EX-SBC president Johnny Hunt sues for defamation over abuse allegations
Facing allegations of sexual assault and controversy over his return to ministry, former Southern Baptist Convention president Johnny Hunt sued the SBC and a third-party firm on Friday for defamation.
Hunt is suing the SBC and the SBC Executive Committee, and Guidepost Solutions, over the abuse allegations, which Hunt said in a complaint “involved only kissing and some awkward fondling.”
It's the latest highprofile lawsuit over abuse in the SBC and it further complicates a fight over Southern Baptist pastors and churches platforming Hunt.
“The SBC Executive Committee is aware of the complaint against the Convention filed by former SBC president Johnny Hunt. We are reviewing the complaint and will not be commenting on active litigation at this time,” an SBC Executive Committee spokesperson said in a statement.
Hunt filed suit in federal district court of Middle Tennessee and is represented by a Tennessee-based law firm, Cole Law Group, and an Indiana-based firm, Macgill.
The executive committee manages denomination business outside the SBC annual meeting in June. The executive committee, under the oversight of a SBC task force, hired Guidepost to conduct an abuse investigation into how SBC leaders have previously handled abuse reports and treated survivors.
Guidepost's investigation also found in its investigation and said in its May 2022 report that Hunt assaulted another woman in 2010. Hunt denied assaulting the woman in a May 2022 statement and said he was in a “compromising situation with a woman who was not my wife” and that it was “a consensual encounter.”
In November, Hunt announced he was returning to ministry in a video featuring four pastors who vouched for Hunt's “restoration.” Top SBC leaders criticized the announcement, with SBC President Bart Barber saying he would "'defrock' Johnny Hunt if I had the authority to do so."
Since then, Hunt has preached at several SBC churches and most recently had a men's conference at New Season Church in Hiram, Ga.
An SBC oversight group has launched an inquiry into New Season and Hiland Park Baptist Church in Panama City, Fla., for platforming Hunt. Hiland Park publicly protested the oversight group's inquiry in a public statement, denying the allegations of assault against Hunt.
Hunt said in his complaint Friday he was a “scapegoat” for the SBC as the denomination faced a “public relations nightmare” because of recent revelations of widespread clergy sexual abuse throughout the convention.
Guidepost's report portrays Hunt as a “sex criminal” and cost him his job and lost income from speaking engagements, Hunt said in his complaint.
The woman who spoke out about Hunt's alleged assault remains anonymous, as Guidepost did not name her in the May 2022 report. Hunt's complaint on Friday did not name the woman as a defendant.
Hunt was the longtime pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., and then became an executive at the North American Mission Board, one of the SBC'S major mission agencies. Hunt resigned from the North American Mission Board at about the same time abuse allegations emerged against him.
Hunt's complaint didn't specify a dollar amount he thinks alleged damages against him warrant.
Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean. Reach him at ladams@tennessean.com or on Twitter @liamsadams.