Pastor Allegedly Skipped Key Step Before 2 Marriages: Divorcing First Wife

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A pastor at a prominent Oakland County church has left the pulpit amid allegations that he skipped an important step before remarrying — getting a divorce.

The Rev. Cornelius (Neil) Davis Jr., the senior pastor of New Hope United Methodist Church in Southfield since July 2014, said in a letter to his congregation that he “assumed a divorce had taken place” after he left his wife and children more than 30 years and promptly remarried, the Detroit Free Press reports.

A current marriage to Lela Brown-Davis has lasted more than 25 years, but his son has alleged there was yet another illegal marriage.

In July, his first wife filed a lawsuit seeking a divorce and alimony. In his letter to the congregation, Davis described a cycle of drugs, alcohol and extramarital affairs, saying the first marriage was “very rocky and unhealthy.”

“Rhythm and blues got the best of me,” he said. “My faith compels me to face this matter honestly, and I began to take steps to care for this situation.”

Another woman he married, Jaletta Davis, of Detroit, also filed divorce papers this summer. She reportedly had not heard from him since they separated in 1983. In her divorce petition, she said their 10-year-marriage ended because of “a history of abuse laid on her and her two children.”

“Respecting the wishes of my former spouse to stay away from her and the children, I disconnected with them altogether,” Davis said in his letter to congregants. “My rationale for leaving my family was that I believed I was in no condition to do anything that would be helpful.”

Jaletta Davis, who had been living on her $700 monthly Social Security check, asked for an equitable division of their property. In a court-filed response, Cornelius Davis acknowledged the couple had never divorced, but denied the allegations of abuse and said there was no joint property to divide.

Jaletta Davis died of a heart attack before the petition could move through the courts. It’s unlikely her survivors have an avenue for legal recourse, William O’Leary, the attorney representing the family, told the Free Press.

Lisa Stern, a Bloomfield Hills family law attorney, told the newspaper that neither the second nor third marriage is legally valid without a divorce from the first wife, creating some potential legal nightmares for his current family.

For example, Davis’ children would legally be considered born out of wedlock, which means he doesn’t legally have custody rights. If his current wife uses his health insurance, that could be considered insurance fraud, Stern told the newspaper.

And then there’s this:

The pastor’s daughter with Jaletta Davis, Karisa Davis of Fort Lauderdale, FL, even had to get the signature of her estranged father, who she hasn’t spoken to for three decades, to have her mother’s remains cremated. After she traveled to Metro Detroit to confront him, he reportedly donated $1,000 for Jaletta Davis’ funeral and said the issue had been “eating at him for a long time.”

Cornelius Davis replaced New Hope’s longtime senior pastor the Rev. Carlyle Fielding Stewart III last year after rising through the ranks of the church for more than 20 years. The Free Press said he previously did social work and was a U.S. Army administrator and personnel specialist, according to a now-removed biography from the church’s website.

He asked for and was granted a leave of absence, the Rev. Charles Boayue, superintendent for the Detroit Renaissance District of the United Methodist Church, told the Free Press. Boayue said the matter will be thoroughly reviewed by church officials.