Barry Duke, the Angry Atheist

Pointing and laughing at religious lunacy for more than half-a-century

Off the hook. Serial evangelical abuser Jonathan Fletcher won’t stand trial.

IN 30 years as vicar of Emmanuel Church Wimbledon, London, the Rev. Jonathan Fletcher, above, is alleged to have engaged in naked beatings, nude swimming and massages, as well as other sexual misconduct, and bullying and “spiritual abuse.”

Then, in July 2024 he was charged with eight counts of indecent assault and one of grievous bodily harm, for alleged offences dating between 1973 and 1999.

But it’s now been found that this leading figure among conservative evangelical Anglicans is is not fit to enter a plea and will no longer stand trial.

Image via YouTube

The decision has infuriated one of his alleged victims, Lee Furney, above,who told The Telegraph, that complaints about Fletcher, above:

Were suppressed by a self-congratulating subculture that has never repented, and so has never changed. The absence of a trial does not erase the damage, nor does it absolve the moral responsibility of those who enabled it.

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A review led by independent safeguarding charity Thirtyone:Eight on behalf of Emmanuel Church Wimbledon uncovered a “pattern” of an “escalation of behaviours” that was “reflective of the grooming process”.

It also cited an “unhealthy culture” that enabled abusive behaviours resulting in “profound” and “for some, ongoing harm”.

His Permission to Officiate, or PTO, was withdrawn by Southwark Diocese in 2017.

Fletcher has previously said he is “deeply, deeply sorry for the people I’ve harmed”, and claimed that any interaction was “totally consensual and non-sexual”.

Image via YouTube

Scrutiny of Fletcher did not begin publicly until 2017, when a massive scandal revealed that John Smyth, above, a prominent attorney and former chairman of trustees for the Iwerne camps, had beaten and physically abused boys at camp in the 1970s and 1980s. Some of the Smyth accusers also made allegations against Fletcher, and the Diocese of Southwark revoked Fletcher’s permission to officiate (PTO) in February 2017.

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