Man confesses to murder after he turns his life over to Christ and feels convicted
A sheriff in Mississippi said that a 37-year-old man walked into his office and confessed to killing a 48-year-old man three years earlier in Alabama. James Eric Crisp felt convicted to confess his crime after having a life-changing encounter at a Christian discipleship program.
Crisp, of Gattman, confessed to killing Roger Taylor from Sulligent, Alabama, who had been missing since March 2019, and getting rid of his body, Monroe County Sheriff Kevin Crook told WCBI.
Crisp was then charged with manslaughter, and received a $150,000 bond Thursday, Magnolia State Live reported.
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Crisp, who had previously been arrested for drug-related charges and was an addict at the time of the murder, said he killed Taylor on March 10, 2019.
Days later, Taylor's truck was discovered but no evidence was collected at the scene. At the time he was believed to be a missing person.
Crisp later became a resident at a Christian discipleship program called “God’s House of Hope” and turned his life over to Christ.
“By his own testimony, he got saved three years ago, was in a recovery center, we sent him there, he is now a teacher and preacher in that program,” Sheriff Kevin Crook was quoted as saying.
“He made the decision to risk his physical freedom in order to re-gain his spiritual freedom and hopefully help bring closure to this case for the sake of himself and the Taylor family,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement, according to Daily Beast.
“We are glad for Mr. Crisp to get this off his chest so that he might be able to continue to do ministry wherever the Lord has planned for him, but this does not close the case for us,” the sheriff’s office added. “Investigators for MCSO will look at this new evidence and determine if there should be any other charges or new suspects.”
In 2019, Crisp had been part of a drug ring and was jailed after the sheriff’s deputies seized more than 200 grams of methamphetamine, thousands of dollars in cash, ecstasy pills, marijuana, and a rifle and handgun, along with drug paraphernalia, the Daily Mail said.
Crisp was quoted as saying he decided to turn himself in after he found it difficult to keep his secret while preaching about the freedom found in Christ.
On Facebook, a woman suggested that God’s House of Hope remove his photo from their page, but the treatment program responded by saying, “No ma’am, we won’t be changing our picture! We are beyond thankful for the confession this man made, God is in this story!”
