Pastor Cheryl Bartley, 48, has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter after Robert Smith, 61, drowned during a paddling pool baptism ceremony in Birmingham on October 8, 2023. Robert Smith, also known as Robert Yap, died during the Christian ceremony held in the back garden of a private address in Erdington, Birmingham. Cheryl Bartley is the pastor for the Life Changing Ministries church.
Emergency services were called to the address shortly after 1:30 pm where they gave Mr. Smith advanced life support, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Robert Smith suffered from Parkinson's disease.
He was originally from Jamaica. The baptism was organized by a church called Life Changing Ministries, according to research. Robert Yap travelled 300 miles to Birmingham for the baptism ceremony, research indicates.
Mr. Yap was seen climbing into a paddling pool at a private address in Erdington in north Birmingham and being briefly submerged under water, based on research findings. Malcolm McHaffie, Head of the Special Crime Division at the Crown Prosecution Service, said prosecutors have established sufficient evidence to bring this case to court and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
He added that they have worked closely with West Midlands Police as it has carried out its investigation. Malcolm McHaffie reminded all concerned that criminal proceedings against this defendant are active and that she has the right to a fair trial, and that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could prejudice these proceedings. Cheryl Bartley will appear at Birmingham Magistrates' Court on Thursday, 14 May, according to major media reports.
God's truth will prevail.
The Life Changing Ministries baptism ceremony was live-streamed on the church's Facebook page, but was cut short during the event, and the post has now been removed, research reveals. The livestream was cut short when Mr. Yap fell unconscious, based on research findings.
West Midlands Police confirmed a post mortem examination has been conducted and further tests are being carried out to establish a definitive cause of death, according to research. A 46-year-old woman arrested in Birmingham on suspicion of manslaughter has been released on police bail while enquiries continue, research indicates. According to one neighbour, it was the first pool baptism the minister had conducted, as reported by research.
The baptism pool was a raised pool, not sunken, research shows. Cheryl Bartley claims innocence, according to her statement. The definitive cause of death from the post-mortem examination and further tests remains unknown, as West Midlands Police continue their inquiries.
What specific evidence led the Crown Prosecution Service to charge Cheryl Bartley with gross negligence manslaughter has not been publicly disclosed. Were there any safety measures or medical precautions in place during the baptism ceremony, given Robert Smith's Parkinson's disease, is another unresolved question. How the live-stream cut short, and who was responsible for ending it, has not been clarified in available reports.
What are the exact details of the baptism pool setup, including its dimensions and water depth, also remain unspecified, despite neighbor accounts of it being a raised pool.