An Assemblies of God pastor in a remote central California town was arrested last week for allegedly sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.
Joshua Kemper, the lead pastor at Foothill Church in Coarsegold, California, faces 14 felony charges for his alleged sexual abuse against the minor. Madera County police said that Kemper had a “relationship” with the victim from March through July of this year, according to their statement posted on Facebook last Thursday.
Police arrested Kemper at his home on Oct. 27 and hit the 47-year-old pastor with a slew of charges, according to jail records. They include:
- Sending harmful material to a minor with the intent to seduce,
- Contacting a minor with the intent to seduce,
- Attending an arranged meeting with a minor for lewd behavior,
- Possessing matter that depicts a minor engaged in sexual conduct,
- Sexual penetration with a foreign object, unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor,
- Oral copulation with an intoxicated victim,
- Four counts of oral copulation with a victim under 16,
- And three counts of lewd acts with a minor.
Kemper used his position as a pastor to take advantage of the minor and commit the alleged offenses, according to court records.
Police said these assaults occurred at the church, the victim’s house, and inside Kemper’s vehicle.
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Police first started investigating Kemper after church officials reported Kemper’s inappropriate conduct to authorities. Police discovered that the pastor had engaged in inappropriate communication and sexual conduct with the victim through digital evidence, which included explicit messages, photos, and videos.
Kemper engaged in “extensive digital grooming behaviors,” which is backed up by the use of a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone number and social media accounts to hide his communication with the victim, police said.
Madera County police praised “the courage of the victim and her family for coming forward and cooperating with law enforcement,” in their statement.
Authorities added that there may be more victims and urged anyone with additional information to contact the Madera County Sheriff’s Office investigations unit.
Kemper is in jail on a $500,000 bond, according to court records. He is set to next appear in court for a preliminary examination on Nov. 10.
The Roys Report (TRR) reached out to Foothill Church for comment but did not hear back prior to publication. It is unclear if Kemper is still the lead pastor.
He started working at Foothill Church in 2019, according to his archived profile on the church’s website. He has been a licensed Assemblies of God minister for more than a decade.
Kemper has been married for more than 20 years, the profile added.
The Assemblies has dealt with numerous sexual assault scandals in recent years, as described in “Pastors and Prey,” a multi-part NBC-TV investigation that has been airing this year. Part three, which aired last Thursday, shared how the denomination has allegedly shielded perpetrators.
For instance, in September, a prominent Assemblies pastor in Florida was charged with allegedly failing to report child sexual abuse for years.
Liz Lykins is a correspondent covering religion news for The Roys Report, WORLD Magazine, and other publications.
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8 Responses
Liz!! This is so perverted. Sorry you have to report on these pervs and thank you for doing such a good job.
“Police first started investigating Kemper after church officials reported Kemper’s inappropriate conduct to authorities.”
I appreciate that the local church in this instance reported this awful case to the authorities.
Sorry if this seems petty, given the context, but amazing to me that the church sign would have “lead” instead of “led.”
We left the AOG a couple of years ago because no one listens to anything untoward from people. I wrote the district twice-silence. The Board–accused me of lying. It was not sexual abuse but lies, intimidation and bullying by the pastors. I have told people that the AOG is on its way to imploding and it is. Deservedly. How shameful.
Totally agree. I spent my childhood through much of my 30s still in the belly of the A of G. From music ministry, pulpit ministry to dealing with professors, evangelists and senior pastors I had the misfortune of observing depravity at its highest level. Not one church or Nelson University (formerly Southwestern)was without a disgusting character cloaked as a man of God. It was as though they didn’t even care. My first position was as a youth pastor. On Sunday morning while I was turning on the lights and A/C, my boss, the senior pastor asked me if “I had gotten any….$&@“ the night before from my girlfriend. I was mortified. My mother raised me better. After a couple more deviant and depraved entitled episodes from the man and his group of elders, I resigned. I was just 20 at the time and didn’t deserve that godless trauma. He died a pillar and hero in the AofG denomination. Except myself and possibly a few others, the man took his dirty secrets to his grave after retiring with over 50 yrs of full time ministry in Dallas. The stories I could tell.
For an alleged child molester, he looks pretty happy in that mugshot. *Cringe*
“Your wife seems overly protective of your daughter. Has she been a victim of rape?”
– Former Pastor, asking me in front of the fellowship hall.
That’s his DMV photo. His mug shot is different. He seems to have been altering his looks in the last few months by growing his hair long and growing a beard.