If there's anything that rivals taking candy from a baby for sheer orneryness, it may be what David Twitty and his son Travis are accused of doing.

We emphasize the word "accused" here, since they -- like all suspects charged with crimes -- have a right to be considered innocent until proven guilty. But they clearly have an uphill battle in that regard, since they have 46 counts against them, ranging over a period of 12 years and based on complaints from a great many people who have come forth to tell similar stories.

The Twittys, who live in Charlotte, allegedly made a living of sorts out of walking into churches while services were in progress and scamming them by pleading for financial assistance, falsely claiming to be in dire distress. They reportedly got money by telling sympathetic members of one Moore County church that a relative had been killed in a wreck, leaving them stranded.

If convicted, they deserve to find themselves in more distress than they ever imagined for taking such cynical advantage of the Christian charity of others.