By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Wednesday, April 15, 2026

An embezzlement case against once-popular polemics blogger Jordan Daniel “J.D.” Hall, who served as pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church in Sidney, Montana, has been dismissed, and his court files sealed after he successfully fulfilled a deferred sentencing agreement, court records show.

Hall, who was removed as lead pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church in Sidney, Montana, due to allegations of prescription drug abuse, domestic violence and embezzling money from his church in 2022, entered a nolo contendere (no contest) plea to the charges and was ordered to pay restitution in 2024 as part of the deferred sentencing agreement.

In a March 3 order, Richland County District Judge Olivia Rieger said she found “good cause” to allow Hall to withdraw his nolo contendere plea, dismiss the charges against him and seal the case files from the general public.

“All records and data relating to the charge are confidential criminal justice act information as defined by 44-5-103, MCA, and public access to the information may be obtained only by district court order upon good cause shown,” Rieger’s order states.

Days after the order, Hall reiterated to The Christian Post that he never pleaded guilty to any of the allegations made against him, despite media reports at the time they emerged.

“In the state of Montana, as in many states, a deferred imposition of sentence does not result in a conviction — not even a ‘temporary conviction.’ My record does not have to be expunged. There’s nothing to expunge,” he said. “A conviction is not being removed; rather, charges have been dismissed. … I did not plead guilty.”

Hall, who was well-known for his scathing criticisms of Christian leaders on his now-defunct polemics website Pulpit & Pen and later Protestia, was ordered by a local court in 2024 to apologize to his church as part of the deferred sentencing agreement filed in September that year.

“It’s with my deepest regret and full admission of my own personal failures, and to be clear, sins, that I have deeply hurt the church I loved and formerly served for so long a time,” Hall noted in his court-ordered apology at the time. “I pray that resolution of this issue might bring healing and wholeness with your body. As I move forward to a different, better and more quiet life, with these things behind me, I pray that you are able to move forward with your very important mission as well.”

In addition to paying restitution to his former church, Hall was also ordered to report to a probation officer, abstain from drugs and alcohol, and was prohibited from owning any weapons or entering bars or casinos for three years to avoid being designated a felon.

In June 2022, Fellowship Baptist Church alleged that Hall had been abusing Xanax and developed a dependency on the drug beyond his prescribed dosage. An elder at the church also told CP in an interview at the time that Hall’s wife, Mandy, had reported that he physically abused her and their son, so she kicked him out of their home. He was also accused by the church of “theft exceeding $10,000 by embezzlement,” according to a police report.

Fellowship Baptist Church did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CP on Tuesday, but Hall told CP that the charges made by the church against him were “made without the semblance of any meaningful investigation.”

“Had they investigated prior, they would not have filed charges. I was left to do the investigation to prove my own innocence, and I did,” he said. “I’d have gone to trial — and won — if dropping these charges required a conviction or admission of guilt. My family now begins the process of recovering our costs from those who made knowingly false accusations to the police and to the media. That’s unfortunate, but it’s necessary.”

News Source : https://www.christianpost.com/news/jd-hall-embezzlement-case-is-dismissed.html