SC Sheriff: Church Hid Sex Offender’s Access to Children
By Kim Roberts - Posted at MinistryWatch:
Published July 22, 2026
Three leaders at a South Carolina church and its affiliated school have been criminally charged after authorities allege they concealed that a registered sex offender was volunteering at the church and interacting with children.The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office held a news conference Monday, July 20, to explain the investigation and the charges being filed.
Sheriff Carter Weaver said his office interviewed church officials July 12 after Warren Perry’s role at the church and school — and his contact with young children — was brought to law enforcement’s attention.
Perry, a registered sex offender, worked in a custodial role for Pawleys Island Community Church and Pawleys Island Christian Academy.
Don Williams is the former pastor of Pawleys Island Community Church, and his wife, Jenny, was a paid church employee. Weaver also described Don Williams as the owner and operator of the church and school. Nikki Howard was director of Pawleys Island Christian Academy.
Don Williams and Howard were charged with obstruction of justice, unlawfully placing children at risk, and conspiracy. Jenny Williams and Perry were charged with obstruction and conspiracy.
Weaver said church officials told him they had taken measures to ensure Perry was not around children, but he said those statements were “not true.”
Perry was arrested for violating his probation. He was charged in 2020 with two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, and in 2023 received a 10-year sentence, suspended to five years’ probation. Weaver said Perry began working at the church and school in 2020, not long after his arrest.
