A Springfield man who once was a youth pastor at First Baptist Church in Strafford entered a negotiated plea of guilty Monday, Nov. 28, to rape and sodomy charges with an underage girl and was sentenced to nine years in prison.
Jeffrey Taylor, 48, first started sexual contact with the girl when she was 11 and he was 38, according to court records.
The sexual contact had been going on for eight years and ended in October 2020 when the girl, then 19, reported it to law enforcement when she learned Taylor was involved with someone else.
According to court documents, the 19-year-old informed law enforcement “she had been having a sexual relationship with Jeffrey Taylor since she was 11 years old. Jeffrey was a youth pastor at their church. When (she) discovered Jeffrey was in a relationship with another woman at the church, (she) decided to tell her story.”
‘It was based on love,' he tells investigator
Taylor pleaded guilty to two counts of statutory sodomy with a person under 14; two counts of statutory sodomy in the second degree; and two counts of statutory rape in the second degree.
An investigator with the Greene County Sheriff's office questioned Taylor in October 2020. According to court records, Taylor explained his actions this way:
“It was based on love,” Taylor said, according to documents filed by the investigator. “I knew what I had done. … To me, it was the way that I could love her. Whatever picture of love she has now, I put it there. It's my fault.”
The Rev. Orvin Feliciano, who has been pastor of First Baptist Church in Strafford only eight weeks, said Tuesday that Taylor was a paid employee of the church from May 2018 to October 2020. His title was “student minister.”
According to court records, Taylor was charged Oct. 6, 2020.
Church issued statement at time of arrest
(At the time of Taylor's arrest, the church issued a statement. The statement has been slightly edited by the Hauxeda in an attempt to not identify the victim.)
“After our church leadership learned over the weekend about Mr. Taylor's horrific actions … he was immediately terminated from his position as Student Minister at First Baptist Church and referrals were made to the child abuse hotline and local law enforcement agencies.
“There have been no reports of inappropriate acts committed toward any other youth or children here at the church during church activities. We have detailed policies and procedures in place to prevent abuse and we will be looking at ways of strengthening those even further in the days ahead.”
After arrest, Taylor was subsequently released on bond with restrictions, including that he wear a GPS tracking device.
Taylor's attorney asked the judge to give credit for the time Taylor had to wear the device. Circuit Judge Jerry Harmison Jr. denied the request.
