Tensions at a Mississippi church ran high during one Sunday service when an elderly congregation member was forcibly dragged from the sanctuary by law enforcement after she was banned from the house of worship.
Exclusive video obtained by WLBT shows two deputies dragging Allie Thompson from Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church on Father’s Day.
“I was wrestled to the floor. One got my right arm. Twisted it. I said, ‘No, you’re hurting me!'” Thompson recounted.
Sheriff’s deputies had to be called to Mt. Olive because Thompson violated a court order that banned her from the church. She showed up to the Father’s Day service anyway.
Scott County Sheriff Mike Lee stated that his deputies did everything they could to encourage Thompson to leave willingly. After she kept refusing their requests, they physically removed her from the sanctuary.
Thompson and six other members received court-ordered letters prohibiting them from stepping onto the church campus in October 2024.
Church leaders filed a restraining order and preliminary injunction against Thompson and those other congregants, alleging they verbally and physically assaulted a deacon last September.
The court documents reportedly allege that the members also threatened the pastor, the first lady, and other church members.
But Thompson denies any involvement in the incident and filed a statement to the church lawyer asserting her innocence.
“All the preachers that have been here and gone, if you get in touch with them, they will tell you that I have been a faithful warrior. Nothing but welcoming greeting guests as they come in. They would tell you that,” Thompson said.
Thompson said she and other members have been unhappy with the church’s current pastor, Charles Bell, claiming he ignored church bylaws to institute new committees and won’t seek counsel from the church’s oldest and most faithful members to make important decisions.
“He called himself appointing a finance committee. The church did not vote on that. We have bylaws and rules that we govern by,” Thompson remarked. “Why doesn’t he include my husband, who is the oldest man and deacon of the church. He makes decisions without his knowledge.”
The church’s longtime Sunday school teacher, Addie Johnson, said her position was also impacted.
“I am the Sunday school teacher here. Mr. Johnson came in this morning and told me his pastor asked him to teach the Sunday School lesson, and he’s taking it over. I was not informed,” Johnson said.
Thompson said the congregation will soon hold a vote to decide whether she and the other banned individuals can remain members of the church.
