As reported by the Courthouse News Service, the mother of a young girl that was sexually abused by a church elder, has filed a lawsuit naming several members of the East Side United Methodist church as defendants for allowing the abuser to behave like a "wolf among the sheep" in the congregation.
Of particular pain to the young girl was how she said the church handled the abuse. According to her testimony, the girl was allegedly called out for being a "home wrecker" that behaved "worse than a prostitute because at least prostitutes get paid."
Those named in the lawsuit include East Side United Methodist Church; the child's alleged abuser S.A.; church leaders and/or employees Z.Z., A.Z., R.M. and S.M.; The Zone Youth and Community Center, G2G Church, and the Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church.
The child is referred to as Jane Doe in court papers.
Doe became a part of the East Side Methodist Church, and joined its youth program, in 2010.
S.A. ran the youth program. The complaint states that S.A. was a "designated religious leader/elder and authority figure."
Both the church and Z.Z., according to the complaint, should have known or had reason to know that S.A. was a sexual predator that posed "a substantial risk on the most vulnerable members of the congregation."
The suit states, "Rather than take appropriate action to prevent or stop the sexual abuse of Jane Doe perpetrated by (S.A.), defendant Church, its agents, and (Z.Z.) through their actions and inactions allowed (S.A.) to prey upon the most vulnerable of children by allowing and encouraging him to roam freely…"
The defendants are accused of purposely hiding S.A.'s sexual abuse and attempting to defend him once allegations were made.
Both A.Z. and S.M. are named in the suit for making "affirmative acts to discredit Jane Doe among the congregation and inflict extreme emotional distress by falsely…stating that Jane Doe was to blame for the abuse…"
In his seduction of Doe, S.A. is accused of sharing "very personal things about himself and his relationship with his wife...In mid-October 2011, (S.A.) began sexually abusing Jane Doe, and he did so on multiple occasions. Many times the abuse occurred on property owned and operated by defendant Church, during events sponsored by defendant Church, and occurred substantially within the time and space during which Alvarez was authorized to act on behalf of defendant Church…"
Doe claims that Z.Z., R.M. and S.M. did not contact the authorities when they learned of the sexual abuse. The three are accused of meeting with Doe alone to accuse "her of destroying (S.A.'s) family. (Z.Z.) accused Jane Doe of having an 'affair' with (S.A.), and defendants told her that she must 'pray for forgiveness' for her immoral actions, and if she did not, they told her that she would not be forgiven and could not be accepted by God."
Damages are being sought for sexual abuse, sexual assault and battery, negligence, negligent supervision, premises liability, fraud, and emotional distress.
If you have been sexually abused by an employee of a church contact a personal injury lawyer to discuss your case. Oftentimes monetary awards can be made for your pain and suffering.