HOUSTON (TX)
Houston Chronicle
June 15, 2019
By Nicole Hensley
Former Grace Family Baptist Church pastor Stephen Bratton, 43, was arrested Friday and charged with continuous sexual abuse of a child.
The former pastor of a Southern Baptist church in north Harris County has been arrested in connection with an allegation that he molested a teenage relative for about two years, court records show.
Stephen Bratton, who stepped down from the Grace Family Baptist Church in Cypress Station last month, has since been released from custody at the Harris County Jail after posting a $50,000 bond.
The investigation began on May 16 after Bratton allegedly confessed to three Southern Baptist clergy members that he abused the child, according to court documents. Two of Bratton’s co-pastors, Aaron Wright and Erin Frye, called the Harris County Sheriff’s Office to their church on Bammel Westfield Road to take a report that same day, while the third pastor, David Shiflet, said he referred the complaint to the Department of Family Protective Services.
Bratton, 43, was charged Friday with continuous sexual abuse of a child, Senior Deputy Thomas Gilliland said Saturday.
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