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	Woman Says Pastor Groped Her 15 Years Ago By Logan G. Carver The Avalanche-Journal December 2, 2010 http://lubbockonline.com/local-news/2010-12-02/woman-says-pastor-groped-her-15-years-ago A woman on Wednesday told a Lubbock County jury her former pastor molested her more than 15 years ago, when she was 9 or 10 years old. Terry A. Nesmith, former pastor of Faith Assembly of God, is on trial in the 140th District Court for allegedly fondling the girl in 1995. She came forward with the allegation in 2007. Nesmith, 44, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of the second-degree felony, indecency with a child involving sexual contact. Prosecutors said during opening statements on Tuesday there would be no physical evidence in the trial and all the evidence would come from the witness stand. Chuck Lanehart, Nesmith's attorney, said the state's case would hinge on the testimony of the woman, now 26, and that the evidence will show she is "not worthy of believing." Lanehart asked the woman why she waited more than 10 years to report the molestation. "Would you want to go around telling people that a man — your pastor — touched your vagina, or is that something you'd want to keep private," she said. "I chose to keep it private." Testimony from the woman, her mother and her ex-husband revealed she initially told her mother and stepfather in 2003, while preparing for her wedding. She told them Nesmith had been "inappropriate" with her when she was a child and that she did not want him to perform the marriage ceremony for her and her fiance. Her mother testified she thought her daughter was being a difficult bride-to-be and didn't follow up on the allegation. She told Lanehart she regretted her failure to act. Numerous witnesses on Wednesday, including the woman's younger brother and ex-husband, said she had lied and made up stories in the past. The woman said she finally told her stepfather, who she calls her "dad," about the alleged abuse during a phone conversation in 2003. She said she told him essentially the same thing she told jurors on Wednesday — that Nesmith groped her under her church dress and panties on multiple occasions. Her stepfather said he confronted Nesmith at the church the night the girl reported the behavior. He said Nesmith first said "I didn't do it," then "I don't have any money." The stepfather said money had nothing to with it, he testified, and then Nesmith kept repeating "What's my church going to think" and "I'm sorry." Testimony is scheduled to resume today in the 140th District Court.
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