A Philadelphia megachurch pastor hoped his charitable deeds would favorably sway a judge at his sentencing. Instead, the judge referred to him as a serial predator and sentenced him to five to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting three children.
Mark Hatcher, Sr., 61, of Holy Ghost Headquarters Revival Center, was convicted in February of rape, statutory sexual assault, and indecent assault.
Two convictions stem from Hatcher’s sexual assault of two children to whom he was related—a 6-year-old boy in 2007—2008, and a 15-year-old girl in 2000. The third conviction is for raping a 13-year-old girl in an abandoned home owned by Hatcher’s church.
Before handing down the sentence, Montgomery County Court Judge Thomas Branca said there were two men on trial: one an active, beloved community leader and pastor—and a serial predator, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
The judge weighed the good Hatcher has done, adding “heavier weight goes to the crimes he’s committed,” KYW Newsradio reported.
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Prosecutor Caroline Goldstein argued Hatcher used his position as pastor to take advantage of people, especially children which outweighs his good actions, the station reported.
One victim claimed Hatcher kissed him and touched his bottom under his clothes when the now 22-year-old man was six to seven years old. Another victim said that when he was 6 years old, Hatcher used the boy’s hand to pleasure himself.
A third accuser said that when she was 13, Hatcher pinned her to a mattress, covered her mouth to muffle her screams, and then raped her in an abandoned building.
During his sentencing and hearing, the Holy Ghost Headquarters pastor maintained his innocence and said he hopes “God will heal the three people who a jury convicted him of sexually assaulting.”
Holy Ghost Headquarters holds services at the The Met, a restored opera house in North Philadelphia.
Former Philadelphia Mayor Wilson Goode, was one of three witnesses who testified on Hatchers’ behalf at his sentencing. Goode said Hatcher “brought fundamental changes to Philadelphia and he never heard anything negative about him in 30 years,” according to KYW Newsradio.
When questioned if he still supports Hatcher despite his conviction, Goode reportedly said, “while he still supports Hatcher, ‘it’s very challenging and difficult to know the things he has done,’” the radio station reported.
Sheila Stogsdill is a freelance print journalist and digital reporter, primarily covering crime issues for KSN/KODE.
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2 Responses
Seems like an incredibly lenient sentence given the crimes.
The church should put the culture war to the side and get serious about cleaning up our own mess.
“You should never put a pastor on a pedestal.” I’ve heard that cliche since I was in Bible College in the 80s. It is true, but many pastors lead with an autocratic style of leadership and are extremely manipulative. There are who pastors place themselves on the pedestal. The congregants fall under their hypnotic charm; they can do no wrong. Even under criminal indictment or convictions there are members who will defend them to the end. Just saw a video of a pastor chastising a young man in the pews. He ended his anger filled rant with reminding the church that he was “the man of God”. Such reinforcement goes along ways in getting the church to fall in line.