(CP) A day after struggling a “minor medical incident” whereas preaching on Sunday, Bishop TD Jakes of The Potter's Home megachurch in Dallas, Texas, filed a defamation lawsuit in opposition to former pastor-turned-registered-sex-offender Duane Youngblood, who claimed 40 years in the past Jakes sexually assaulted him when he was an adolescent.
“The underlying story on this case depicts a rigorously deliberate effort by a convicted prison and people appearing in live performance with him to rewrite historical past to deflect blame and accountability for his personal reprehensible and prison actions and to publicly smear a famend and eminently revered non secular chief in an outrageous and specific trying to extort thousands and thousands of {dollars} from him,” Jakes' legal professionals wrote in a 20-page lawsuit filed in Western District Court docket in Pennsylvania, detailing Youngblood's historical past of kid abuse since at the least 2002.
Jake's attorneys famous that Youngblood was first arrested on prices of sexual assault and corruption of minors and different prices whereas serving as a pastor at a church in Homestead. In that case, Youngblood was accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old in 2002 whereas counseling the boy. The youth sought counseling from Youngblood as a result of he was being harassed by a cousin, in response to a police assertion.
Youngblood, who’s on parole underneath the supervision of the Pennsylvania Division of Parole, was additionally accused of inappropriately touching two juvenile victims whereas counseling them between 2009 and 2011. In a single case, he allegedly engaged the sufferer about 25 instances.
“On all events, Youngblood pleaded responsible and confessed to his heinous crimes,” the lawsuit states.
Jakes' attorneys famous that regardless of his background, Youngblood conspired with others to extort Jakes, and the high-profile pastor's lawsuit goals to cease the conspiracy and the ache he's inflicting Jakes.
“The aim of this lawsuit is to cease this scheme, to finish the acute emotional, bodily and non secular toll that defendants' conduct has taken on Bishop Jakes, to set the file straight in order that the world understands the manifest falsehood of the allegations, and to revive Bishop Jakes' fame,” they notice.
Jakes, 67, filed the lawsuit in opposition to Youngblood, 58, who claimed in interviews with web persona Larry Reid on his present “Larry Reid Dwell” on Oct. 28 and Nov. 3 that Jakes assaulted him when he was about 18 years previous. or 19 years.
Youngblood claimed to Reid that he had been speaking to Jakes for about two hours on the dwelling of an older grownup minister the place he was staying throughout an area church revival roughly 40 years in the past when Jakes tried to kiss him.
“After I sat there and had this lengthy dialog with him, I lastly checked out my watch and stated, 'Oh my God, I've bought to go. I’ve to get this automotive again to my mom. She’s going to kill me.” .' So I stated to the bishop, 'I’ve to rise up,'” Youngblood recalled.
“And I bought up from the desk, he bought up from the desk, walked round within the route I needed to go away sooner than I bought there, and as I began to stroll previous him, he pulled me shut, wrapped himself round me.” he hugged me and tried to kiss me and I actually died at that second.”
The morning after the assembly, Youngblood claims Jakes known as him at dwelling and instructed him he wished him to be an area intercourse associate.
“My mother picks up the cellphone and says, 'Duane, that is Elder Jakes.' Jakes and I are on the cellphone and as I stroll as much as it I hear water. She's sitting within the bathtub and on that matter she tells me with out hesitation, “I would like you to do three issues. The primary is that after I come to Pittsburgh, you're the one individual I'm going to sleep with for the third time, I'm going to handle you for the remainder of my life,” Youngblood, who’s now a registered intercourse offender as a consequence of his previous historical past of abusing minors, claimed throughout an interview with Reid .
Days after they made the allegations public, Jakes' legal professionals stated a lawyer representing Youngblood despatched Jakes a letter on Nov. 24 demanding $6 million “to 'resolve this matter expeditiously and privately;' in any other case, Youngblood would have sued Bishop Jakes for sexual assault and harassment.”
Jakes' attorneys, who famous the conversations have gone viral, stated Youngblood's allegations have brought on the megachurch pastor thousands and thousands of {dollars} in reputational harm and harm to his bodily well being.
“Youngblood's lies jeopardized the important philanthropic missions that Bishop Jakes leads and certain considerably impaired the advantages that the beneficiaries of such efforts obtain. And Youngblood's willful and malicious lies took a major emotional and bodily toll on Bishop Jakes,” the lawsuit alleges. he claims. “On November 24 – the day earlier than he filed this lawsuit – Bishop Jakes suffered a well being disaster on the stage in the midst of his Sunday service in entrance of his total church.”
The authorized submitting additional acknowledged that regardless of his claims, Youngblood is just not a sufferer.
“Bishop Jakes believes with all his coronary heart that actual victims of sexual abuse needs to be handled with the utmost respect, kindness, empathy and compassion – and that actual perpetrators of such abuse needs to be held accountable for his or her actions. However they aren’t.” right here,” the lawsuit says.
“Youngblood used and abused the ability of social media and the authorized course of to re-victimize these he preyed on and harmed and to knowingly falsely accuse for his personal private and monetary achieve. Males like Youngblood have to be held accountable for his or her abuse of the system .” and for deterring those that have official and real allegations of sexual abuse.”
Requested about Jakes' lawsuit Wednesday, Youngblood's lawyer, Tyrone A. Blackburn, quoted Matthew 7:15-16.
“Watch out for false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothes however inside are ravenous wolves,” he wrote in an announcement to The Christian Put up. “You'll know them by their fruit. Are they grapes picked from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? TD Jakes chickens have lastly come dwelling to roost. Keep tuned.”
© The Christian Put up
