowship of abusing Matthew Fenner in 2013 have been reassigned to a special prosecutor in North Carolina, the Associated Press reported. The handoff came after Fenner sought to remove District Attorney Ted Bell from the prosecution and after the case’s retrial timeline became a focus of filings and arguments, AP said.
Fenner, who said he was held down, choked and beaten for about two hours during what the church called a “blasting” session at the Word of Faith Fellowship’s compound in Spindale, North Carolina, argued that Bell had favored the church. Fenner made the request to block Bell close to the start of a retrial that had already been delayed for more than eight years, AP said.
Superior Court Judge William T. Stetzer sided with an independent investigator who concluded that the long delay did not reflect special treatment by the district attorney. According to AP, the judge said the delays reflected a backlog that grew when COVID-19 shut down courts, along with attorneys from both sides quitting or facing health problems.
The earlier criminal case against Word of Faith leader Brooke Covington ended in a mistrial in 2017, AP reported. AP said the mistrial followed a jury foreman’s own research during deliberations, and Covington has maintained she is innocent.
AP said Fenner joined Word of Faith as a teenager in 2010, and he described what happened to him as part of a session that included prayers intended to expel “homosexual demons.” The church is a nondenominational Protestant group founded in 1979 by Sam and Jane Whaley, and AP said members consider Jane Whaley a prophet.
While Fenner pressed for Bell’s removal, Bell and the prosecution maintained they did not offer special treatment to the church, AP said. AP reported Bell provided a text message in which Whaley asked to talk to the Republican district attorney about Covington’s case and that he refused, and Bell said he also ended a meeting after he realized it was connected to the Covington prosecution.
In a statement carried by AP, Bell said: “I am grateful that the truth has triumphed over false statements and innuendo, and that this frivolous petition has been thrown out.” AP said Bell added that Fenner was one of only two victims to whom he had ever given his personal cellphone number.
AP said the district attorney requested a special prosecutor on Jan. 22 after Fenner sought to remove Bell, according to court records. AP reported that the request said any prosecutor pursuing the case would need to consider whether the defense would be told about potential discrepancies in Fenner’s account as part of the retrial process.
Fenner’s lawyers also accused Bell of losing interest as the retrial approached. AP reported Fenner said Bell suddenly seemed less interested in the case and did not look into potential new evidence or witnesses as the 2025 trial date neared.
AP said Bell offered Covington a plea deal that would reduce the charge from kidnapping to a misdemeanor, and that Fenner initially supported the decision. AP reported, however, that Bell withdrew the offer after Fenner sent Bell an email saying that outcome was not what he wanted and asserting that the investigation was tainted. Fenner’s attorney, Andrew LaBreche, told AP that Fenner wanted Bell and other witnesses to testify in a public hearing that could have exposed more problems with how the district attorney handled the case.
LaBreche said in a statement carried by AP that: “Matthew Fenner respects the rule of law, accepts the Court’s ruling, and remains committed to the principle that victims deserve not only process, but prompt and meaningful justice.”
The retrial has remained uncertain, AP said, with Covington’s trial delayed pending the investigation and no indication from the report of when it might be rescheduled. AP also said an Associated Press investigation previously found allegations from dozens of former congregants who said the church abused them, and Whaley has denied that she or other leaders ever abused members, while saying that any discipline would be protected by the Constitution’s freedom of religion tenet.