Richard W. Dortch was a former Assemblies of God

Assemblies of God

The Assemblies of God , officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 140 autonomous but loosely-associated national groupings of churches which together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination...

 District Superintendent for Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

 (1970–83) and an Assemblies of God Executive Presbyter (1971–1985). Born in Granite City, Illinois

Granite City, Illinois

Granite City is a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States, part of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area. At the 2010 census, the population was 29,849, making it the third largest city in the Metro-East and Southern Illinois, behind Alton and Belleville...

, Dortch served as a pastor early in his ministerial career, and was also a missionary to Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 (1959 – 1964) where he helped found and lead Emmanuel Bible Institute in Andrimont.

While pastoring in Alton, Illinois

Alton, Illinois

Alton is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 27,865 at the 2010 census. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area in Southern Illinois...

, in 1967, Dortch was elected as secretary-treasurer for the Illinois district of the Assemblies of God, serving until 1970. He became president of the PTL

PTL

PTL may refer to:* The PTL Club, a defunct television program* PTL Satellite Network, a defunct Christian cable network on which The PTL Club was shown* Praise The Lord, a television program on the Trinity Broadcasting Network...

 Christian evangelical

Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...

 television network in 1983, a network typically featuring speakers affiliated with the Pentecostal movement.

In 1988 he, along with other executives of PTL, was indicted on federal charges of fraud

Fraud

In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...

 and conspiracy

Conspiracy (crime)

In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...

. In a plea bargain

Plea bargain

A plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence.A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to...

, Dortch pleaded guilty to reduced charges and received eight years in prison.

Dortch wrote several books about personal integrity and restoration. Until just prior to his death he hosted a long-standing two- to three-hours prayer service called "America's Prayer Meeting" on the Christian Television Network

Christian Television Network

Christian Television Network is a non-profit broadcast television network of small owned-and-operated stations that broadcasts religious programming. It is based in Largo, Florida , and the flagship station is WCLF channel 22, which signed on the air in the Tampa Bay Florida region in 1979...

. The nightly broadcast reached 55 million households around the world.

His ministry credentials were restored by the Assemblies of God in 1991.

External links

• Leadership Journal Blind Spot July 1, 1994 Dortch's ministry credentials restored
• The Voice of Prophecy, "Praising God from the Penitentiary", October 8, 2001
• The New York Times
  The New York Times
  The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
  
  Ex-TV Evangelists Are Ousted as Ministers May 7, 1987
• The New York Times Headliners; Facing Judgment December 11, 1988
• The New York Times Bakker Aide Receives 8-Year Fraud Sentence August 25, 1989
• The New York Times Prison Sentence of Top Aide To Bakker Cut to 2½ Years April 26, 1990