Crime & Safety

Alleged Rapist Pastor Enters Not Guilty Plea

The former pastor denies all charges of having sex with a teen choir girl, and bail is set.

A former pastor accused of having sex with a teenaged choir girl pleaded not guilty to rape today.

Joseph Jermaine Spencer, 26, was charged with rape by force or fear, unlawful intercourse with a minor at least three years younger than the defendant, oral copulation with a minor and sexual penetration with a foreign object.

The charges stem from an alleged encounter in April at Spencer's Murrieta apartment with a 16-year-old member of the choir he directed at  in Temecula.

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To read about what allegedly happened, .

He sat in a courtroom in French Valley during his arraignment today wearing an orange prison uniform with his hands chained to his waist, ankles shackled and his head hung low.

Find out what's happening in Murrietawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The judge set his bail at $50,000, and a criminal protective order was filed to prevent Spencer from communicating with the victim.

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