Cornerstone Church Sued over 2008 Sexual Abuse

By Cari Wade Gervin
Nashville Scene
May 4, 2016

http://www.nashvillescene.com/pitw/archives/2016/05/04/cornerstone-church-sued-over-2007-sexual-abuse

ornerstone Church

Madison's Cornerstone Church, helmed by the controversial pastor Maury Davis, has been sued by a former member, who alleges the church's negligence led to a volunteer on the youth staff molesting him. The lawsuit, filed two weeks ago in Davidson County, asks for a jury trial and that damages over $10 million be awarded.

The abuse itself is not in question. The plaintiff is now 19, but in 2008, when he was 11, he was molested by Brian Lance Mitchell. Police charged Mitchell with aggravated sexual battery and rape in 2012, and he is currently incarcerated for the crime. At the time of his arrest, Cornerstone stated Mitchell had been impersonating a youth volunteer — a claim the lawsuit flatly denies.

According to the filing, Mitchell had been vetted by Cornerstone for the Youth Staff in 2007, at which point he disclosed that he had been convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor in 2003, when he provided alcohol to three minor children. Yet Cornerstone still let him volunteer with children, along with operating a sound board. After the victim's mother asked pastor Dana Lawson for advice in finding a male role model for her son — whose father had committed suicide when he was an infant — Lawson recommended Mitchell. Throughout 2007, the suit claims, Mitchell regularly spent unsupervised time with the victim, both on and off the church's campus, and in the summer of 2008 was appointed his "official mentor." Later that summer, the lawsuit alleges, Mitchell fondled and raped the victim and also took nude pictures and videos of him. Shortly thereafter, the victims's mother found inappropriate text messages from Mitchell to her son, referring to himself as "Daddy." She told the church administration about the messages, and they promised to "take care" of the situation. But the next Sunday, Davis allegedly used the situation in his sermon, publicly blaming her for letting her son be alone with an older man. Meanwhile, Mitchell continued to attend Cornerstone on occasions until at least 2010.

The victim is asking for damages from Cornerstone and Mitchell both, based on negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. When asked for comment about the lawsuit, Cornerstone sent the following statement (which the church says Davis read to the congregation last Sunday):

Cornerstone Nashville takes the safety of our congregation, including our children, very seriously. We have policies in place to ensure the protection of our children, and those policies were in place and followed during the time of the abuse that is the subject of this lawsuit.

The person who perpetrated the abuse was tried and convicted in court for his crimes, and he is now in prison. Though he attended our church, he was not a volunteer in Cornerstone Nashville’s children’s or youth ministry at any time.

The crime occurred in a private residence unrelated to the church. It did not happen on church property; it did not happen during a church activity or under any form of church supervision; and it did not involve anyone acting on behalf of the church in any way.

Though we were surprised by the lawsuit against Cornerstone, we recognize it is not the real tragedy; the tragedy is the victimization of the child involved. We can all agree to vigorously defend our church, while still deeply caring about this young man’s life.