Ron Weinland Jurors: The Gift That Keeps On Giving

I am just like many others here in exCOG land that are reading Mike's blog about Ron Weinland. Weinland's conviction as a felon and the jurors that are stepping forward and sharing what it was like listing to this disgusting pig has been a fascinating and eye opening read.  These jurors were presented with reams of evidence, so well documented by the prosecution that took eight extra large notebooks to contain it all.  They heard the weak excuses that Weinland and his entourage presented as "truth." They heard the lies, saw through the lies, and dealt Weinland the hand he never saw coming.  Just think how amazing it will be for Ron's attorney's to be able to list this case on their resume.....

Weinland and his cult are screaming church persecution now in order to blind the members from seeing the real truth about their devious leader and his family.  The only problem with Weinland's church leadership taking this position is that the prosecution never once attacked the church or it's"teachings."  What was attacked was the misuse of funds by Ron, his wife, his daughter Audry, son Jeremy and others, all in the name of doing the work.  Three BMW's, all expense paid vacations, Vegas trips, cruise vacations, massages and Las Vegas shows, are not "the work.".

Through all of this the various splinter group leaders have been conspicuously silent.  Even more so after Ron's conviction.  Why have none of them spoken out about the abuse of funds?  Are they scared that they could be next?  It is well known throughout the Churches of God that ministry leaders and higher ups have regularly abused their positions and used tithe/offering money for their own expenses.

They have bought cars, homes, fine art, clothes, had their masters and doctorates paid for with church funds, and on and on the list could go.  Meredith got caught decades ago with his hands in the cookie jar and had to repay the church all the money he used from third tithe to furnish and decorate his home.  HWA and Rader were hauled into court for their financial abuses and not for church doctrine.  Church money paid for divorces, lawsuits (Meredith's Leona McNair debacle), European spas and penile implants.

I imagine many of these splinter group leaders are shaking in their shoes right now at the possibility that they could be next.  But, an even bigger question to be asked is, "Why do the members continue to put up with it?"  "Why do they continue to let the ministry and church leaders get away with it?"  "Why allow them continued use of your hard earned money for their own luxury life styles?"  The old Church of God mantra, "once I write that check the money is God's to use as he sees fit" no longer works.  God is not the one spending that money, corrupt men and women are.  I hope this is only the first of many lawsuits to come down the Church of God pipeline.

All of this rambling was stirred on by yet another posting tonight by one of the jurors that so wisely convicted Ronnie:

Juror#199 here…

[Juror] #215, You do have a good memory. I also would agree that Laura was added to church business just to make her vacations a little more legit, believable, and non-taxable. Even boy wonder, (Ron) admitted on stand that she did not really do much or speak on these trips, but as Ron put it, “we are a team”. One thing she did do very well was shop and spend money. Remember McBride asked “well couldn’t she counsel over the phone?” “Or couldn’t they come to your house and talk to her.” As for the so called “scholarship”, I believe that to be an afterthought to explain why Jeremy’s college courses were paid from a church account or Ron’s account that the church reimbursed. Also to clarify, Jeremy’s expenses were paid through a Citi Bank card or account and Audra’s through a Bank of KY account. The prosecution showed so many accounts it was hard to keep track of them.

As I have mention before, after the IRS Special Agent knocked on their door 7/02/08, they made some small adjustments and continued business as usual. Another observation I had was that these “church related travels” always grew with added vacation times and long (some quite long) layovers in hot spots such as Hawaii, Vegas, or places near some of Weinlands relatives, both domestic and abroad.

As for Google Adwords, Ronnie knew he was obviously under IRS investigation so he had better show some church expenses. However, this was well thought out by the criminal mastermind because I know as well as you, that these adds brought in more money as well. It was the proverbial, killing two birds with one stone.

Another great Ronism was when McBride was questioning him about his $1,700.00 + suit being bought on a church account. Boy wonder states, “I am wearing that suit today” he said with a big proud smile. Then McBride said, “Well, you are on personal business here today”. “Are you not?” “Is that the church’s suit?” PRICELESS!! This occurred when Ron was on the stand. I can not remember if that was before or after Ron was bragging (with another huge smile of confidence) about his 5 series being a “luxury car.” What a moron! Wow, look, his name is in there.

This is strictly my opinion. I find it interesting that Ron &/or Laura seem to schedule these vacations, Oops….! “church functions” in some very nice destinations and traveling hot spots. I also recall that there were not any church members present, except on very few occasions, and those members always seemed to be Johnnie Harrell and his wife, Terry and his wife, Audra and Jeremy and their better halves. I am not sure how many church members were at any of these functions except for some of the local ones that the members paid out of their pockets to attend.

Another classic was listening to Dalrymple and Ron both, but at separate times, explain about the $85.00 deep tissue massage on the Princess Cruise Line. They were both quite convinced that this was a church expense. Okay………whatever y’all say! At that point, among many others, I was ready to put my hip waders on because it was getting deep. If you know what I mean. Anyway, the entertainment factor was PRICELESS once again!

Lastly, I wish I could have gotten a dollar for every time moRON, Audra, and Dalrymple said “I don’t know” or “I guess.” I would be sitting on a heap of cash people. They all remembered explicit details when it benefited one of their lies, but when the overwhelming truth and proof set before their eyes was the subject they seemed to suffer from a terrible case of amnesia. After a long while, Audra at least had a stronger back and a bigger set of balls than the two boys, by admitting “yea, I guess.”

Ron Weinland, Convicted Church of God Minister Serrenaded

Today, convicted felon and failed prophet Ron Weinland ventured out of his home and into church services.  People in attendance at this wonderful event are posting comments as the day progresses.

The minds of the brainwashed members are exposed in all their wacky glory.  They idea that these people would do such a thing is amazing.

Reporting live:

Reporting live from the Saturday service. When Ron entered the room five minutes ago, the attendees rose and gave him and standing ovation. Then they broke into a rousing: “for he’s a jolly good fel-on, for he’s a jolly good fel-on. It was a moving experience.

Ron Weinland Scholarship Fund Accepting Applications

Here's a little tidbit from a comment on Mike's blog that one of the jurors posted today.  I wonder how many Church of God Preaching the Kingdom members know there is a scholarship fund for their children if they show promise in being part of the "work?"

So far that scholarship fund has only been used once in it's existence.  it is a matter of court record who the recipient was.  Anyone want to venture a guess?

Juror #215 Says:

Regarding Jeremy, it was revealed that one of the Weinland’s personal credit cards was being used by Jeremy for his various peresonal expenses as well. Also, there was the whole “scholarship program” issue…

I wonder now how many PKG members are aware that their church has a college scholarship program to be used for young persons who show a promising future in the church? Mr Weinland is the only person with authority to determine who would receive such a scholarship, and according to the testimony and evidence, the only person who did receive this scholarship was Jeremy Weinland.
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Ron Weinland: More Juror Comments

One of the jurors has added more to the story of what it was like listening to Ron Weinland's trial.  This is only a partial quote, go here to read the entire posting on Mikes most excellent blog! Keep up the heat!

 Juror Comment

There are really not any applicable words to describe this extremely dirty mess. It stinks really badly!

I can not imagine the frustration and hurt of many that this low life has instilled. People giving life savings…..etc; For what? To fund this diabolical scums jet setting life style and shopping sprees. I saw receipts from restaurants that ranged between $150 to $400 a pop. Many, many, many. On a daily and weekly basis. The IRS didn’t count hardly any of these either because they could have been church and travel related. Yea, right!

 If the agent had more than three weeks before the trial began to review all of his expenses it would be staggering I am sure.Another dirty tactic the defense used was with holding their evidence until 3 weeks before the trial started so the prosecution didn’t have time to look at anything. They did not need it. The prosecution just concentrated on the simple an blatant things.

 This jackass is the king all right. The king of the Weinland Disgusting Dynasty. This man redefines many things. Better yet, he is not even a real man. Real men do not act in such a manner and prey on others. He is a spineless coward hiding behind insanity. That would have been a much better defense but would not have worked either. He is cold, calculating, and too articulate to pass as a nut case. He is in my opinion a classic example of a sociopath. Google that term. I will ensure you that he fits most, if not all, of the traits and characteristics.

 I do not feel any compassion for Jeremy nor Audra neither. They are not kids, but adults, with full knowledge what is going down with the money train. In fact, they are using it for a paycheck along with mom & dad. I suggest they go get a real job. What are they going to put on their resume? Thief in training, conspirator, money launderer, go with the flow & benefit guy or gal, or I can play dumb as an actor/actress. They are not oblivious to what is going on. They receive plenty of “hush money” though. I am confident that they are enjoying the fruits just as well.

I really do feel for those of you who have been tangled up in this mess. In simple terms, it is unjust and very wrong. I am glad to see that some have figured it out. This low life will never quit though. You need to understand that. As soon as he gets out of the pokey he will be right back at it. This tool is an addict. Instead of drugs it is green backs! Greed is his driving force and in my opinion it has absolutely nothing to do with God nor being religious. That is just the cover he chooses to use.

Further down was this:

Juror#215 says:

June 15, 2012 at 19:02

Jack365, maybe the members would like to know the “accounting process” by which Mr and Mrs Weinland handled expenses.

All of the church expenses, from book related costs, to the airfare, lodging and meals during the constant travels, all of these were placed on one of the Weinland’s many personal credit cards, each with a $50,000 credit limit. The reason they used only personal credit cards was that a “church” couldn’t get the kind of credit they needed on a monthly basis to keep up their lifestyle. These cards were not just used for legitimate church expenses, but also for their everyday personal expenses, lavish shopping trips, jewelry, art purchases, expensive meals out on the town around northern Kentucky, and all of Mr Weinland’s frequent trips to Las Vegas. Did you know that he spent a lot of time in Vegas? From what I heard, PKG doesn’t have a congregation there.

Anyway, everything that the Weinlands needed to spend money on for any reason was charged to those cards. When the bills came in, the full amount of the bill was transferred from PKG accounts into the Weinland’s personal accounts to pay each of the cards off each month. At times, Audra would have to monitor the balances mid-month if any of the cards were getting close to their $50K limits, and would make several $40,000 transfers from the PKG accounts to the Weinland’s personal accounts to keep them paid down as they continued to spend, spend, spend.

When the credit card statements came in, it was Mrs Weinland’s job to check the charges, and decide if any were strictly personal expenses. If there were, she was supposed to write a check from the personal account back into the PKG account. The defense offered no evidence that this reimbursement to PKG was ever actually done.

Now, I’m no accountant, but I do work for a living for a company that has an accounting department that has a process to track and reimburse the expenses of its employees, and I don’t think that this system would meet any kind of auditing guidelines for legal financial activity.
This process is called “co-mingling” and it makes keeping accurate financial records very difficult. It is one of the tactics that criminals use to steal large sums of money, not the way that honest people do honest business.

There’s a big chunk of the iceberg for you.

Ron Weinland Jurors Speak Out

Mike has two very interesting letters from jurors that helped convict Ron Weinland this week.

The foreman of the jury writes:

When I left the courthouse that afternoon, I felt very tired and physically drained by the decision that we had to make, and by the gravity of the consequences for Mr Weinland, even though we all felt that he deserved to be found guilty and that he should receive the maximum penalties that could possibly be given.  Reading the comments from all of you on this blog that night, I was uplifted by the unanimous relief and gratitude from the commenters at the verdict that we had reached.  We knew that the way that Mr Weinland was fleecing his members by convincing them that he was a Prophet who had the ultimate authority on Earth over the church and humanity was deplorable, and the fact the members were handing over so much of their money just to have it spent on Mr Weinland’s luxuries was repellent.

Another juror writes:

I was on the jury. This clown is a predator. The judge will give him the max (5yrs.) in my guess. I think Laura, Jeremy, & Audra should be indicted as well, along with some others. Seeing what this family has done makes me sick! The way I see it, what he was actually charged with is a small drop in the bucket as to how much money he has looted. The Weinland Clan riffled through $4.5 million in just over a few years.

There was not much comingling of funds. It was ALL HIS! In my mind, this pile of dung spent 90% of that money. The prosecution did not even begin to sort out what Ronald McScammer said was a church exspense on his behalf etc;. The IRS gave all of that to him. The ONLY legit exspenses I saw were very minor, as in slim to none.

The money completeley paid for any and all lifestyles for Laura, Ron, Jeremy and his wife, Audra and her husband, Darymple’s, and others. Out of the 90% of $4.5 million, the Weinlands alone, spent at least 80% of that money. We are talking Lasik eye surgery, Insight cable bills, utility bills, car insurance, global & domestic shopping sprees for clothing, art, & jewelry, homes, on and on….basically everything and then some. In a nutshell these scumbags paid any and all exspenses down to groceries and morning coffee out of these church donations! The so called “church money” equals Ron and families money.

What a brazen piece of garbage. These people are sociopaths. I feel for those of you who were ever entangled with this freak! There is nothing at all Godly about this man. That is putting it lightly.

 Read both entire letters here: Voice From Weinlands Jury

Dale Schurter: Only Restored Church of God Going to Place of Safety

Dale Schurter, the back-stabbing defector from United Church of God is back again after another stint in Dave's reeducation camp.  Dale sends a letter to all of the folks in United and elsewhere extolling the glorious Dear Leader and his message.  Dale also wants you to know several important facts:

1)      The government of God is not found in any splinter group: Every Church of God out there in the land of Laodicea is an apostate false church that is unfit for membership in.  Only by being in the Restored Church of God can you come under true government where the Dear Leader can reeducate you into blind submission.

This government has specific offices Christ placed into the Church: “And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God…” (Eph. 4:11-13). None of the splinters faithfully hold to this understanding, restored in the twentieth century!

2)      The splinters have either watered down or rejected the place of safety doctrine: A place of protection is promised to “the woman,” the true church—and only to that one, unified, organized body of believers: “And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from [away from—out of reach of] the face of the serpent” (Rev. 12:14).

All of you folks in UCG and other splinter groups you need to wake up to the fact your ass is grass.  You are never going to Petra.  It is reserved for Dave and crew.  Of course Dave will be outside in the Marriott while the dumb sheep are starving to death inside.

3) Divorce and remarriage has been liberalized: Most splinters now exercise their own convenient, man-made theology when it comes to divorce and remarriage. It has become common practice in many splinters to allow the divorcing of a mate who departs from his or her “organizational fellowship” to another “COG,” with the remaining spouse then deemed free to marry again within their present organization, regardless of other circumstances. Others allow someone who has jumped ship to their COG organization to be free to divorce and marry again within his or her “new” group.

4)      The splinters have lost sight of what was and was not God’s Church through history: Among the splinters, the line between the Church and the world—between the children of light and the children of darkness—becomes blurrier all the time. Many have forgotten who the true people of God were in each era, and who were the illegitimate “splinters” and offshoots—which have virtually always existed, beginning in the Ephesian era.

With over 700 some splinter groups pout here now, all believing they are the one and only true church it is hard for the average COGer to know here to go.  Defector Dale wants you to know that the true church is the one and only Restored Church of God under the leader ship of Dave.

Only by joining forces with Dave, sending in your money, and submitting to your overlords, can your salvation be assured.  So step right up and surrender your brain and reasoning to the lord and master.

To be a part of those who are used to finish God’s Work, and are delivered from the face of the devil during the soon-coming Great Tribulation, this knowledge—and the action that is demands of those who prove it—is essential.

Convicted Felon and Failed Prophet, Ron Weinland, Says We are Entering Day of Vengeance and Recompense

Convicted felon, Ron Weinland, the failed false prophet trained by Herbert Armstrong, has sent two love notes to his few remaining followers today.  In the first he has let them know that he is under house arrest and has to wear an ankle bracelet to monitor all of his movements.  He is restricted to his region of Kentucky and cannot venture over to Cincinnati where he loved to go and make prophetic announcements.  Now those prophetic announcements have to come from his house.  One of Weinerdudes ministers sent this stupid comment to him:  "As one sr. elder just sent me an email upon hearing about this, he stated: “Adding an ankle bracelet to sackcloth and ashes is a way to add to your fashion statement.” Read his entire note on Mike's blog. Oh the martyrdom!


Then the convicted felon and false prophet penned another letter about this "day of the Lord" we are now supposedly in, and what it means for true believers. He goes into detail about how Jesus will return on Pentecost 2013 since this entire year from Pentecost 2012 to 2013 is "the Day of the Lord."

Yes, the “Day of the Lord” is a year in actual length. May 27, 2012, was the beginning of the “Day of the Lord” when Jesus Christ will return on the final day of Pentecost 2013. 

Then he says something that may be a veiled threat against the United States government for daring to convict him of stealing money.  Is he expecting God to dish out wrath and vengeance upon the United States for persecuting him, his wife and his kids?  It should be noted that the government made no attempt to stop his preaching.  What they stopped was his illegal use of church funds for his own personal use and for taking care of his kids.

He writes:

Zion is about God’s Family. It is about God’s Church. For 6,000 years, God’s people have been rejected, ridiculed, and persecuted by the world. That time has now come to an end! God has begun to intervene and He will now execute His judgment upon an unbelieving world. That judgment begins with the Church and will continue on with His judgment upon the whole world. 

Although I mentioned in a recent sermon about other translations of this verse in Isaiah 34:8, it would be good to repeat some of those here. “For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of recompense, for the cause of Zion” (Amplified Bible). “This is the time when the Lord will rescue Zion and take vengeance on her enemies” (Good News Translation). “For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause” (NIV). “The Lord will have a day of vengeance, a year of revenge in defense of Zion” (God’s Word Translation).

 The failed prophet continues on with his assertion that this "day of the Lord" will be a time that the scattered Armstrongites who are "true believers" will all be brought together (63,000 of them) under Weinerdudes glorious reign.

The “Day of the Lord” is described in this verse as a matter that focuses on the “cause” of God’s own Church. The Church was scattered after the apostasy in December of 1994. It will now be at this time that God will step in to reverse the scattering and restore His Church once again. There was only a very small group whom God brought through the scattering. God preserved a tiny remnant who continued on as His Church, doing His work. This remnant of the Church of God, spiritual Zion, now finds itself in this time period when God will make His people “to stand” in the sight of others, for God will reveal that all the prophetic events about which they (those in the Church) have warned and taught are now to come to pass. 

Then he wants all of you  that have rotten attitudes to know that his god is going to change your bitterness so much so that you will come running back to Ron's true church.

Changing the attitude of mankind is what the Day of the Lord is all about, and that is what God is setting in motion to address and accomplish. God will work with the attitude of those in the Church that was scattered after the apostasy, and He will work to change the attitude, that exists toward Him, of this world. By an ever increasing degree, as we move forward through this period of time, God will make His people to “stand.” He will make His truth, His prophetic pronouncements, and His true Church to “stand” in the sight of this world

In spite of this, Weinerdudes prophetic announcements continue to be set up on and mocked by bitter angry people out to destroy his good name and work.  Damn the Internet for allowing that dissemination to go forth!

We are now nearly three weeks into the “Day of the Lord.” God’s Church stands at a historic moment in time. Beginning on December 14, 2008, God began a final end-time work through His two witnesses. As with all whom God has sent, these two have been met with great ridicule, hatred, and mockery. 
 

In the age of this 21^st Century, the ability to disseminate such hatred and ridicule has been multiplied a thousand-fold over past centuries. Technology enables printed media, radio, television, and the unbridled use of the Internet to malign God’s word for mankind and the servants who carry it. It is that spirit and attitude being expressed against God that He is going to make bow down low before Him.   

In this end-time, God has magnified and made manifest the kind of disdain, hatred, and haughtiness that mankind has displayed against Him for the past 6,000 years. The Eternal has done so in order to magnify the very reason why He is going to fulfill His word concerning this “day” we have entered. It is God’s “day” to vindicate His name, His word, His Church—all who serve Him.

For several years now Ron has been hurling curses at all those who mock him.  He says that his mockers will die  horrible painful deaths with cancer and other disease eating them from the inside out. 

In light of his curses showed upon us all, he now says that we should all be prayed for.  Why the change of heart Ronnie?

It would be good at this point to remember what was stated in the most recent sermon. We are to pray for those who have engaged in activities against us, who have participated in ridicule and shown disdain toward us. We are to be of a forgiving attitude and remember we were once in those shoes and God has forgiven us. The expression of “but by the grace of God, there go I” is one to embrace and remember. Spiritual Egypt is a powerful force in this world and the “good news” we proclaim is about deliverance from the bondage of Egypt—when all are freed and blessed to serve God as “one” together. 

Then he announces that he and his wife's job as the two witless witnesses is not over, ignoring the fact that he said on May  28th that it was over.  Oh wait, now they are prophets and apostles.  Ho hum....

As it has already been made clear in sermons, the work of fulfilling a role as God’s two witnesses ended on May 26, once the prophesied 1260 days was complete. However, their witness continues on into the “Day of the Lord.” These two continue on as prophets and an apostle doing the work that God has given them to accomplish in this final period. That which they stood for during that 1260 days was contained in the book, 2008 – God’s Final Witness. They are the focus and representation of the message of that book.

Ronnie now realizes he needs to shift gears since he is going to prison.  Ronnie wants you to know he no longer has to find fault with his detractors but is to love and pray for their prosperity.  Yeah right.

All of us have suffered as we have entered this final era of the “Day of the Lord.” It has not been easy to shift gears and make a hard right turn in order to follow God into a new “day” that lasts from Pentecost to Pentecost. We have shared in this pain and suffering together, yet we are blessed to take the “high road” that lives the way of God toward all others. That is priceless and noble in the eyes of God. We do not have time to find fault with others, nor to be of a wrong spirit toward anyone who might be seen as the source of some of our pain, but instead we are to practice God’s way, which is one of mercy, genuine forgiveness, and love toward others.

Ron closes with this:

As I finish this post, I think of those I long to see freed from the captivity of spiritual Egypt. I think of the 63,000 who will soon be brought back into one Body. I think of those who are in my community—those who like us and those who do not, for once we are all brought into unity with God, then true peace and God’s love can be shared together in a new age that is almost here. 

Translation:  "As I finish this post, I am thinking of Bubba my new boyfriend cell mate."

As for the 63,000 COGgers soon to return to his fold, I can emphatically state that this will NEVER happen!  This is just one more of Weinerdudes lies. That is one prophecy that will never come to pass.