The government is forcing him in to a position where he has to choose between disobeying God and obeying government, or obeying God and disobeying government. And normally, obeying Jesus and obeying the government go right in hand. His first obedience is to his Lord, is to his God. Pastor James could not in all clear conscience abide by his current conditions so he remains behind bars.Ĭoates will remain in custody there until at least February 24, at which time he and their lawyer, James Kitchen (with the JCCF), will appear before a Judge and seek Pastor James’ release condition appealed or modified.Ĭoates’ Lawyer said in a statement to CTV:
#Pastor james coates in jail trial
The conditions currently in place prevent Pastor James from preaching, leading worship and even setting foot inside GraceLife Church until the time of his trial which is yet to be determined. In an email to members, GLC elders also state the same:
His wife Erin shared an update, writing that the condition of his release is that he effectively does not pastor anymore. Given that Coates has no criminal record and public health violations don’t typically carry jail time, the Justice of the Peace agreed to release him on the condition that he promises to not step foot on the church property- that he does not lead worship or preach at that church until his trial.Įssentially, they’ve given him a restraining order from his own pulpit.Ĭoates refused to abide by that, and so he has been remanded until he agrees to those conditions or until the Crown prosecutor changes its mind. Pastor James Coates of Grace Life Church (GLC) in Edmonton, Alberta has been in custody since Tuesday, the end result of a month-long protracted battle with the province trying to shut them down.ĭuring the bail hearing/ show cause hearing for violating the public health order, the prosecution asked that the pastor be detained until his trial, as they view him as a menace to Albertans and to the general populace. He is the first Canadian Pastor to be jailed for holding a church service. GraceLife Church has been cited for violating health restrictions around occupancy, physical distancing and mask wearing, and has also defied a closure order.Ī three-day trial is set to begin on May 3 in Stony Plain.Īs of Wednesday morning, 1,952 Albertans had died due to COVID-19 and more than 6,200 have been hospitalized.A post shared by Erin Coates Canadian pastor remains in prison after being arrested for violating a public health order which prohibits houses of worship from gathering at more than 15 percent capacity, along with restrictions on singing, physical distance, masking, and communion services. The Alberta Crown Prosecution Service declined to comment, noting the matter is before the courts. He lost an appeal of those bail conditions earlier this month with prosecutors arguing a change would allow Coates to continue doing what got him initially charged and then jailed. He was granted bail but refused to abide by the conditions of release, namely that he abide by public health restrictions. "We are hopeful that he will finally be released from jail without conditions, and can resume pastoring Grace Life church."Ĭoates has been jailed at the Edmonton Remand Centre since Feb. "The condition that Pastor Coates effectively stop doing his job as a pastor by adhering to unscientific and unconstitutional public health restrictions should never have been imposed on him by the RCMP, or by the Court," said his lawyer John Carpay. He was facing several charges under the Public Health Act, but his lawyers now say all but one of those has been withdrawn by prosecutors and that he could be released as soon as Friday. James Coates, the pastor at GraceLife Church west of Edmonton, remains charged under the Public Health Act for holding services while ignoring COVID-19 health restrictions. An Alberta pastor jailed for breaching COVID-19 restrictions will be released from jail while awaiting trial on a single remaining charge, according to his lawyers.
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