The risk of false accusation

The woman who accused a Kentucky Southern Baptist youth pastor of sexually abusing a teen “now admits the story was made up.”

Clayton Pruett was arrested in mid-December 2007, after a mother filed a police report alleging that Pruett had abused her 15-year-old daughter.

With a packed courtroom of church-goers, the court dismissed those charges in January 2008 when the lead investigator was unable to attend the hearing because of a family emergency. Pruett then filed a defamation lawsuit against the mother who made the accusation.

Now, in settlement of Pruett’s defamation suit, it’s reported that the mother has signed a document saying that her statement to police was false. The mother, Debra Johnson, was a school board member for the district in which Pruett also worked as a substitute teacher and wrestling coach.

Pruett, who was on paid voluntary leave, has been reinstated to his duties as youth minister at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church. The school district has also reinstated him as a substitute teacher and wrestling coach.

Pruett states his great relief and his belief that the truth got out.

False allegations of sexual abuse are a terrible travesty that cause great harm. The possibility of a false allegation is a possibility that should never be overlooked. But it should also be kept in perspective.

Experts say that, for those who report having been sexually abused in childhood, fabricated sexual abuse reports constitute only 1 to 4 percent of all reported cases. It is a real risk, but it is also a risk of low likelihood.

For this reason, the risk of false allegations cannot be a legitimate ground for church and denominational leaders to do nothing about reports of clergy child molestation. Every allegation deserves to be treated seriously -- for the sake of both the accuser and the accused. This is why other faith groups now have lay-person review boards to objectively assess those clergy abuse allegations that cannot be prosecuted through the criminal justice system -- and that’s most of them.

Clayton Pruett’s nightmare ended after 7 ½ months. I have no doubt that those were miserable months for him. However, I also know that, for most clergy abuse victims, a mere 7 ½ months of misery would be a blessing.

It is far easier for a falsely accused minister to get his career back than it is for a sexually abused kid to ever again regain their innocence and trust. For most clergy abuse victims, the nightmare continues for decades.

This story shows the essential choice that confronts church and denominational leaders when they face a clergy abuse allegation. On the one hand, the feelings and reputation of a grown-up are at stake. On the other hand, the physical, emotional, psychological, spiritual and sexual safety of potentially many kids are at stake. The prudent and moral choice would be to err on the side of protecting those who cannot protect themselves -- children. It is easier for an adult to repair his reputation than for a child to repair his psyche.

To be falsely accused of abuse is a terrible thing. But it is even more terrible to be sexually abused and then attacked or disbelieved upon reporting it.

Clayton Pruett states, “The church has been behind me 100% the entire time.”

Among the many scores of Baptist abuse survivors I have spoken with, I have never heard a single one say anything remotely similar to that. To the contrary, most would say that the church was 100 percent against them.

And they would tell you how profoundly painful that failure of the faith community was for them.
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Additional news: Accuser recants sex abuse charge against Baptist youth minister