James Fortune Will Serve 5 Days In Jail For Assaulting Wife — After No Jail Time For Burning 4-Year-Old Son [Video]


When James Fortune burst onto the scene with his “I Trust You” hit in 2008, by James Fortune & Fiya, the world of Christian music and Gospel music took notice. In fact, the Fortune & FIYA’s “I Trust You” song has racked up, in seven years, more than 11 million YouTube views for one video alone that represents the song’s lyric video. Plenty of renditions of “I Trust You” can be heard as the background for church mimes and church plays that swell to a crescendo as the song sings of trusting God. Now, Fortune has a whole new challenge to continue to lean on his faith to get through.

According to ABC 13, which has video of James leaving court, Fortune pleaded guilty to the assault of his wife. The 37-year-old James, who hails from Richmond, Texas, took a plea deal on Tuesday, March 8, concerning the matter.

Fortune took the deal — which is deemed a “third degree felony charge of assault – family violence” charge — and accepted spending five days in jail along with five years of probation in addition to community service that amounts to 175 hours in total. Cheryl Fortune is James’ wife.

James must undergo a “batterer’s intervention” program in addition to keeping a distance from Cheryl as part of the conditions of the plea. Fortune has been nominated twice for Grammy Awards, and is a radio personality with hit albums.

However, it’s not the first time Fortune has been connected with violence. James reportedly hit Cheryl with a stool to a wooden vanity, and slammed his wife against a wall in October, 2014, in their Stafford house. James’ wife was heard via her victim’s impact statement in court, which urged James to get help with his anger and violence.

“I hope in all of this you get help. Serious help. Although this probation might be like a slap on the wrist, I hope you look at it as a moment to better yourself and change something within you for your future.”

Fortune didn’t comment about the charges levied against James — nor about his wife’s statement, neither did Fortune talk about a previous incident where Fortune pleaded guilty to burning his 4-year-old son in a scalding hot bath. According to ABC 13, James’ mom told Eyewitness News that Fortune wasn’t guilty, but she didn’t go into further details about her statement.

The time that Fortune pleaded guilty to burning his son with hot water was in 2002, when James again took a plea deal. That deal called for six years of probation — even though the young boy was burned on 40 percent of his body. For her part, Cheryl accepted the plea deal back then because she didn’t want to stress their three children with having to testify against their father — and the public eye that would be focused on the kids if the battle had undergone a lengthy trial.

James claimed he was disciplining his son when he burned him in hot water.

According to the lyrics on Google Play of Fortune’s popular song, James trusts in God in hard times.

“Even though I can’t see
And I can’t feel your touch
I will trust you lord
How I love you so much
Though my nights my seem long
And I feel so alone
Lord my trust is in you
I surrender to you

So many painful thoughts
Travel through my mind
And I wonder how
I will make it through this time

But I trust you
Lord it’s not easy
Sometimes the pain in my life
Makes you seem far away
But I’ll trust you
I need to know you’re here
Through the tears and the pain
Through the heartache and rain

I’ll trust you

Everything that I see
Tells me not to believe
But I’ll trust you lord
You have never failed me
My past still controls me
Will this hurt ever leave?
I can only trust you
No one else like you do

So many painful thoughts
Travel through my mind
And I wonder how
I will make it through this time

But I trust you
Lord it’s not easy
Sometimes the pain in my life
Makes you seem far away
But I’ll trust you”

Fortune can be seen in the above photo performing on the BET Celebration of Gospel on March 16, 2012.

[Photo by Frank Micelotta/Invsion/AP]

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