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	Men Sue Former Pastor over Alleged Molestation in the 1990s By Andrew Clevenger The Charleston Gazette July 9, 2009 http://wvgazette.com/News/200907080812 CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Four men have filed lawsuits against the former pastor of Shrewsbury Church of God, alleging that he molested them in the 1990s when they were youths. In February, a Kanawha County jury convicted Sandy Martin Cook, 49, on multiple counts of third-degree sexual assault and sexual abuse by a parent, guardian or a custodian. Judge Irene Berger sentenced Cook to 20 years to 60 years in prison. Three of the suits, filed in Kanawha Circuit Court on Wednesday, were filed on behalf of men who testified during Cook's trial that they were abused by their onetime pastor when they attended his church as teenagers in the 1990s: Michael Bradley, Jose Strickland and Michael "Andy" Lewis. The fourth, David Mullins, told the Gazette in 2008 that Cook had also abused him, but his allegations were not part of the criminal proceedings against Cook. The suits also name the Church of God, a Christian denomination headquartered in Cleveland, Tenn., as a defendant. During his trial, Cook categorically denied any sexual misconduct. The suits, filed by Charleston attorney Bobby Warner, allege the church negligently exposed the boys to Cook, who is described "a sexual predator with a lustful disposition toward children." During Cook's trial, Strickland, Lewis and Bradley all described in detail how their visits with Cook started innocently, then eventually escalated to include sexual activity. "At the time, I was under the impression that that was the way a father was supposed to teach a son [about sex]," said Strickland, whose father had died in 1990. The suits maintain that the Church of God knew of Cook's "propensity of sexual misconduct on minor children" in the 1990s, yet did nothing to stop it. The suits accuse the church of conspiring to hide Cook's activities and of "using threats, intimidation, religious doctrine and coercion to ignore and prevent the abuse from being reported." The suits seek unspecified punitive and compensatory damages. Reach Andrew Clevenger at acleven...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1723.
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