The Nation - News from Sept. 13, 1989

Jurors in Charlotte, N.C., watched videos showing the opulent life style of PTL founder Jim Bakker, including a 4,000-square-foot suite in a hotel at the PTL ministry’s Heritage USA theme park and retreat at Ft. Mill, S.C. The video tour was conducted by James Taggart, Bakker’s former interior decorator, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison and fined $500,000 last week for tax evasion while at PTL. Taggart described gold-plated swan bathroom fixtures, antique beds and mirrored walls in the bedroom. Prosecutors say Bakker, who is charged with 24 counts of fraud and conspiracy, used nearly $4 million in ministry funds to finance a lavish life style. U.S. District Judge Robert Potter threatened to jail Bakker for the remainder of his trial because Bakker had failed to report to his probation officer for a weekly report on medication he is taking. Potter relented after defense lawyer Harold Bender said he--not Bakker--was responsible for violating the judge’s order.