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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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time
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101689
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10168900.007
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1990-09-19
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RELIGION, Page 65Judgment DayThe jury nails Jim Bakker on all 24 counts of fraud
Just before the inevitable verdict came down last week, a
gaggle of Jim Bakker's faithful backers defiantly held aloft a King
James Bible opened to Psalm 17:3: "Thou hast tried me, and shalt
find nothing." But the jury sang a different psalm: Guilty as
charged on all 24 counts of defrauding the public of $3.7 million
via TV, phone and mail. Testimony about one of the ripest scandals
in U.S. religious history had consumed 25 days; the jury needed
less than eleven hours to decide.
Fittingly, the proceedings ended on a theatrical note. In the
bail hearing, Federal Judge Robert Potter said he could not forget
the parade of 35 Bakker loyalists who had spoken for the defense.
"They have a Jim Jones mentality," he said, in a bizarre reference
to the cult leader responsible for 900-plus deaths by mass suicide.
"I've seen these people out here who think he could walk on water."
Despite fears that Bakker's fans might spirit him out of the
country, Potter freed the telefelon on a $250,000 secured bond; he
must report daily to an Orlando parole officer.
Bakker, who will appeal, managed a trademark smile as he told
reporters after the trial, "I come out today still innocent of the
charges against me . . . My faith is still in God." Wife Tammy Faye
tried to put the best face on the situation by singing a hymn and
cooing, "It's not over till it's over."
Nor did the trial want for drama. Bakker was led away for
psychiatric evaluation, one witness collapsed, and Hurricane Hugo
interrupted the proceedings. The usual details emerged about
Bakker's lavish spending habits (motorized bedroom draperies, a
$500 shower curtain). The prosecution's star witness turned out to
be Bakker himself. Jurors endured eight hours of videotape showing
his histrionic money pitches and then heard the ex-preacher
describe himself on the witness stand as a "minister of the
gospel," not a "professional businessman."
Although Bakker will almost certainly not get the maximum
penalty (120 years and $5 million in fines) when he is sentenced
Oct. 24, he is likely to spend time behind bars. Potter had earlier
meted out a tough eight years in prison and a $200,000 fine to
former Bakker aide Richard Dortch, even though Dortch testified for
the prosecution. Two other staffers who provided evidence drew
draconian prison terms for tax evasion.