By Message Staff
GRAMERCY, La. (LBM) – Louisiana Baptist church planter Checkerz Williams was arrested Feb. 12 on charges of firing a weapon the previous day at a vehicle in St. James Parish in what has been termed in some media reports as a “road rage” incident. Williams is pastor of Renew Church in Baton Rouge.
Mentor and long-time adviser Dennis Watson, pastor of Celebration Church in Metairie, expressed shock to the Baptist Message about the alleged incident and offered that he knows Williams to be a man of integrity and that he is waiting to learn all the details that might explain the disconnect between Williams’ character and the nature of the arrest.
Williams served as a campus pastor at Celebration Church’s LaPlace location from June 2011 to July 2017, before leaving to start Renew.
“I’m in daily contact with Pastor Checkerz,” Watson said. “I’m saddened that all of the publicity thus far from the secular press and the Christian press has been completely one-sided. While Pastor Checkerz has been instructed by his legal counsel not to release his side of the story at this time, it’s my understanding that there is a completely different perspective of what happened. We are praying that when all the details come out that Pastor Checkerz will be completely exonerated.”
According to a news release from the Louisiana State Police, the incident happened Feb. 11 on Interstate 10 shortly before 9 a.m., when troopers received a call from the operator of an 18-wheeler who told police the driver of a black Hyundai Sonata had been driving erratically; caused a minor crash; and, fired his handgun at the tractor trailer before exiting the scene.
The initial investigation determined that Williams was the driver, and he subsequently turned himself into authorities. He was arrested and booked into St. James Parish Jail on charges of aggravated assault with a firearm, aggravated criminal damage to property, illegal carrying and discharge of a weapon and reckless operation of a vehicle.
