Admin webmdave Posted October 8, 2007 Admin Posted October 8, 2007 WACO TX -- Members of a local church whose former part-time pastor has been arrested on child pornography charges don’t think he meant to do anything wrong, the church’s full-time preacher says. Henry Edgington, 63, stepped down from his leadership position at Elm Mott Church of Christ before his arrest Thursday, says Sam Armstrong, the church’s main pastor. Although Edgington maintains — and some church members believe — that he had the graphic images because he was doing research to try and get child pornography sites off the Internet, he decided to quit his post the past week or so because he feared he might be charged with a crime, Armstrong said. Those fears played out this week when Edgington was arrested on seven counts of possessing child pornography. According to affidavits supporting his arrest, he had multiple illegal pictures of children in a padlocked box at his home. They were found and brought to police by the fiancée of Edgington’s son. She found the box in his bathroom, the affidavits say. Such circumstances might seem damning to people who don’t know Edgington, Armstrong said. But he and the other 60 people who attend the church fully believe Edgington’s claims, he said. For one thing, Edgington is a spiritual person and a family man, with three children and several grandchildren, he said. Plus, Edgington had talked about his project long before the pictures were turned over to police, Armstrong said. About six months to a year ago, Edgington told him he was contacting a group from Florida that works to get child pornography off the Internet, he said. One of the group’s strategies, Edgington told Armstrong, was to involve legislators in the fight. His plan, Armstrong said, was to eventually turn the information he gathered over to U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco. A spokesman for Edwards’ office, however, said it has not received any communication from Edgington. Armstrong concedes Edgington may have violated the letter of the law. But in his defense, heNun battles, Unholy Nuns, Oral Roberts U View the full article
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