Kriti Mehrotra
It was October 6, 2011, when everything turned upside down for a tight-knit family as 36-year-old Joanna Lynn Hunter Lewis suddenly passed away inside her Vacaville, California, home. As explored in CBS’ ’48 Hours: Joe Hunter’s Mission,’ she was a bright light for all her loved ones, a kind individual who never hesitated to help others, and a passionate woman of faith. A shockwave thus went through not only everyone who knew her but the entire community when she died, only for speculations of foul play/homicide to then also start swirling around.
Joanna Hunter Was Found in a Shocking Position in Her Closet
Joanna Lynn Hunter was born on October 27, 1974, to Patricia Hunter and Joseph Hunter as one of their two children, with her brother being Joe Hunter Jr. (‘Survivor 48’ cast member). According to records, the California native grew up in a rather religious household, which shaped a big part of who she became in terms of her morals as well as how she treated others. In fact, she even ended up tying the knot with her high school sweetheart turned Fellowship Baptist Church pastor, Mark Lewis, before evolving into a church executive/volunteer herself.
Joanna actually served as an administrative assistant, bus captain, junior leader, and Sunday school teacher at her husband’s church by 2011, all of which were roles that made her proud. Therefore, when a man dialed 911 on October 6, telling the dispatcher that Mark had rushed outside moments prior to say he had found his wife of 10 years dead and asked to call it in, it was baffling. When officials arrived at the scene – their church in Vacaville, which was also their married home – they found the pastor in a panic while the 36-year-old’s remains were in their closet. There was a note near her, and the coroner’s office later confirmed her cause of death to be suicide as she was “hanging by a terrycloth robe belt with her partially suspended feet touching the floor.”
Joanna Hunter’s Family Does Not Believe She Took Her Own Life
From the moment Joanna’s death was ruled a suicide, her family contested it owing to two reasons: they didn’t believe she would ever willingly go down that path, and her tumultuous history with Mark. According to records, even though the couple first got together during their school days, their relationship was far from sunshine and roses, as the latter was allegedly abusive as well as controlling. In fact, by 1996, she had filed to get a restraining order against him multiple times, but one was granted only after he had reportedly sent her to the emergency room following a fight. He was even charged with domestic violence in November, specifically inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or partner by strangulation, resulting in his spending some time behind bars.
Despite Joann claiming in her filings that she had been “hung up on the wall, choked, slapped, punched, kicked, thrown, and badly beaten up by Mark” on multiple occasions, she still went to visit him in prison. As per her family, he had managed to convince her that his time in prison had changed him to such an extent that he was a “born-again” Christian, yet his patterns allegedly never changed upon release. Both Patricia and Joe have long accused the pastor of controlling his then-partner’s every move, displaying stalkerish behavior, isolating her at every opportunity, and physically as well as mentally abusing her. In fact, according to their claims, all of this further escalated once they tied the knot in 2000, which they didn’t even know about until much later.
The family gradually managed to reconcile, following which Joann allegedly tried to leave her husband multiple times and often sought refuge in the safety of her parents’ home, who fortunately lived mere blocks away. “He would call constantly and hang up during the night,” Patricia once claimed. “He slashed her tires. He threw a rock through our window.” She added that Mark always managed to convince his wife to come back, and no matter how hard she tried to help her daughter or tried to make her see that she could still love him from afar, it never panned out. Hence, when the pastor contacted them on October 6, 2011, to inform them that Joann had died of suicide, their first thought was that he had harmed her because she was getting ready to leave him for good. After all, there was reportedly an open suitcase in the closet too.
After Legal Troubles, Mark Lewis Prefers to Remain Well Away From the Spotlight
Although Joann’s family has long maintained their belief in Mark’s involvement in her death, he has never officially been questioned, arrested, or charged in connection with it because it remains labeled a suicide. However, he did find himself in legal trouble in 2014-2015, following his breakup with a fellow church member named Sarah Nottingham – they had reportedly begun a relationship not long after Joann’s death. As per Sarah, the pastor allegedly still had anger as well as control issues, yet one of the worst aspects was when she found out that he had reportedly been sending inappropriate texts to other church members. They thus parted ways, only for him to allegedly begin harassing her in the same alleged way he used to his late wife.
Nevertheless, it was January 9, 2014, when everything turned upside down as a Molotov cocktail was thrown into Sarah’s home at 3:30 am while her entire family was sleeping inside. There were six people, including 3 children, in her home at the time, but fortunately, no one was injured thanks to the bottle containing the fireball not exploding to the potential estimated level. The ensuing investigations comprised Sarah naming her ex-boyfriend Mark as a possible suspect based on their alleged history, and a search of his home indeed tied him to the matter.
Mark, along with three accomplices, was arrested in connection with the offense, and he was formally charged with arson on an inhabited dwelling, conspiracy, and stalking. He initially posted a $500,000 bail while denying the allegations against him, but eventually pleaded no contest to 2 of the 3 counts against him – he pleaded to arson and stalking in January 2015. As a result, he was sentenced to 8 years in prison a month later, meaning he was released from state custody sometime in 2023. Since then, the former pastor has preferred to remain well away from the limelight.
We should mention that although an expert commissioned by the Sheriff’s office in 2023 concluded Joann’s death to be homicide, the official declaration of suicide hasn’t changed. Also, it’s imperative to note that in September 2024, a bill referred to as Joann’s Law was passed, which gives families the right to request additional investigations in death cases that they believe to be suspicious after a history of domestic violence.
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