FL Ex-Pastor Takes Sex Crime Plea Deal, Avoids Life Sentence

Defendant faced multiple charges dating back 30 years

Florida prosecutors had sought to put Paul Dyal, 81, behind bars for first-degree capital sexual battery — a crime that potentially carried a penalty of death by lethal injection.

Jacksonville Assembly of the Body of Christ sign / Video screenshot; Insert of Paul Dyal

Instead, the former Jacksonville Assembly of the Body of Christ pastor accepted a plea deal and was slapped with just five years of probation, plus a one-year prison term already served.

MinistryWatch previously reported Dyal’s 2022 arrest for sexual abuse of a child under age 12. His case was part of a larger crackdown on Dyal’s church, in which two other pastors were also arrested for involvement in an alleged pattern of physical and sexual abuse of minors spanning more than 30 years.

At a March 2022 press conference, eight alleged victims recounted being sexually molested as minors, forced to follow cult-like rules about their appearance and behavior, beaten with paddles, “courted” by older men at the church, and isolated from the outside world.

However, The Florida Times-Union reported that a ninth-hour snag in the prosecution’s case allowed Dyal to plead guilty to the lesser charge of contributing to the delinquency or dependency of a child.

Access to MinistryWatch content is free.  However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.

The problem began when Dyal’s alleged victim asked the State Attorney’s Office to proceed without her.

The victim had originally reported the abuse decades earlier, according to Florida Times-Union, but police did not follow-up. Only after the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office received a new tip in September 2020 about sexual abuse at the church did investigators reach out and ask her to participate in Dyal’s prosecution.

Instead of calling the victim to the stand during the trial, the court read her impact statement.

“I grew up hearing scripture about being righteous, serving the Lord, being a faithful servant, and taking care of one another,” the statement read in part, according to Florida Times-Union. “Except my reality was much different under a very watchful eye. My reality was feeling scared and sick because I knew the punishments disguised as ‘discipline’ potentially waited for me around any corner I turned.”

Another Jacksonville Assembly of the Body of Christ pastor, Vernon Williamson, was sentenced in 2024 to life in prison for two counts of capital sexual battery.

The third defendant, Jerome Teschendorf, has also been charged with capital sexual battery and is awaiting a May 19 pretrial hearing. He has pleaded not guilty.

Jacksonville Assembly has since closed its doors. But one former member, Cynthia Crawford, told News4JAX she had stories of abuse from other people within the Gospel Assembly, the network of churches Jacksonville Assembly belonged to.

“I have had people call and talk about very similar actions, very similar ways of life, very similar styles of abuse, sexual abuse physical abuse, in Kentucky, Texas, Oklahoma, California, Oregon,” she said. “All over.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: MinistryWatch exists to help donors become more effective stewards of the resources God has entrusted to them. So, why does MinistryWatch report on sex crimes? These stories are tough to read and sometimes even tougher to report, but we think they are vital to our mission to bring transparency, accountability, and credibility to the evangelical church. Donors who are supporting these ministries need to know this information. Ministry leaders and others can learn lessons from these stories. Victims feel supported.  To read more about why and how we report these stories, read “Why MinistryWatch Reports On Sex Crimes.”

 TO OUR READERS: The mission of MinistryWatch is to help Christian donors become more faithful stewards of the resources God has entrusted to them. Do you know of a story that will help us fulfill our mission, or do you want to give us feedback about this or any other story? If so, please email us: [email protected]