A pastor from Louisiana was sentenced to two years in prison, following a year probation period after being convicted of taping the mouths of three students shut while serving as headmaster of a Christian school.
John Raymond was formerly the leader of Lakeside Christian School and was convicted of cruelty to juveniles after he punished students for talking too much and eventually used package tape to make them quiet.
Raymond was previously a contestant on the reality TV show Survivor, and admitted to the child abuse in social media posts. In court, he proclaims his innocence: “I am not guilty. I’ve never been cruel to a child, and I love children,” he said after the verdict was returned per the Independent.
Raymond posted a different account on the school's website in April 2022.
“I pulled out a roll of clear Scotch packing tape and said, ‘I’m going to give you a choice. We can either go downstairs and call your parents and you can wait in the lobby to be suspended, or you can get tape on your mouth and learn how to be quiet during class,’” he wrote.
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“The students all chose tape, and I pulled off one piece at a time and carefully placed it over their mouths, making sure that it did not touch their noses or interfere with their breathing. At no time was tape wrapped around any student’s head.”
The justification for the taking was that he needed to defend a teaching staff member and take those measures.
He asserts that none of the students reported experiencing pain when questioned. The pastor was taken into custody on April 7 for three counts of cruelty toward juveniles.
He was arrested again on May 9 and faced an additional charge after another student spoke up.
Authorities state that witnesses report this conduct dates back to 2017.
