A man who took a cross from a church lawn as a prank admits he was wrong.
LIVERMORE – Carl Harrington II says it was wrong to steal a cross from a church lawn.

But he’s not a Satan worshipper, he said, and he didn’t take it to commit a hate crime against the church.

“It was a very foolish prank,” said Harrington, 21, of Jay during an interview Tuesday. “It was wrong.”

He not only faces criminal charges and possible civil charges for a violation of the state’s Civil Rights Act, he has lost his job and been evicted from his apartment.

Harrington was charged with theft in connection with a stolen cross from the Eaton Memorial United Methodist Church in Livermore Falls and a shroud from a second cross erected in place of the original one during the week before Easter.

When police found the cross in Harrington’s apartment, it was hung sideways on the living room wall and used as a shelf. It didn’t fit in the living room any other way, Harrington said, except for leaning on the wall.

A friend had taped a computer-printed picture of convicted murderer Charles Manson on it hours before police showed up at his door, Harrington said.

A paperback book with its cover torn off, “Raising Hell: An Encyclopedia of Devil Worship and Satanic Crime” by Michael Newton, rested on the shelf. It was given to Harrington by a friend in California.

“I like to read true crime,” he said. “I like to figure out the mind of the serial killer.”

Also on the cross were Persian prayer beads, a gift from a friend; an incense holder; a Hacky Sack ball; and a Darth Vader Pez dispenser, Harrington said.

To the left of the cross on the wall were four patches he earned in the California Conservation Corps and his identification card for the corps, he said. In addition, there was a pen with peace signs on it and two little charms, a peace sign and a yin-yang symbol, on the wall near the cross.

Harrington said he’d been drinking and gone out for a walk to get some fresh air in the early morning hours on Tuesday, April 6, when he walked past the cross.

“I just seen it and thought it would be funny to take it,” he said.

He carried it back to his apartment nearby.

“We thought about bringing the cross back” to the church, he said, “but didn’t get a chance to do it.”
Spur-of-the-moment’
“It wasn’t anything against the church or religion,” he said. “It was a spur-of-the-moment thing.”

Harrington said police asked if he was satanic, and he said, “No.”

“I told them I don’t even believe in the devil,” he said.

He said when he was asked if he took the cross, “I said, I did.'”

He said he knew he was in trouble for stealing the cross but was surprised to learn he faced possible hate crime charges.

“It was a dumb thing to do,” said Brian Harrington, 19, Carl’s brother who also lives in Livermore. “It was a stupid prank that turned into more than it was supposed to be.”

Brian Harrington and two females also have been charged with theft of the shroud.

Brian Harrington said he told police that he had nothing against crosses. A lot of his friends are religious and attend church, he said, and sometimes has gone with them.

The brothers have written letters of apology to the Rev. Joseph Chamberland, the church’s pastor. Their father delivered the letters to the church. Chamberland wasn’t at the church at the time.

In his letter, Carl Harrington said he has offered to do community service to make amends.
dperry@sunjournal.com

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