Latest Church Headlines
All the headlines from our Church Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Former California Insurance Agent Who Scammed Church Members Sentenced
Sep 18 2015 // Constance Gail Fortune, 61, pleaded guilty this week to one felony count of grand theft by embezzlement and one felony count of theft from an elder or dependent adult in a case in which she was charged with scamming...
Idaho Court Allows Boy Scout Suit to Move Forward
Sep 2 2015 // Idaho’s highest court has ruled that the 16 men who say they were sexually abused as youngsters by scout leaders in Idaho filed their lawsuit on time against the Boy Scouts of America and the Church of Jesus Christ...
Hackers Target Data of Catholic Workers in Michigan
Aug 31 2015 // Hackers cracked a computer network and got access to Social Security numbers and other personal information of more than 10,000 people who work for Roman Catholic churches or church affiliates around Michigan. “I...
Victims Seek Review of Wisconsin Clergy Abuse Claims
Aug 27 2015 // A group of clergy sexual abuse victims called for an independent commission to investigate molestation accusations that are sealed as part of a bankruptcy case involving the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee. The...
Authorities on Alert After South Georgia Church Break-Ins
Aug 27 2015 // Law officers are searching for suspects who burglarized two Georgia churches. WTOC-TV reports that the break-ins are believed to have happened August 22 at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Alston and Tabernacle of...
Milwaukee Archdiocese Settlement Plan Paltry, Victims Say
Aug 6 2015 // The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee would pay $21 million to more than 300 victims of clergy abuse in a settlement plan decried by advocates for those abused by clergy as paltry but praised by the archbishop as a...
10 Children Injured in Crash of Church Van on Oklahoma Highway
Jul 29 2015 // The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says a church van headed to Branson, Mo., crashed on the Will Rogers Turnpike in northeastern Oklahoma, injuring 10 children who were onboard. Trooper Dwight Durant says the van crashed just...
Connecticut’s New DUI Ignition Lock Law Targets First-Time Offenders
Jul 24 2015 // On March 9, 2012 Benjamin DeMond, a Norwich, Connecticut, firefighter, died at 33 from an accident caused by a drunken driver. Authorities said 50-year-old Willis Goodale of Groton, Connecticut, was trying to cut across...
Report: Low Incidence of Southern Church Fires Caused by Arson
Jul 20 2015 // As social media buzzed about church fires in the South, investigators said July 2 that weather caused a destructive blaze at a predominantly black church in South Carolina. The State Law Enforcement Division said in a...
Florida Fire Marshal Rules Church Fire an Accident
Jul 8 2015 // State investigators say a fire that destroyed a predominantly black church in Florida’s capital was accidental and not the work of an arsonist. Some reports had linked the fire last week at Greater Miracle Temple in...
Report: Arson Rarely the Cause of Southern Church Fires
Jul 6 2015 // As social media buzzed about church fires in the South, investigators said July 2 that weather caused a destructive blaze at a predominantly black church in South Carolina. The State Law Enforcement Division said in a...
Hughes Named Chief Marketing Officer at Church Mutual Insurance
Jun 29 2015 // Church Mutual Insurance Co., based in Merrill, Wis., announced Laura J. Hughes will join the company as chief marketing officer effective July 6, 2015, and report directly to CEO Michael Ravn. Laura Hughes With more than...
North Carolina Investigators Say Church Fire Was Arson, $250K in Damage
Jun 26 2015 // Investigators with the Charlotte, N.C., Fire Department say a fire at a predominantly black church is a case of arson. A statement from the fire department said it took about an hour to get June 24 fire at Briar Creek Road...
Does This Sound Like YOUR Underwriter?
Jun 10 2015 // Two weeks ago we posted an article titled, “Are You One of THOSE Agents?” The article centered around some of the strange questions, comments or requests underwriters have received from their agents. Near the...
5 Dead After Twisters Hit Texas, Arkansas
May 12 2015 // Emergency responders on May 11 searched through wreckage in parts of the states of Texas and Arkansas after a line of tornadoes battered several small communities, killing at least five people, including a young couple...
Former California Agent Charged with Scamming Elderly Church Members
Apr 20 2015 // Constance Gail Fortune, 61, was arraigned in Los Angeles Superior Court in California in April and charged with three felony counts of grand theft and one felony count of financial elder abuse for allegedly scamming...
Former California Agent Charged With Scamming Elderly Church Members
Apr 13 2015 // Constance Gail Fortune, 61, was arraigned in Los Angeles Superior Court in California and charged with three felony counts of grand theft and one felony count of financial elder abuse for allegedly scamming seniors, many...
Florida Van Crash Revives Concern About Safety of Vehicles
Apr 7 2015 // Federal transportation officials are investigating a crash that killed eight members of a Florida church who were riding in a type of van that has raised safety alarms for many years. It’s unknown what caused the...
A.M. Best Revises Outlook for Southern Mutual Church Insurance Co.
Apr 1 2015 // A.M. Best has revised the outlook to stable from negative for the financial strength rating (FSR) and the issuer credit rating (ICR) of Southern Mutual Church Insurance Co. (SMCIC) of Columbia, S.C., while affirming the...
Kentucky Bill Would Exempt Unpaid Pastors from Workers’ Comp Insurance
Feb 25 2015 // Kentucky House lawmakers have advanced a bill that would exempt some pastors from paying workers’ compensation insurance. Kentucky has hundreds of churches with tiny congregations whose pastors work for free. The...
