## Facts

- James O. Bakker led the PTL ministry, which raised funds to develop “Heritage USA” and related facilities through “lifetime partnership” programs priced from $500 to $10,000.
- The partnerships were marketed as including annual lodging rights, with assurances that sales would be limited so partners could use the promised accommodations.
- Evidence showed partnerships were sold in numbers far exceeding represented limits (e.g., far more “Grand Hotel” partnerships were sold than the stated cap).
- PTL constructed only some of the promised facilities, while substantial partnership funds were used for PTL operating expenses and Bakker’s personal lifestyle.
- A federal jury in the Western District of North Carolina convicted Bakker on 24 counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy.
- The district court imposed a 45-year prison sentence and a $500,000 fine.

## Issues

1. Whether the convictions for mail fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy should be reversed due to asserted trial errors, including claims tied to pretrial publicity and evidentiary or procedural rulings.
2. Whether the offenses were “straddle crimes” requiring sentencing under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines rather than pre-Guidelines law.
3. Whether the sentencing proceeding violated due process because the judge’s religiously framed remarks created an appearance that the sentence was influenced by personal religious views or religious animus.

## Decision

- The Fourth Circuit affirmed Bakker’s convictions on all counts, finding the evidence sufficient and rejecting claimed trial errors, including challenges based on publicity and fairness.
- The court held the district court correctly treated the conduct as completed before the Guidelines’ effective date and therefore properly used pre-Guidelines sentencing law.
- The court vacated the sentence and remanded for resentencing because the sentencing judge’s religiously charged comments compromised the appearance and reality of impartial sentencing.
- The court ordered resentencing before a different district judge.

## Legal Principles

- A fraud conviction may be sustained where evidence supports a scheme involving misleading fundraising assurances and systematic diversion of funds inconsistent with representations made to contributors.
- For transition to the federal Sentencing Guidelines, courts apply the Guidelines only if the charged offenses continued past the Guidelines’ effective date; completed pre-effective-date conduct is sentenced under prior law.
- Sentencing judges may express community condemnation and consider community impact, but due process requires a neutral decision-maker.
- A sentence violates due process when remarks at sentencing create a reasonable perception that punishment was increased based on the judge’s personal religious beliefs or indignation framed in religious terms.
- When judicial comments compromise confidence in neutrality at sentencing, the proper remedy can include vacatur and reassignment for resentencing before a different judge.

## Conclusion

The Fourth Circuit left intact Bakker’s fraud and conspiracy convictions and agreed that pre-Guidelines sentencing law governed, but it vacated the 45-year sentence because the sentencing judge’s religiously framed remarks undermined due process and required resentencing before a new judge.


United States v. Bakker, 925 F.2d 728 (4th Cir. 1991)