FORT WORTH (TX)
KDFW-TV, Fox-4 [Dallas TX]
March 14, 2025
By Shaun Rabb and Tracy DeLatte
The Brief
- Jose Bernal was arrested in 2017 for allegedly sexually abusing two children who attended his Fort Worth church.
- The charges were dropped in 2022 after his jury trial ended with a mistrial.
- One of the victims is now getting some justice. Jurors in a civil trial ordered Bernal to pay her $124 million.
A Tarrant County jury awarded $124 million to a woman who accused her former pastor of sexual abuse.
Hurst pastor accused of sexual abuse
The backstory:
In 2017, Jose Francisco Bernal was arrested and charged with the continuous sexual abuse of two children who attended his church in Fort Worth.
Bernal is the former pastor at Tabernacle of Life Pentecostal Church.
Police said two adult women came forward to report that the alleged sexual assaults occurred when they were girls living in Hurst between 2007 and 2013.
In 2022, a criminal trial jury could not reach a decision, and a mistrial was declared.
Prosecutors ended up dismissing the charges against Bernal.
Child sex abuse civil lawsuit
What we know:
One of the victims filed a civil lawsuit against Bernal in 2019, which led to this week’s verdict.
Jurors decided that Bernal did commit assault, sexual abuse, and sexual assault against the woman. They also decided he acted out of malice, and those actions caused her severe emotional distress.
They awarded her $124 million — $11 million for past mental anguish, $20 million for future mental anguish, and $93 million for exemplary damages.
The victim also named the church in her lawsuit. The church settled after agreeing to pay her $100,000 and hand over the deed to its property.
What they’re saying:
Bob Washington, an attorney for the victim at the Noteboom Law Firm, believes the large judgment in this case sends a clear message to all church leaders who abuse children.