‘Nobody deserves that’: Victim in Chester shooting testifies in case against minister

A judge gave a Chester minister accused of shooting his mother-in-law while trying to kill his estranged wife at a Christian bookstore a $175,000 bond Thursday.

The bond issued by Judge Brian Gibbons at a bond hearing in court came despite pleas from the 82-year-old shooting victim, Annie McFadden, that she is “petrified,” and “fears for my life” if Robert Worthy, 65, is released before trial.

McFadden said in court Thursday that Worthy came to the bookstore and shot her. She claimed that Worthy shot her twice in the legs on Aug. 26. The bullets were “just flying. ... He stood over me with that gun,” she said in court.

McFadden, who uses a walker from her injuries, said in court: “Nobody deserves that – to be shot down like a wild animal.”

She added that she and her family are fearful Worthy will “get out and finish the job.”

Court testimony showed that Worthy and his wife, Vivian Worthy, are going through a “contentious” divorce. Robert Worthy owns many Chester rental properties, previous court testimony has shown, and prosecutors and the victims said in court that a money dispute could be a reason for the shooting.

Worthy, an associate minister at Union Baptist Church in Chester, had been jailed since soon after the incident on charges of attempted murder, assault and battery, domestic violence and two weapons charges. He faces as much as 80 years in prison if convicted.

Candice Lively, 6th Circuit deputy solicitor, argued against bond, saying Worthy is a threat and “the family has an extreme level of fear.”

Worthy did not speak in court Thursday, but his lawyer, Stanley Myers, has said previously in court that Worthy is innocent. In court Thursday, Myers said Worthy has no criminal record and is not a danger to the community.

Worthy “has a cloak of innocence around him,” and has a constitutional right to a bond as he prepares to fight the charges against him, Myers said.

Myers said that a bond hearing is not the place to cross-examine the “alleged victims” in the case who include both McFadden and Vivian Worthy.

Two family members of Robert Worthy said in court he is a peaceful, gentle man who has been a pillar of the Chester community and his family for decades.

This story was originally published November 2, 2017 at 6:28 PM with the headline "‘Nobody deserves that’: Victim in Chester shooting testifies in case against minister."