Singer, author and TV personality Juanita Bynum assaulted in Atlanta

THE CHURCH has been shocked by the news, reported widely in the American press and TV, of an alleged attack on gospel singer, evangelist, author and TV preacher Juanita Bynum. The estranged husband of Bynum, Bishop Thomas W Weeks III surrendered to Atlanta police on Friday 24th August on charges that he attacked his wife. It is alleged that Bynum was assaulted by Weeks in an Atlanta parking lot, according to police. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the estranged couple met at the Renaissance Concourse Hotel to discuss a possible reconciliation, but the talks turned violent when Weeks allegedly attacked Bynum. Officer Ronald Campbell of the Atlanta Police Department told reporters Weeks left leaving bruising "around her neck and upper torso." A hotel bellman who witnessed the alleged assault in the parking lot physically pulled Weeks away from his wife.

Weeks, a gospel artist in his own right, has in the past recorded for GosPearl Records. Weeks and Bynum were married in a televised "million-dollar" celebration back in 2003. One thousand guests were in attendance for the luxurious affair, which included an 80-member wedding party, a 12-piece orchestra and a 7.76-carat diamond ring. When asked about her all-out nuptials, Bynum commented in Ebony magazine, "This was my once-in-a-lifetime wedding, and I did it this way because I plan to stay married."