Tennessee Pastor Indicted Following Child Abuse Allegations

A pastor in Tennessee has been indicted on serious charges linked to child abuse in Memphis. This comes in the wake of another pastor from the same church who was convicted for similar reasons.

The mother of one alleged victim spoke to WHBQ TV, revealing that Martinius Tyler is the second pastor from that congregation to face arrest over suspicions of sexual abuse involving minors.

She expressed deep concern, stating, “I didn’t have enough time because I don’t think there’s enough time in the world to convict someone of a crime like this.”

According to her, her son met Tyler in 2024 when he began working at Tyler’s local businesses, Memphis Obituary Company and Tyler’s Graphics and Printing Company. “He enjoyed graphic design a lot, and I would frequently take him there to help out with various tasks. He was really into it,” she shared.

In a related case, another pastor, Demarcus Smith, was charged with sex crimes involving his own son in 2025, discovered when a woman checked his cell phone.

“When I opened it, my heart broke,” she recalled, finding explicit images and inappropriate chats. Subsequent police inquiries revealed that Smith had a prior conviction related to similar charges, involving sexually explicit photos sent by a minor. He was a pastor at that time, and after serving his sentence, he joined the same church network as Tyler in 2023.

Social media activity indicated that Smith had spoken at a “clergy appreciation service” at Jordan River Missionary Baptist Church in September 2024.

On February 10, Tyler was officially charged with serious offenses, including aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor and human trafficking, with bail set at $200,000.

Meanwhile, Smith pleaded guilty to federal charges in May 2025 and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

“We didn’t have enough time,” the mother reflected. “I don’t believe there’s enough time in the world to pay for a crime like this.”