Plaintiffs in Sovereign Grace Ministries File Second Amended Complaint
May 14, 2013 in Sovereign Grace Ministries
The class action lawsuit against Sovereign Grace Ministries and a number of the organization’s pastors and leaders has been amended today. You can access the amended filing here.
But be warned: much of what has been added is very graphic and horrifying.
© 2013, Kris. All rights reserved.
Silence, because I simply cannot speak. Words will come later, probably lots of them. But now, just deep, deep prayer for victims.
John Loftness has issued a statement on his church’s website. While explaining that his attorneys have advised him not to comment on specifics, he does say the following:
Thank you for all of your prayers and words of encouragement. Please continue to pray for those involved.
I admire the courage of the victims in coming forward, especially those who have decided to use their real names. I’m not sure I’d have the guts to do that, even if I could stay anonymous.
I’m so profoundly disturbed by this. I know the men accused by one of the named plaintiffs — very well. One performs as a clown in various locations. My kids have spent nights and days at his house with his wife and kids. I’ve had to put the computer down to stop reading and scream — several times. This is HORRIFYING.
I too share acme’s horror after seeing the names…..although there is no way it can compare to the level of horror felt by a mother….praying for you acme.
I am so sorry for all the victims. May God restore the years the locust has eaten and turn your mourning into joy.
I wanted to repost this in case anybody missed it:
http://www.amazon.com/Cry-Justice-Domestic-Abuse-Church/dp/1879737914
http://theaquilareport.com/a-cry-for-justice-how-the-evil-of-domestic-abuse-hides-in-your-church-a-review/
Just wondering……
What do you think we are going to see on Challies blog this round? Silence? Another defense of SGM? Think Trueman will admit maybe he was wrong at least a little bit? I wonder if Piper will express sympathy for these poor people. How about the rest of the Gospel Coalition? Do you think there will one single word of grief for these people?
My God.
These allegations are horrific and the trauma perpetuated unthinkable. I pray God’s comfort and healing to all of the victims and their families.
On another note — why haven’t we heard of additional charges against alleged perpetrators. There are several new names in this document. Have they already been charged, arrested, or prosecuted previously?
I’m curious about something, and I don’t know how to say it without sounding like I’m trying to cast doubt on some of the plaintiffs’ allegations (because I’m NOT).
But I wonder – those of you who have been part of the churches named, those of you who know the men in question, do these claims sound like something that could have happened? Are any of you out there NOT totally shocked?
I guess what I’m trying to get at is, does this stuff sound plausible? As in, “Oh, wow, well, I always got a weird vibe from Mr. Such-and-Such, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did indeed drug little kids, dress them up in feather boas, and take their pictures.”
Honestly…I’m just trying to wrap my thoughts around these allegations. They’re just that bizarre…
Kris #11, I don’t know the people that are named in the lawsuit well enough to answer your question, but I find this quote to be relevant, from the article that 5 yrs #7 had posted, and from a book about a Pastor’s experiences with abuse. Even if very few people come forward to say “Well, I always had a bad vibe about X…” X could still have done terrible things, because often these people are highly skilled at hiding their dark sides.
Kris, I think it would be hard to say any such thing was thinkable. I know several people mentioned and the acts themselves as described are utterly horrific. What is not surprising to me at all is the secrets, the manipulation, the degrading of girls, how they put the church first; how they declared the victims sinners; how they lied about the victims, how they expressed “displeasure” when someone did the right thing etc; how they controlled people; how they expressed their “displeasure” with people and overpowered them. Sick! Bottom line is that even if you could set the abuse aside (that wouldn’t be right but just to state a point) – if you could set the abuse totally aside then even as pastors these men are SICK…. how they pastor should be enough to repulsive people.
Kris #11: I really don’t know what to think about these allegations, either. Is it wrong to pray that some of these are not true? I just cannot imagine how anyone survives the pain and humiliation described or how anyone could carry out these acts? My hope is that if thee are at all true, SGM will not try to defend, rather they will confess. If there is NO truth in them, than of course, they should defend.
Kris, after reading the book, Predators, which was recommended by Boz Tchividjian, and seeing the news of the 10-year kidnapping horror of three women, I now believe that these guys often don’t give off creepy vibes. They are master manipulators. They are skilled at targeting vulnerable victims and teaching them not to tell. They know who to pick, and not only groom their victims, but groom the parents and everyone else as well.
As Mr. Tchividjian has said, ‘being likable is not the same as being trustworthy.’
I will say that of the three perps I knew personally, not one of them gave off a creepy vibe. It wasn’t until they were arrested that I said, ‘This makes sense. I should’ve seen the warning signs.’ But I didn’t — because they were fun, outgoing, LIKABLE guys.
If you haven’t read the book, Predators: Pedophiles, Rapists, And Other Sex Offenders by Anna Salter, it’s available for about fifteen bucks on Amazon, but it’s worth much more than that if it helps you protect anyone from a perp. (I have no connection with this author, the book, or
Amazon — not trying to sell books, but to help us learn what we wish we’d known before one of these guys ever got hold of a child.
Speechless, just speechless….Jenn, I think all that is good inside of us wants to pray/to hope that some of these horrific allegations are not true. I have a hard time accepting them, yet I know there is certainly some truth [perhaps a lot of truth or perhaps 100%??]
It’s all just unbelievable (in the “I cannot believe ANYONE would do this” sense). But I’ve got to admit, these allegations coming so soon after the horrendous news reports from Cleveland–there is so much evil and darkness in mankind.
Jenn 14 —
By all means pray that some is not true! But I can’t fathom that this is all lies — not when it crosses decades, churches, male and female victims, etc. It is so bizarre that it seems it can’t be made up.
#12 Marie
And, this (#4 Accept nothing less than full, unqualified repentance.) is where PDI/SGM, CJ, Steve Shank, Dave Harvey, etc., etc., failed time and again. Herein their judgement shall be greater… Their gift of spin does not earn my trust. Additionally, those who have, are and will support (financially, etc.) these so called apostles are guilty as well, to some degree. A gifting of deceit is not what I would call apostolic authority. Hence, they are false apostles. Fruit is determined not just by what you see, but also how it is replicated. As Genesis (HS) points out, the fruit that has the SEED within itself… True humility is on the way, false humility is being exposed. Jesus Himself is doing this and will alone get all the glory. He alone is worthy, not these PDI/SGM group of posers.
Been reading here for years, really sad about everything. Was raised at CLC and not a fan at all. That said, Heather is not stable and makes others legitimate stories less crdible. Disappointing to see people that were really injured on the same level as her. This makes me not want to believe anything, even though I know several of the allegations to be true.
While everyone deserves their day in court, here are some things that I ponder, when I consider the validity of these accusations.
1) There are no accusations that Mahaney sexually assaulted anyone. If this was a conspiracy against SGM, you would go directly after the biggest name involved. The fact that the sexual assault accusations are directed at Loft., Tom., and Ric., lends credibility in my mind. Those names are “big”, but they aren’t “Mahaney”.
2) The broad range of dates, locations, and persons, lend credibility in my mind. To make us accusations in a particular time and place is one thing. To try and fabricate all of this over the course of 20 years, many individuals, and in different locations seem a bit much.
An organization I just discovered — GoodKnight.org — founded by Admiral Zumwalt and several other big public name military/government types. They identify the ABC’s of protection…these are the things perps use to gain access to children:
http://www.goodknight.org/MAP/abcsofprotection.html
A–Authority
B-Bribes
C-Crisis
D-Danger
E-Ego
F-False Caring
G-Games
H-Help
I-Idol
J-Jobs
Which named perps were arrested? I hope he gets his ass beat. And no I’m not sorry about the language.
Kris, the closest city to me ran some in depth articles in the Sunday paper back when the Catholic priests sex abuse scandal was breaking wide open.
One of them confessed to many multiple victims and was in his parish for a couple decades at least. The newspaper writer talked to many of the 500+ folks in the congregation.
They all said the same thing. He was soooo nice. Sooooo compassionate. So caring. So helpful. Such a great priest. Nobody had a clue. There were no “vibes”. He hit up over a dozen little boys for repeated sodomy and apparently there was not a shred of indication, according to long time parishioners.
I wonder about split personalities, demon possession, and how this stuff can go on. Nickname, thanks for the book recommendation.
By the way, does anybody know just how much Mahaney is charged with knowing about?
At once, appalling and incredibly sad. I am struck by these allegations. Proven true, is it impossible to think the executive committee/board of directors will continue to hide the truth and further enable these men?
4 my 2 cents, I agree that CCK Dude #19 has it right. Let’s remember the victims in prayer and continue to question – and not be put off – our pastors. (My pastor is on the board; I have questions. Lots of questions.)
I know the SGM’s insurance lawyers are running the show for the defendants. To a degree, that’s unfortunate because the course they are taking to defend only serve to muddy the water and present SGM as money-grubbing religious animals.
So very, very sad and unfortunate. Finding it difficult to “believe the best.”
@Wasthereandsad, #19: please, please, please give us more details about what you mean “Heather is not stable and makes others legitimate stories less crdible” — I assume that when you say ‘Heather’ you are referring to “Plaintiff Thompson” (“Heather Thompson Bryan”)?!?
If that is the case, Heather accounts for #56-#85 in that PDF file, and those are by far the most gruesome and horrific allegations mentioned. It includes names of people from CLC (not pastors) who many, many people know.
Are you saying that much of what ‘Heather’ has to say is less than credible / less than believable??
Don’t get me wrong: there is plenty of other bad stuff. But if the outrageous stories told in #56-#85 are suspect, I actually can believe the other stuff more (if that makes sense?)
As bad as it is, this may be the day we have all been waiting for…vindication and justice are near. One of these men used to babysit my nephew, I think. I wish I could say it is worse than I thought, but usually where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Perhaps a judgement will help the victims get some healing. I never thought I would see this day when I left in 1996. Heartbreaking for these victims.
I don’t think that anyone who would’ve gone through even a fourth of what ‘Heather’ went through would be of stable mind. Just reading it made me sick. Imagine this being you.
was #19: is it possible to avoid commenting on the credibility of any of the alleged victims?
KWIM: I don’t disagree .. but I got the sense from Wasthereandsad in #19 that he/she knew Heather and even before the details of these allegations came out, he/she felt that Wasthereandsad was not credible.
I hope that Wasthereandsad fills in the details about what he/she meant by that.
Marie, but Wasthereandsad knew Heather (or claims he/she did) — they went to CLC together .. perhaps they even grew up together! If that is the case, then I think Wasthereandsad can give their personal experience with Heather, the victim — no??
Do you remember much from when you were three? I can’t stand Loftness, but this is completely incongruent with anyone else’s account of him. I can be critical of anyone, just like you can be. I’m typing with a phone so excuse the brevity. I’ve heard Heather make outlandish claims that should have involved criminal prosecution where their wasn’t any. All this is sad, and personally I think it diminishes other witnesses credibility. She clearly chose to not be anonymous, im not questioning anyone that is. I think this is the beginning of the end of the entire suit. I was honestly on board until tonight.
#19, WasThereAndSad: Hello, and welcome.
Regarding your comment about the instability of one of the plaintiffs — many people who’ve been through that kind of trauma would exhibit instability. I don’t know this person, but in my view, such instability might actually give more credence to allegations, not less. Anyone who has been through such abuse has every reason to be unstable. These victims have been through trauma that destroys the ability to trust anybody or anything for years, if not forever. Their ability to enjoy life has been stolen from them. Thankfully, we have a God who heals, but it seems nearly impossible to me for any of these victims to have come through psychologically unscathed.
Thanks.
Trying not to be a big jerk about this, Kris can you help me, or Jim from Tefuge, but I thought that criticizing any lawsuit victims should be off limits. There are a few people I grew up with that I would not believe if they were in a lawsuit. I have empathy for was’ reaction…but I am worried about hurting the credibility of the plaintiffs. And I am soo sorry for the plaintiffs
Kris 11
I am acquainted with almost every person mentioned in the document, and we were present at all the church-related events where the alleged incidents occurred. I do know the CLC men better than those from Ashburn or Fairfax but, I don’t know all of the children involved.
As shocked and grieved as I am by the horrific details of the accusations, I believe they could have happened and been covered-up, much as has been described. And, if so, I hope the police get involved.
Although the men who are mentioned were highly active at CLC and church and school events, we never heard about any of these acts when we were members during those years. Except for the sudden disappearance of Nate Morales, none of the others seemed to pull-back from ministry at CLC, in any noticeable way, during those years.
Our children regularly watched the puppet, clown and balloon shows put on by two of the accused. They knew all of the men who are mentioned and one taught them a Bible class. Each of them (aside from Morales) as far as I know, continue to be praised and affirmed, at CLC. In fact, they are among the mostly highly regarded pastors and members in the history of that church.
So, I can imagine a small child being afraid to accuse any of them in any way, to their parents or, other leaders, out of embarrassment or, fear of not being believed.
Still, the events that have to do with discipline need to be further explained to make more sense to me. I never heard of students being spanked bare-bottomed by the principal. That doesn’t mean it didn’t happen but, maybe a former student can confirm it.
For these events to happen, it does seem like the opportunity was there. Those men had access to many children in all those settings, over all those years.
As I read the document, I found myself frequently thinking, as awful as it all is, it could have happened, just as they say. And, I also think there are many more cases that have not been exposed. I know some myself. Certainly, the cover-ups sounded exactly like the cover-ups we witnessed those pastors do over the years, in other cases they wanted to exert control.
WasThereAndSad: We were posting at the same time. At this point, nothing any plaintiff or defendant has been tested in court, and it’s too early to pronounce judgement, especially if such judgement is based on the personalities of the plaintiffs or defendants.
I remember very clearly things that happened when I was two and three years old, and have described things to my mom that were never talked about around me. She was astonished that I remembered.
One of my offspring remembers specific events from the time he was a year old that he was never told about, yet he has described them in detail.
Yet, some people I know can’t remember what they did or how they felt in high school. Memory is an interesting thing. Some victims block things out. Other victims wish they COULD block things out.
In the abuse case of an acquaintance, not at all related to SGM, the abused child acted out in sensual way for years, long before the abuse came to light, and long before she should’ve known of such things. At first, the people involved thought she was abused because she behaved in a grossly sensual manner — in other words, they thought she asked for it. But when the truth came out, it was clear that the abuse caused her to be sexually knowledgeable far beyond her years.(Please note: children who are younger than the age of consent never truly ‘ask for it’ — they are groomed, set up, and abused, even if they appear to be willing participants.)
Victims are not always likable and attractive, but that does not make them any less victim. Perps, on the other hand, are often likable.
Think of every case we’ve seen on TV. Friends, neighbors, and relatives of perps say, over and over again, ‘He’d be the last person you’d suspect. He was such a nice guy. Everyone thought the world of him…he’d do anything for you…’
Sometimes, even in the courtroom, the perpetratos are more attractive than the victims. Sadly, some of them have gotten away with murder because they are so good with people. I know I’m blowing the same horn over and over again, but please, read the book “Perpetrators” by Anna Salter. Thanks.
Why would Heather going thru a period of rebellion when she was a teen mean that she is unstable now?
Ellie: “…Heather going thru a period of rebellion…” — what? where did that come from? does “making outlandish claims” (Wasthereandsad’s statement in #31) equate to “period of rebellion”?!? I feel like I missed something. Did you read something somewhere else??
Kris asked if any mentioned in the lawsuit would sound plausible….one of the mentioned is Mark Hoffman, the details beyond comprehension in the lawsuit…read his clowning biographay and his self described desription of children…..do you think it weirrd he is a clown for 25 years focusing on children and he also is described in this lawsuit???
http://www.aboutfacesentertainment.com/newsletters/2011/December
To piggyback on post #35……Those of you in MD heard about the dude in West Laurel who just shot his wife and daughter (and tried to kill his son). No one saw it coming, no one knew of any problems with the family….nothing.
Pray….and wait.
For several years I’ve thought that it’s a good policy in your family to not have sleepovers nor allow your children to go to ANY. If that policy is in place then you don’t need to pick and choose who they can sleepover with or have over to your house. It’s a hard and fast rule that the children will know to not even ask about. We just never know, do we?
Another thing is facebook. Kids say ‘only my friends can view my fb’ But no one knows who is looking over the shoulder of the friend who’s viewing, or who looks while you go away for a few minutes. It could be a father, brother, uncle, mom’s boyfriend. Don’t assume anything. Protect innocent and not-so-innocent kids even as you endure protest and do so at all cost.
Praying for victims and for truth to prevail.
Children just don’t lie about sexual abuse. I would tend to believe any young person because of that fact.
Heather gave her testimony a couple years ago & told about when her Dad got a non-pastor job & her Mom went to work, & how she was in a whole different world than she was used to and about how she rebelled for a while. She told how her parents loved her through it all including thru some very hard times. She turned back to the Lord & talked about loving on our prodigal kids.
The link in #38 pointing to the clown bio of one person named in the suit:
Oh, gosh. If I’d read this without knowing he was a defendant, I’d still have gagged. Patting himself on the back and dissing those he deems less talented. Touting his ‘gift of discernment.’ This is one of those SGMese / Christianese things that drives me nuts. I understand it as the gift of discernings of spirits — being able to ascertain whether a spirit is a good one or bad one. Being able to read people is what this clown says is the gift of discernment. People like to say gift of discernment when what they really mean is wisdom gained through experience or even the leading of the Holy Spirit.
And then to add insult to injury they pronounce it ‘dizernment.’
I don’t know if this man is an actual perpetrator or not; but I can’t imagine the Holy Spirit giving the gift of discernment to perps who have great people-reading skills that help them identify vulnerable victims. Being street-smart isn’t the gift of discernment.
I do understand being skeptical of allegations. In my own life, an acquaintance once falsely accused someone of molestation, putting that family through the worst kind of hell. It was ten years before she admitted that she had lied. However, the investigators in the case were savvy enough to see the problems with her tale, and the man was not prosecuted, though there were months of terrible accusations and uncertainty.
According to Boz Tchividjian’s info (and I’m not looking at it, but remembering it) there were some high profile cases in the 70’s (or 80’s in which some young children were misled or coached by investigators, and false accusations were made and people wrongly convicted. Since that time, there has been much research and development of investigative techniques. The detectives and and attorneys who deal with this kind of horrific stuff have become much more educated in how to (forgive me) discern if allegations are truthful.
There are parts of this lawsuit that I wonder about, but I do not know what the attorneys know. And at this point, I believe they’re good enough at their jobs to figure out what is credible and what is not.
Tonight, with a heavy heart and many tears, I am praying most especially for those who have been injured; but also for all who have been accused; all who have covered up; all who have committed abuses; the attorneys on both sides; and the judge who will need the wisdom of Solomon. Oh, Lord, help us all.
sorry to interrupt this thread…but I just wanted to pass on that I noticed today the Frederick Md. church has left SGM…I know it still has deep ties to them but now I have hope that this will somehow help those who attend there…time will tell…
@Kris
Yes, it sounds implausible, but then again how many times have you seen horrific crimes committed by people and all their friends/family were totally in disbelief that they could have done it?
One of the things I noticed is there is a lot of potential for correlation by witnesses, such as the boys being brought in to beat a child, or another child being abused in the same room at the same time. If this were just made up, I don’t think those details would have been included. I hope those people have the courage and integrity to testify.
This is really horrifying, how can any church continue to be associated with SGM? Any SGM church/former SGM church should be disclosing this information to their congregation and checking to see if anything like this happened at their location.
@JoshuaHarris – The second amended complaint requires action on your part, that is clear. Will you act?
Psalm 125
1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
3 The scepter of the wicked will not remain
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.
4 Lord, do good to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
Today,I feel like my wings have been clipped. I probably shouldn’t have read the amendment because of the abuse that occurred in my childhood/teen years. I cannot speak for the abused but I think there are common threads that run thru each situation.While you being abused you usually do everything you can to appear normal. You believe the lie that it is your own fault and the shame weighs you down. The emotional energy that it takes just to get up in the morning and pretend that everything is OK takes it’s toll. I didn’t really “learn” to sleep until my college days. Something as normal as sleep is stolen. There is still so much shame associated with having been abused. Who would put their name on that without good reason. You are never looked at the same way once you speak up. We gawk at the one who does the abuse, the one being led away in cuffs,but we turn our eyes away from the abused.
Something I always find interesting is that when someone says that they have been abused we so quickly question them – we doubt their story. I have a hard time not believing that these crimes happened. I can’t pray that they didn’t happen because that makes the abused liars. Would we rather that the “upright men” accused be telling the truth? Does it make us feel better to believe that those making the accusations could be lying – after all they were just “children” when they “say” it happened and those accused are “godly ” men in high places.
My prayers are with the victims. May they rise up , may they soar! May they no longer think of themselves as victims but as victorious (not just in court)!
Diego, It’s difficult to find the words…..
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
You can run on for a long time but sooner or later God will cut you down.
There aren’t any words compassionate enough for the victims and horrific enough for the perps.
I understand these are allegations. I wouldn’t want to be falsely accused, but I also don’t like questioning the victims. I don’t know anyone personally but I would have to think that if I endured any of the things mentioned I might exhibit some behavior that would make others question what was up with me. And yes I think if I had been through any of this I would remember it vividly with horror.
All of this is too horrible and I wish it weren’t true. Again I don’t know any of the perps either but the patterns described in how everything was handled ring so true with the sgm way of doing things. That is why it is believable to me.
Someone had posted the link to Mark Hoffman’s clown page. Since we never know what might get edited or pulled down, here’s what is currently up there as his bio:
As several people have said, we don’t know whether or not Oops the Clown is or is not guilty of any of the allegations in the amended complaint. But I have to agree with Nickname – if I’d read that bio without knowing another thing about the guy, it would have set off my creep-o-meter big time.