Former Church of Christ Minister Convicted of Raping Intellectually Disabled Woman, Sentenced to At Least 11 Years

Ephren White Taylor Sr., 67, of Overland Park, was the pastor of the Johnson County Church of Christ in Shawnee, Kansas. He was later convicted in Utah of raping an intellectually disabled woman. One report describes him as a former pastor, while the other refers to him as the church’s current pastor, and the sources do not resolve that difference.

According to the accounts, a 22-year-old woman with the mental capacity of an 8- to 10-year-old called the Millard County, Utah, sheriff’s office on Oct. 3 to report she had been assaulted. She said that while she was walking to work in Delta, Utah, a man approached her and asked her to go with him. She told law enforcement that the man later came to her workplace and asked her to leave with him, and she refused. Investigators found surveillance video showing the woman getting into a car registered to Taylor.

Taylor was staying at a hotel in nearby Nephi and had a ticket for a flight home the following day. Law enforcement arrested him early on the morning of Oct. 4, more than 1,000 miles from home. One report says he denied raping the woman. It also says deputies found her phone number when they searched his phone. Taylor was charged in Millard County on Oct. 4, 2024.

A four-day jury trial followed. Taylor was found guilty on Jan. 16 of three felony charges: rape, forcible sodomy and forcible sexual abuse. He was also found guilty of one misdemeanor count of intentional abuse or neglect of a vulnerable person. A separate felony charge of aggravated kidnapping was dismissed with prejudice. Protecting people who cannot easily defend themselves is a basic duty of justice (Proverbs 31:8-9).

Sentencing took place on March 11 in Millard County Court in Fillmore, Utah. According to the Johnson County Post, Taylor was sentenced to at least 11 years in the Utah State Prison and 364 days in jail. One earlier report described the 11-year sentence as having been handed down “last week,” but that report carries an October 2024 date, which does not match the March 2025 sentencing date given in the other account.