OKLAHOMA CITY (OK)
KOTV-TV, CBS-6 [Tulsa OK]
April 14, 2025
By Jordan Fremstad
Civil lawsuit accuses Shawnee’s Church of the Nazarene of covering up child sexual abuse. Charles Sulivant, a former member, faces charges in another criminal case.
OKLAHOMA CITY –
A civil lawsuit filed in Oklahoma County District Court in March claimed the Church of the Nazarene in Shawnee covered up child sexual abuse by a former member. News 9 reported in November that Charles Sulivant, 92, was charged with two counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child under 16 years old.
Four plaintiffs in this civil suit accuse church leaders of failing to report sexual abuse to authorities. The lawsuit also claimed the church’s policy structure kept sexual abuse survivors silent.
Criminal charges against a former Shawnee Church of the Nazarene member
Last November, the Pottawatomie County district attorney’s office officially charged Sulivant with lewd acts with a child under 16 years old. Jane Does shield their names to protect their identities. At the time of the alleged abuse from 2008-2012, the survivors were 18, 15, nine, and eight years old.
Lawsuit said survivors reported abuse to church leadership
All four survivors said they told pastor Johnny Stephens about the abuse and that he never called the police at the time. News 9 tried to ask Stephens about this case in November. Stephens declined to comment on the specifics of the case and what he knew at the time of the alleged abuse.
Stephens’ interview with Shawnee Police
According to court records, Stephens told Shawnee Police in an interview that he was familiar with these reports of alleged abuse at his church. The lawsuit stated Stephens told church district superintendent Terry Rowland about the allegations and Rowland was going to “handle the situation.”
Allegations church leaders silenced staff and members
One survivor said church leaders threatened to take away her mother’s minister’s license if she pursued the issue further. The suit also accused the church of firing an associate pastor of a neighboring church after he tried to report Sulivant’s abuse himself.
The lawsuit alleged church leaders moved forward to “pass a board resolution preventing church staff from reporting abuse incidents to DHS.” The lawsuit said, “the defendants’ policies, actions and inaction allowed Sulivant’s abuse to ‘fade in obscurity.’”
Plaintiffs are seeking $75,000 in damages
The lawsuit stated the plaintiffs were seeking $75,000 in damages for physical injuries, mental pain, and loss of employment. News 9 tried contacting the attorney representing the Church of the Nazarene, but did not receive a response by the Monday 10 p.m. news deadline. Sulivant’s criminal case on the lewd acts charges is still ongoing.
Jordan Fremstad
Jordan is a three-time Emmy-nominated multimedia journalist who began his broadcast journalism career in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Jordan came to Oklahoma City after four years with La Crosse’s CBS affiliate WKBT News 8 Now.