wfn.org | Washington state pastor charged with perjury

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

May 18, 2000  News media contact: Thomas S.
McAnally·(615)742-5470·Nashville, Tenn.  10-71B{244}

By United Methodist News Service

A bizarre legal case is unfolding in Washington state, where a United
Methodist clergyman has been charged with perjury.

The Rev. Daniel Keith Sailer, 44, pastor of Haller Lake United Methodist
Church in North Seattle, has been suspended while an investigation is under
way. A court date is expected to be set and a judge assigned during a May 22
hearing.

Sailer is accused of lying in a friend's assault trial to help the man
escape conviction.

Four years ago, Katie Frazier took 24-year-old Kevin Mooney to court,
charging him with assaulting her in a fit of rage when their cars almost
collided in the parking lot of a Target store. Sailer, then pastor of
Sunrise United Methodist Church in Federal Way, Wash., told the jury he had
witnessed the incident and that Mooney had acted in self-defense. The jury
believed Sailer, who said he didn't know the defendant.

Prosecutors later found that Sailer had a personal relationship with the
suspect before the trial. The two are now living together, and Mooney has
changed his name to Sailer.

Meanwhile, Frazier's life took another twist on April 27, when she and her
husband awoke at 4:30 a.m. to find their garage ablaze and smoke pouring
through their two-story house in Edgewood, Wash. Fire officials have
determined the blaze was intentionally set and estimated the damage at
$500,000.  

Ed Troyer, a spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, told
United Methodist News Service no suspects have been named.  He added,
however, that "persons of interest" in the investigation include, but are
not limited to, Mooney and Sailer.

Seattle Area Bishop Elias Galvan released a statement May 7 announcing that
Sailer had been suspended for up to 60 days from pastoral responsibilities. 

"We are conducting an initial inquiry into the charges," the bishop said.
"We intend to do three things: ...find the truth in this matter, bring it to
a just resolution and offer our prayers for everyone involved."

Preaching at Sailer's church the Sunday after his suspension, Seattle
District Superintendent Robert Hoshibata told the congregation there is a
difference between the secular and church understanding of "suspension." In
the church, he said, suspension is invoked "without prejudice."

Neither Sailer nor his attorney, Todd Maybrown, returned calls from UMNS.
However, in the May 11 issue of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer Reporter,
Maybrown said his client is the victim of a smear campaign.  

According to the article, written by Candy Hatcher, Maybrown pointed to
Sailer's ex-wife's husband, who went to detectives and triggered the perjury
investigation.  Maybrown told the newspaper reporter that Sailer passed a
polygraph test, showing he had "no knowledge of or involvement in" the fire
that destroyed the Fraziers' house.  "Somebody has tried to set him up,"
Maybrown said.

If prosecutors can prove Sailer lied under oath to a judge and jury, he
could spend six months to a year in jail for perjury. 

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United Methodist News Service
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