The Tennessee Court of Appeals partially reversed the lower court’s decision in Preston Garner v. Southern Baptist Convention, instead denying the SBC’s motion to dismiss citing that the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine did not apply to the defamation and false light claims. The appellate court found that these claims could be adjudicated without delving into religious doctrine, despite the SBC’s argument that the doctrine should protect them.
Preston Garner lost his employment at Everett Hills Baptist Church after the SBC’s Credentials Committee sent a letter based on an anonymous tip alleging Garner had a history of sexual abuse, specifically mentioning an old claim from another church. The court also affirmed that Garner established a prima facie case for defamation and false light, allowing the case to proceed to trial. Additionally, the SBC’s request for attorney fees was denied since the legal action was not dismissed. This case could indeed become costly for the SBC as many have anticipated.
The Southern Baptist Convention decided that it would use the standard of “credibly accused” as a basis for listing a pastor as an offender on their to-be-created database. In the case of Preston Garner, he lost his job at a local church because the Southern Baptist Convention pursued claims against him on the basis of an anonymous complaint, instead of 2 or 3 witnesses. Additionally, the Southern Baptist Convention has multiple defamation lawsuits resulting from their labeling of people as sex abusers who were not categorically accused of sex abuse or anything illegal, including Johnny Hunt and David Sills. Both of these lawsuits have survived motions to dismiss.
