Group wants former pastor at Bemis Baptist investigated

By David Thomas
JacksSun
November 8, 2014

http://www.jacksonsun.com/story/news/local/2014/11/08/group-wants-former-pastor-bemis-baptist-investigated/18695781/

Clohessy

A St. Louis organization is seeking an investigation into discrepancies in statements made by Mark McSwain, the former pastor of First Baptist Church of Bemis, during a sex abuse case involving the church.

David Clohessy, director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), said Friday at a news conference in Jackson that McSwain should possibly be charged with filing a false report with the Jackson Police Department.

"Nobody should be able to lie to the police," Clohessy said. "(McSwain) either lied the first time or the second time, and he should not get away with that."

Clohessy held his news conference inside the lobby of the office building at 225 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, where District Attorney General Jerry Woodall has his office.

Asked about Clohessy's statements, Woodall said, "I'm not in position to comment on something I need to refresh myself on."

Neither McSwain, who is not listed with the past ministers on First Baptist Bemis' website, nor associate pastor John Norvell could be reached for comment.

The family of a girl who was molested by Chad Lutrell, a member of First Baptist Bemis, in 2009 is suing the church for negligence because the church allowed Lutrell to volunteer at the Vacation Bible School when the incident occurred, according to a lawsuit.

The suit, filed in Madison County Circuit Court, seeks $2 million in compensatory damages plus punitive damages, medical expenses and any other costs the court deems proper. The family is asking for a jury trial.

The suit claims McSwain was then pastor at First Baptist Bemis and allowed Lutrell to volunteer to work with children, despite knowing Lutrell had been accused of previous sexual misconduct.

"Lutrell … they knew he was a molester," Clohessy said Friday. "They failed to protect the flock."

Clohessy said McSwain initially made three claims.

"He claimed Lutrell kissed a girl on the mouth, stalked three women and touched kids inappropriately in a 2006 report," Clohessy said. "In 2009, the pastor calls the same police officer and has some inaccuracies."

Clohessy said the new report stated Lutrell kissed the girl on the cheek, not the mouth, and there was no inappropriate touching.

"Third, he said there was no stalking," Clohessy said. "He said (Lutrell) only followed one woman home. This has the feel that (McSwain) knows or suspects a lawsuit has been or will be filed, and he is trying to cover his behind."

According to the Felony Offender Information Website, Lutrell is currently on probation.

"He was a sex offender," Clohessy said of Lutrell. "But this is not about Chad, it is about the minister. We would like to see an investigation into the minister and his associates to see if prosecution is possible."