Word of Faith religious group leader gets probation in assault case in North Carolina

Brooke Covington, a leader of the Word of Faith Fellowship, received two years of probation on Monday following a plea deal in a North Carolina assault case. Covington, 68, entered an Alford plea to two misdemeanor charges of false imprisonment and simple assault. This type of plea allows a defendant to acknowledge that prosecutors have sufficient evidence for a conviction while maintaining their innocence.

The plea deal resulted in the dismissal of a felony kidnapping charge. Prosecutors alleged that in 2013, Covington led church members in choking and beating a young man for two hours while praying to expel what they called homosexual demons. The judge sentenced Covington to 45 days in jail for false imprisonment and 30 days for simple assault, but suspended these sentences provided she completes her probation and 30 hours of community service for children or young adults.

The legal proceedings concluded more than nine years after a previous trial ended in a mistrial because a jury foreman used outside research during deliberations. Delays in the case included the COVID-19 pandemic, the suspension of a lawyer's license during an attempt to remove the original prosecutor, and changes in legal personnel due to deaths or retirements.