A South Carolina magistrate has dismissed criminal charges against former leaders of Pawleys Island Community Church following an investigation into a registered sex offender's volunteer work at the church and its affiliated academy.
Georgetown County Chief Magistrate Judge Anthony Love dismissed the charges during a preliminary hearing on November 6, finding insufficient probable cause to proceed. The South Carolina Attorney General's Office confirmed the ruling to local media.
The defendants included former pastor Don Williams, his wife Virginia "Ginny" Williams, former academy director Jennifer "Niki" Howard and former operations and missions director Michael Anthony Fields. Charges varied by defendant and included obstruction of justice, criminal conspiracy and unlawfully placing a child at risk.
The investigation centred on Warren Perry, a registered sex offender who performed volunteer maintenance and custodial work on the campus. Perry had been convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor in 2023 and placed on probation.
Howard's attorney, Erin Bailey, told WMBF that state probation officials knew Perry volunteered at the church and that a preschool operated there. According to Bailey, officials visited the property and provided guidelines for his volunteer work, which church leaders followed. She said the evidence presented at the hearing failed to establish the elements of the alleged crimes.
Georgetown County Sheriff Carter Weaver defended the investigation following the dismissals, saying he stood behind his investigators and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. He also sought clarification about the ruling and the state probation agency's supervision of Perry.
The controversy prompted leadership resignations and the closure of Pawleys Island Christian Academy in August, according to The Christian Post. The church subsequently reopened its separate children's ministry with additional safety measures.
The criminal dismissals do not resolve the separate civil proceedings. State lawsuits remain ongoing. A federal class-action case involving the church and Southern Baptist entities was dismissed earlier for lack of jurisdiction, rather than a determination of the underlying allegations.
