The Legal Examiner Affiliate Network The Legal Examiner The Legal Examiner The Legal Examiner search instagram avvo phone envelope checkmark mail-reply spinner error close The Legal Examiner The Legal Examiner The Legal Examiner
Skip to main content
Stained glass windows in small church with wood pews
Abuse Guardians
+1 (877) 421-9608

Was Murrvin Sheppard Named in SBC Investigation Report?

Murrvin Sheppard, pastor of Mount Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Miscanopy, FL, was arrested in 2016 for sexually assaulting a female victim under the age of 12. The incident is said to have occurred in his office. He had a 9/14/18 adjudication date for lewd or lascivious molestation victim under the age of 12. He is under the authority of the Department of Corrections and/or the Florida Parole Commission and is registered as a sexual predator.

Southern Baptist Convention Sexual Abuse Helpline

Guidepost Solutions SBC Report

According to the Washington Post, a 300-page report was released on Sunday, May 22, 2022. The report consists of scary new information relating to specific abuse circumstances and clarify how denominational authorities actively disapproved abuse avoidance and change for several years.

Southern Baptist Convention leaders have actually revealed a substantial and independent 3rd party examination that found that abusers were often neglected, forgotten, or perhaps denounced by high-ranking congregation representatives from within this religious denomination of greater than 16 million members. Additionally, it disclosed these leaders typically deceived their very own members to prevent them from being aware of the rampant sexual assaults.

Continue reading about the Guidepost Solutions SBC Report

A Story of Dismissed Misconduct

Practically all of these disclosed incidents fell outside of the statute of limitations, making it uncertain how many predators were really charged. According to the report, an internal list was kept.

The report alleges that a principal Southern Baptist Convention leader was credibly accused of sexual assault merely one month after finishing his two-year duration as the convention’s president. Furthermore, Johnny Hunt, a well-known Georgia Southern Baptist preacher and senior vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s objectives arm, was credibly implicated of assaulting a fellow congregant during a 2010 holiday in Panama City Beach, Florida. The North American Mission Board president declared he was unaware of the accusations prior to Hunt resigning on May 13. The report also names 3 prior presidents of the convention, a former vice president, and the previous head of the SBC’s administrative arm as prominent SBC officials who helped in covering up for and even motivated known abusers.

One victim talked about being treated with animosity as she alleged she was sexually assaulted by a youth pastor. The implicated pastor served in numerous Southern Baptist churches in a number of states. During a meeting with the SBC leaders in 2007, a member of the Executive Council “turned his back to her during her speech and another chortled.”

Responsibility in the Southern Baptist Church

Russell Moore, the previous head of the SBC’s policy branch, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, stated ‘this is not all Southern Baptists, take a look at all the good we do.’ The bombshell report shows a pattern of stonewalling, coverup, retaliation, and intimidation.” He anticipates this document will deliver much-needed reform and hold those liable for their actions.

The document claims that a key Southern Baptist leader was credibly accused of sexual assault only 1 month after completing his two-year spell as the convention’s president. The report also names 3 prior presidents of the convention, a previous vice president, and the previous head of the SBC’s administrative division as renoun SBC leaders who helped in covering and even motivated presumed sexual predators.

He anticipates this report will instigate much-needed change and hold those accountable for their horrific acts of abuse.

For more information about resources available to survivors in Florida, visit our page: https://abuseguardian.com/sexual-assault-lawyer/florida/sex-trafficking-lawyer-fl/

Comments for this article are closed.