Pastor Spell says neighbor threatened his faith, flock, and family

CENTRAL, La. (WAFB) – A day after bonding out of jail on a second-degree battery charge, Pastor Tony Spell publicly defended his actions and accused a 20-year-old neighbor of threatening his family before a confrontation that was caught on video.

Speaking at a news conference Wednesday, June 24, Spell claimed the young man threatened to sexually assault his wife and grandchildren and kill members of his family.

“He said, Tony, I’m going to rape your wife, I’m going to rape all your grandchildren, and the next time you go out of town I’m going to kill them,” Spell said.

Spell did not provide any audio or video evidence to support those allegations.

The allegations stem from a fight that occurred this outside Spell’s church, Life Tabernacle Church, in Central. Video of the incident shows Spell confronting the young man and threatening to break his neck before a physical altercation broke out.

The young man’s father, Scott Sherwin, said his son suffered a cut to his chin that required five stitches.

During the news conference, Spell said he believed he had a responsibility to protect his family.

“I have a duty and obligation to do what I did,” he said.

Spell’s attorney, Jeffrey Wittenbrink, also criticized Central Police Chief Roger Corcoran and the Central Police Department, claiming previous complaints involving harassment of the Spell family were not adequately addressed.

Spell said there has been a long-standing feud between his family and Sherwin’s.

“There’s certainly a failure of laws and enforcers to keep the peace,” Wittenbrink said.

Corcoran rejected those claims.

“That’s not true,” the chief said.

According to Corcoran, police records show five reported incidents involving Spell and his wife during the past four years. He said only one of those reports involved a complaint against the neighboring family.

Corcoran challenged Spell to provide additional details regarding any other complaints.

“Please give me dates and times that these calls have been made here, and we will audit our recorded system to look at that,” Corcoran said.

The chief also denied any suggestion that his department failed to properly investigate complaints.

“I would defend Mr. Spell, Mrs. Spell, their family, their kids, just as well as I would defend anybody in the city of Central,” Corcoran said.

The young man’s father denied Spell’s allegations, telling WAFB that he believes his son never made the threats described by the pastor.

Meanwhile, some community members who attended the news conference said they believe more information could emerge as the case moves forward.

“I’d like to know the truth,” said Christy Sloan, who attended the event.

Sloan said she believes the public has only seen part of what appears to be a larger dispute.

“I think there’s much more to the story,” she said.

Spell is scheduled to appear in court Sept. 15.

FROM PRISON TO THE PULPIT

In his first church service after being released from East Baton Rouge Parish Prison, Pastor Tony Spell spoke from the pulpit, alluding to the confrontation as “domestic terrorism.”

The service, held Tuesday night at Life Tabernacle Church on Hooper Road, was streamed and posted to Pastor Spell’s Youtube page and the Central City News page.

Pastor Spell referenced a Bible scripture from Mark 16:18 while addressing the congregation.

“In my name, they shall lay hands on the sick. And they shall recover. So today, I fulfilled the scripture. I laid hands on the sick. I don’t know how much recovery they’re going to have, but I laid hands on the sick,” said Pastor Spell, followed by applause from his congregants.

“I haven’t seen some of y’all worship that hard in years. I should have [did] that a long time ago.”

Central Police Chief Roger Corcoran released the following statement:

The Central Police Department has received calls, messages, and comments regarding the June 23, 2026, incident on Hooper Road and investigated by the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office.

The Central Police Department was not involved in that investigation, which resulted in the arrest of Pastor Tony Spell for Second Degree Battery. The investigation and arrest decision in that incident were handled by the Sheriff’s Office.

Allegations that the Central Police Department has failed to investigate complaints lodged by Pastor or Mrs. Spell are untrue. Our records reflect only 5 incidents involving Pastor or Mrs. Spell in the past 4 years, and only one of those involved a complaint against their neighbors. All calls to our department are recorded, and all persons who visit our department to make in-person complaints are captured on video. If dates and times complaints were allegedly made are provided to me, I will order an audit of our systems to investigate any claim of a failure to investigate.

For many years, and to this day, the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office has served as the primary law enforcement agency for incidents like this. We will work to support the Sheriff’s Office, should our assistance be requested, as it continues to conduct its investigation. The safety of our citizens is, and will always remain, my top priority.

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