STATEMENT FROM THE BOARD OF BISHOPS CONCERNING THE SUSPENSION OF STACCATO POWELL AS AN ACTIVE BISHOP OF THE AME ZION CHURCH
January 7, 2021
This serves as official notification that pursuant to our authority granted under Paragraph 128 in the Book of Discipline, the Board of Bishops announces the immediate suspension of Staccato Powell as an active Bishop of the AME Zion Church pending the outcome of a trial to be convened at the 51st Session of the General Conference in July 2021.
The gravity of this action weighs heavily upon your Board of Bishops and we grieve that the severe infractions and maladministration of Bishop Powell have left us with no alternative to this action. Beginning in 2017, complaints were submitted to the Board of Bishops that Bishop Staccato Powell was taking actions inconsistent with the AME Zion Church Discipline. These actions included but were not limited to the demand that pastors amend church deeds so that the Western Episcopal District, Inc. be named as a titleholder. In most cases, this action was taken without the proper and required votes of local church Trustees, Quarterly Conferences, and/or Membership Meetings. The Board of Bishops received information that local congregations were not made aware of the transfer of deeds or the mortgaging of their church properties until notifications of pending foreclosures were received.
During the Board of Bishops Meeting in February 2018, and at a subsequent meeting with the President of the Board of Bishops, as documented in a letter to Bishop Powell dated August 7, 2018, he was directed to cease the practice of having deeds altered, mortgaging local church properties, to relieve the debt that was improperly placed upon the churches, and to immediately begin the process of restoring deeds to language consistent with the Book of Discipline. (see AMEZ BOD Pars. 398, (2016) and the Judicial Council Decision No. 2017 – 38 After receiving additional reports and complaints of continued violations, the Board of Bishops on July 22, 2020, appointed a legal affairs committee and an audit committee to investigate the extent of legal and financial liabilities.
Upon the recommendations of these committees, a law firm and an accounting firm were retained by the Board of Bishops. We also communicated with the membership of the Western Episcopal District to update them on the status of their complaints. Based upon the initial findings of the legal team and the accountants, reported to the Board of Bishops on August 7, 2020, a meeting in which Bishop Powell participated, the Board voted to relieve Bishop Powell of all responsibilities as Presiding Bishop of the Western Episcopal District due to his continued and expanded violation of church law and the explicit directives of the Board of Bishops. He remained an active member of the Board of Bishops.
Subsequently, evidence has been presented to the Board of Bishops that Staccato Powell has continued unauthorized activities and communications in an attempt to obstruct efforts to both investigate and bring resolution to these matters. His representatives in court have taken positions in opposition to the position of the AME Zion Church’s best interests, including asserting to the court that the corporation he established has the right to sell churches within the Western Episcopal District.
During the ongoing investigation and pending court actions, we must be prudent in sharing details of the significant scope of the violations committed by Staccato Powell; however, the following items are noteworthy:
1. Not only did Bishop Powell fail to uphold his vow to safeguard and adhere to the law of The AME Zion Church with regard to the sale, mortgaging, or transfer of church property; he actively engaged in acts of intimidation, manipulation, and deception in order to illegally have local church deeds altered and property transferred to a shell corporation, avoiding accountability.
2. Proceeds from mortgages obtained upon AME Zion Churches exceeded $14 million dollars of which the accounting for more than $8 million remains unreported. These transactions have the potential to place enormous debt upon our denomination.
3. Through his representatives, Bishop Powell has represented to the bankruptcy court that he has both the willingness and the right to sell church property obtained by his fraudulent actions to settle the outstanding debt of the Western Episcopal District, Inc.
Therefore, in consultation with our attorney, it has become painfully clear to the Board of Bishops that Staccato Powell’s continuing status as an active Bishop in the Church creates significant legal and moral damage and that further action is both urgent and essential to severe him from any and all authority to speak or act on behalf of the AME Zion Church.
During the term of his suspension, Bishop Powell will: 1. Be immediately enjoined from operating in the office of the Episcopacy. He shall not speak or act with ecclesiastical or administrative authority within or beyond the confines of the AME Zion Church.
2. Be prevented from participating in Board of Bishops Meetings, Board of Trustees of our educational institutions, or any position that is bestowed upon him by virtue of his status as a Bishop.
3. Have no standing to represent The AME Zion Church in any ecumenical or civic association and must communicate such to any current affiliations forthwith. 4. Receive the current salary as an active Bishop until a final deposition of his status is determined by the General Conference.
We call upon all members to pray earnestly for the Board of Bishops and our beloved Zion. We also ask that you pray for Bishop Powell and his family. Please pray for the clergy and laity of the Western Episcopal District and Bishop Crenshaw as he provides episcopal oversight to the area.
Yours in Christian Love, The Board of Bishops of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
Bishop George D. Crenshaw, President
Bishop George E. Battle, Jr., Senior Bishop
Bishop Kenneth Monroe
Bishop Darryl B. Starnes
Bishop Dennis V. Proctor
Bishop Mildred Bonnie Hines
Bishop W. Darin Moore
Bishop Seth O. Lartey
Bishop Michael Angelo Frencher Sr.
Bishop Hilliard Dogbe Bishop U.U. Effiong
Bishop Joseph Johnson
Bishop Marshall H. Strickland
Bishop George W.C. Walker, Sr.
Bishop S. Chuka Ekeman, Sr.
Bishop Nathaniel Jarrett
Bishop Warren M. Brown
Bishop Louis Hunter (deceased) | 
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