Attorney seeks Hall bail money

Attorney Robert J. Moon of Baker City has filed a motion in Deschutes County Circuit Court to obtain the money Shane Hall's mother Sue Hall used to bail her son out of jail when he was arrested for molesting his daughter's 13-year-old babysitter.

Hall, formerly "pastor" of Christ's Church of New Beginnings in Sisters, was convicted of that crime last month and sentenced to 18 years in prison.

According to the Deschutes County District Attorney's Office, the motion was filed on behalf of Sue Hall and the money is intended to be used by the attorney to research a basis for Hall's post-conviction release.

The original bail amount was $30,000, but the DA's office reports that that figure has been significantly reduced by a court judgment requiring Hall to pay approximately $5,800 in child support for an out-of-wedlock child in Eugene and some $16,826 in restitution and compensatory fines.

The remaining $7,374 would be used by the attroney to research court documents seeking a reason for Hall's release from prison. According to the DA's office, such efforts usually seek a mistake in the defendant's representation.

Hall was released from jail after his arrest in December 2005 with a $30,000 bond posted against his $300,000 bail. His mother, Sue Hall, told his church congregation that the funds came from money she and one other person had donated to the church building fund, which was under the auspices of Sue Hall Evangelistic Ministries, Inc.

The other person was later identified as a family friend named Laverne Anderson of Arizona.

Hall said at the time that she had "refunded" the donations to herself to use for Shane Hall's bond because she "believe(s) in my son."

Hall's arrest and the revelation that the building fund contributions actually belonged to Sue Hall rather than the church led to a crisis in Christ's Church of New Beginnings. Parishioners attempted to continue under a new name, but most of the congregation eventually drifted away to other churches, leaving a handful who continued to meet with Shane Hall until his conviction and imprisonment.