Former My Faith Votes CEO Charged with Child Porn Possession
The eight felony counts involve images of children as young as 5 to 7 years old.
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Jason Yates in an August 2024 interview with Michael Easley / YouTube screenshot
Jason C. Yates, the former CEO of My Faith Votes, has been charged with eight felony counts of possession of child pornography.
Each of the eight charges, filed in McLeod County, MN, carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of $10,000. They note that Yates has a prior conviction and is a registered predatory offender.
According to the court records, Yates was released on his own recognizance on November 4. As a condition of his release, he is to have no contact with persons under the age of 18.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension began its investigation in Yates’ alleged crimes on July 31 after unnamed “Witness #1” provided the bureau with a hard drive containing over 100 images of sexually explicit images of children. Witness #1 was given the drive by a relative of Yates — “Witness #2” — after he or she discovered it in Yates’ office.
Witness #2 told law enforcement that he or she found an internal component hard drive in a dresser in Yates’ office. When Witness #2 put the hard drive into Witness #2’s computer, he or she discovered the sexually explicit images. Not knowing what to do, Witness #2 put the hard drive back in a drawer in the dresser then later contacted Witness #1. Witness #2 clarified that no one else in the house uses Yates’ computer.
The probable cause statement also includes descriptions of eight of the images, which allegedly include children between 5 and 7 years of age.
In September, officers met with Yates, and he confirmed that the images did not belong to Witness #2. Yates also admitted to having a prior conviction for child pornography that had been expunged.
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MinistryWatch reached out to Yates’ attorney, Hannah Martin of the Minneapolis based law firm Caplan and Tamburino, who said she had no comment for this story.
While Yates is not currently listed as the CEO of My Faith Votes on its website, the latest IRS Form 990 filed in 2023 by the organization, under the official name Vision Charitable Trust, shows Yates as the CEO. Articles on the website were published under his byline as late as July. A biographical sketch of Yates confirms he resides in Minnesota.
According to its website, My Faith Votes is a “non-partisan movement that motivates, equips and activates Christians in America to vote in every election, transforming our communities and influencing our nation with biblical truth.”
Sealy Yates, an attorney and literary agent, is listed as the president and founder of My Faith Votes. MinistryWatch made multiple attempts to reach Sealy Yates for comment, but received no response by publication time.
Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate, is the honorary national chairman for My Faith Votes.
EDITOR’S NOTE: After publication of this story we received the following statement from My Faith Votes:
“In early August 2024, the My Faith Votes board of directors separated Jason Yates from My Faith Votes and board member Chris Sadler assumed the position of Acting CEO. Over the last three months Chris has been working with the dedicated My Faith Votes team to encourage millions of Christians to vote, pray and think biblically about this election in America.”
EDITOR’S NOTE: 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. To read more about why and how we report these stories, read “Why MinistryWatch Reports On Sex Crimes.” You can find that story here.
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