Tag: john blanchard

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Megachurch Pervert-Pastor John Blanchard Gets Prostitution Charges Expunged

Rock Church’s thoroughly disgraced and disqualified ‘pastor’ John Blanchard appeared upbeat this past Sunday, appearing on stage and praying over a baby during a dedication service just days after learning that the prostitution charge he acquired for soliciting a minor is getting expunged. According to America Press: 

“An expungement removes arrests and/or convictions from a person’s criminal record entirely as if they never happened. Even a court or prosecutor cannot view a person’s expunged record. 

Two years ago, the embattled lead pastor of the 4000-member Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, VA, was busted by police for trying to hook up with an underage prostitute. When questioned by police, Blanchard claimed he had no idea how he came upon a well-known prostitution website in the first place and no idea how he came to start texting the number, blaming his lack of memory of the whole situation on “brain problems.” 

He also strenuously defended his innocence, telling detectives, “I didn’t do anything wrong. I was just going to talk.”

His insistence that “he only wanted to talk” doesn’t explain why he drove two and a half hours to see a 17-year-old girl, why he only wanted to ‘talk’ for an hour, requested a QV, ( sex worker lingo for a quick visit) asked her how much money he should bring, and was concerned about whether or not she was law enforcement.

Despite being caught dead to rights, Blanchard would eventually receive a sweetheart deal and agree to receive the equivalent of sex-offender-related counseling, particularly “psychosexual evaluations,” in exchange for seeing the charges dropped. However, this deal wasn’t offered to any other of the 16 men who were arrested and charged, prompting lawyers to express their confusion over the special treatment- as sex-offender counseling is something they’d have to do anyway.

The decision to drop charges against him rankled Chesterfield police chief Jeffrey S. Katz, who came out swinging against the prosecutor, publicly criticizing them for the move. He also blasted the judge for granting Blanchard’s lawyers the motion to seal all the case records, particularly when there was so much evidence. 

Throughout the whole affair, Rock Church has stood by Blanchard, who insists it was all innocent and above board and is still listed as the senior pastor on the Church website.

While the church has claimed that he has “voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved, that is simply not true, with CP reporting that he was found preaching up a storm at the Power and Authority Conference hosted by Global Fellowship Church, where he was lauded as a “man of God” that possesses a “prophetic voice to the body of Christ.”

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Police Chief Criticizes Prosecutor After Charges Dropped Against VA Megachurch Pastor Arrested in Prostitution Sting

Last year John Blanchard, lead pastor of the 4000-member Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, VA, was busted by police for trying to hook up with an underage prostitute, joining 16 other men arrested who were caught up on the sting by law enforcement. Blanchard was quickly released on bail and appeared at the church service the following Sunday, blowing a shofar from the stage and offering a prayer without addressing his arrest.

Now, with that announcement that the charges have been dropped, Chesterfield police chief has Jeffrey S. Katz come out swinging against the prosecutor, publicly criticizing them for the move. He also blasted the judge for granting Blanchard’s lawyers the motion to seal all the case records, particularly when there is so much evidence. He writes:

I have recently learned that Mr. Blanchard’s defense counsel made a motion to seal all police or court records, transcripts, and investigative records associated with this case. Our Commonwealth’s Attorney has decided to consent to render these records unavailable to the public, which – upon approval by a judge – would make sharing of these transcripts, the report, or any other documents, previously released under FOIA a crime. From my vantage point, this is bewildering.

When someone:

1. Rents a car,
2. Texts a phone number posted on a known sex worker website,
3. Solicits a “qv” (“John” lingo for a “quick visit”),
4. Makes multiple inquiries if the person he’s texting is “affiliated with law enforcement,”
5. Drives two and a half hours to a hotel and knocks on the hotel room door – as directed by our undercover “17-year-old,”

I believe a jury of Chesterfield County residents deserves to weigh in on the matter of criminal culpability.

As far as the church, they are ecstatic that the charges have been dropped, releasing a statement praising his “exoneration” while noting: “We have always believed in John’s innocence. His humility and submission to those over him during this time has been a testimony to his character. He has spent the time in fasting and prayer and has invested much of his time in his family and education. We anticipate his resumption of church duties in the near future.”

This is not the first time that Blanchard was accused of being involved in some grossly abusive sexual shenanigans. We talked about this in 2019.

In June of 2018, when we were named Pulpit & Pen, we were contacted via email by a woman from Virginia named Jenna Sellers. Jenna was responding to the article Clayton Jennings: Capturing Weak Women – The Saga Continues, which reported that a young woman had come forward. She was the first of many who would later contact Pulpit & Pen with testimony about being seduced by Jennings, a traveling evangelist and internet celebrity. That particular article made reference to an influential friend named “John” that Jennings claimed to have. Jenna wondered if “John” might be John Blanchard, the “co-pastor” of Rock Church International where Clayton Jennings had recently preached.

Jenna is a former member and employee of Rock Church. The subject of Jenna’s email to Pulpit & Pen was “Sex abuse by Clayton Jennings’ spiritual father.” Jenna was not claiming to be yet another victim of Clayton Jennings’ seductions but a victim of sexual and spiritual abuse by her own pastor, John Blanchard.

You can read that report here, but the gist of it is that Blanchard committed clergy sexual abuse with her, and after a time, once Sellers realized that what was happening was not ok, she reported him for sexual battery, which is a misdemeanor in Virginia.

Blanchard appeared before a Virginia judge in 2019 to answer to charges that he sexually battered her. Members of Rock Church showed up, in the church bus, to support Blanchard. The charges were dismissed by the judge, as sexual battery is a charge that is difficult to prove, especially where a consensual relationship develops after the incident. Sellers shares:

“He ended up being found not guilty, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. It did happen to me. Church leadership knew and decided not to remove him from his position…(Afterwards, members of the church)…were forbidden from speaking with me. I lost an entire support system. Every single one of my friends that I spent the last eight years with… I had to walk away from.”

It is unsurprising that this incident was swept under the rug and had no consequences for Blanchard, as Pentecostal churches, on account of their wayward theology, have developed a “touch not God’s anointed culture” around preachers who are believed to be God’s chosen instruments of prophecy. Blanchard kept his position, and the whole incident was chalked up to a case of some vindictive liar trying to stop the Lord’s work by falsely accusing him of disqualifying sin.

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‘Pa$T0r’ John Blanchard Appears In Court on Felony Prostitution Charges

Several weeks ago, news broke that John Blanchard, lead pastor of the 4000-member Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, VA, was busted by police for trying to hook up with an underage prostitute, joining 16 other men arrested who were caught up on the sting by law enforcement. Blanchard was quickly released on bail and appeared at the church service the next Sunday, blowing a shofar from the stage and offering a prayer, without addressing his arrest

A statement on the church website reads

“Under the guidance of our legal counsel, We cannot make a statement or comment concerning the accusations against Rev. John Blanchard at this time. We are all committed to walking in integrity and truth at Rock Church International and will continue to take steps to do so. Pastor Blanchard has voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved. During this season, Bishop Anne Gimenez will be stepping in as Lead Pastor and sharing the pulpit with Pastor Robin Blanchard.”

We shared how this was not the first time Blanchard was accused of gross sexual sin, explaining how his church gave him a pass in 2019 and swept an illicit affair with a former member and employee of the church. At the time he suffered no consequences for it, but his public arrest is even more than they can bear.

Rock Church, now realizing that they might actually have to pull the trigger and deal with their pastor’s sexual sin, rather than sweep it under a rug, have updated their statement to express their newfound deep and abiding horror at the sin of it, and to reiterate how “committed” they are to ferreting it out wherever it may be.

Rock Church encourages godly lifestyles by all of its members and leaders, in keeping with the tenets of the Bible. The Church condemns sexual immorality of any kind and in any form by its members and leaders and especially holds its leaders to a high standard of accountability on any lifestyle choices that could reflect negatively on the reputation of the Church or disparage the character of the Savior whom it purports to represent.

​Rock Church is committed to honesty and integrity in dealing with charges or accusations of sexual misconduct or immorality among its leaders and will support any investigation arising from accusations of violation of this standard among its staff and leaders in an effort to find the truth and to protect its members, church families and their children, at all times.

​Under the guidance of our legal counsel, We cannot make a statement or comment concerning the accusations against Rev. John Blanchard at this time. We are all committed to walking in integrity and truth at Rock Church International and will continue to take steps to do so. Pastor Blanchard has voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved. During this season, Bishop Anne Gimenez will be stepping in as Lead Pastor and sharing the pulpit with Pastor Robin Blanchard.

​As followers of Christ, we must remember that redemption, salvation, grace, mercy and healing are all gifts given to the children of God. Although everyone must address their own convictions and consequences, our assignment as believers is not to condemn, but to be agents of God’s love, healing, justice, and reconciliation. (Romans 3:23-“for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”) If we are to walk in eternity with Christ, our position must be one of truth, love, faith, mercy, justice, and forgiveness.

Thank you for your prayers and support. The outpouring of love has been overwhelming and we appreciate all of those who have reached out to be an encouragement to us! We would ask that the privacy of the Blanchard family be respected as they walk through this difficult journey together.

​Yesterday Blanchard was arranged in the Chesterfield County courtroom. He faces a felony charge of Solicitation of Prostitution from a minor age 16 or older, as well as a charge of Use of a Vehicle to Promote Prostitution. If found guilty, he faces between 1-5 years in prison. According to 13NewsNow:

“Blanchard’s lawyer asked that the judge consider changing the conditions of Blanchard’s bond which stipulate he cannot leave the state. The lawyer said there is church business outside of Virginia and that Blanchard travels for his job. (Note, given that he has stepped down from ministry, what would this be?)

Prosecutors objected to the defense’s request, based on the nature of the charges. The judge said another hearing was needed to consider whether the conditions of the bond should be changed. The judge set a hearing for Nov. 17.

The judge asked Blanchard to “maintain good behavior” until Blanchard’s trial which is scheduled to take place on Jan. 6, 2022.”

We will be following this story closely.

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‘Spiritual Father’ to Clayton Jennings Busted for ‘Solicitation of Prostitution from a Minor’- We Talked About this in 2019

Several days ago, news broke that John Blanchard, lead pastor of the 4000-member Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, VA, was busted by police for trying to hook up with an underage prostitute, joining 16 other men arrested who were caught up on the sting by law enforcement. Blanchard was quickly released on bail and appeared at the church service last Sunday, blowing a shofar from the stage and offering a prayer, without addressing it.

A statement on the church website reads

“Under the guidance of our legal counsel, We cannot make a statement or comment concerning the accusations against Rev. John Blanchard at this time. We are all committed to walking in integrity and truth at Rock Church International and will continue to take steps to do so. Pastor Blanchard has voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved. During this season, Bishop Anne Gimenez will be stepping in as Lead Pastor and sharing the pulpit with Pastor Robin Blanchard.”

Though at the time of the arrest it wasn’t widely reported, barely getting more a mention in a couple of local papers, this is not the first time that Blanchard was accused of being involved in some grossly abusive sexual shenanigans. We talked about this in 2019.

In June of 2018, when we were named Pulpit & Pen, we were contacted via email by a woman from Virginia named Jenna Sellers. Jenna was responding to the article Clayton Jennings: Capturing Weak Women – The Saga Continues, which reported that a young woman had come forward . She was the first of many who would later contact Pulpit & Pen with testimony about being seduced by Jennings, a traveling evangelist and internet celebrity. That particular article made reference to an influential friend named “John” that Jennings claimed to have. Jenna wondered if “John” might be John Blanchard, the “co-pastor” of Rock Church International where Clayton Jennings had recently preached.

Jenna is a former member and employee of Rock Church. The subject of Jenna’s email to Pulpit & Pen was “Sex abuse by Clayton Jennings’ spiritual father.” Jenna was not claiming to be yet another victim of Clayton Jennings’ seductions, but a victim of sexual and spiritual abuse by her own pastor, John Blanchard.

You can read that report here, but the gist of it is that Blanchard committed clergy sexual abuse with her, and after a time, once Sellers realized that what was happening was not ok, she reported him for sexual battery, which is a misdemeanor in Virginia.

Blanchard appeared before a Virginia judge in 2019 to answer to charges that he sexually battered her. Members of Rock Church showed up, in the church bus, to support Blanchard. The charges were dismissed by the judge, as sexual battery is a charge that is difficult to prove, especially where a consensual relationship develops after the incident. Sellers shares:

“He ended up being found not guilty, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. It did happen to me. Church leadership knew and decided not to remove him from his position…(Afterwards, members of the church)…were forbidden from speaking with me. I lost an entire support system. Every single one of my friends that I spent the last eight years with… I had to walk away from.”

It is unsurprising that this incident was swept under the rug and had no consequences for Blanchard, as Pentecostal churches, on account of their wayward theology, have developed a “touch not God’s anointed culture” around preachers who are believed to be God’s chosen instruments of prophecy. Blanchard kept his position and the whole incident was chalked up to a case of some vindictive liar trying to stop the Lord’s work by falsely accusing him of disqualifying sin.

Now, however, with this new incident, Rock Church has been forced against its will to deal with it. Despite Blanchard “stepping back” as lead pastor, given that he was previously allowed to keep his job and faced no consequences for his previous sexual sins, we would not be surprised if he is restored to ministry in just a few short months time.