A federal judge ruled against former Southern Baptist Convention president Johnny Hunt on Monday, rejecting his claims of defamation against Guidepost Solutions and rejecting nearly all the former megachurch pastor’s claims against the Southern Baptist Convention and its Executive Committee.
Judge William Campbell of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee issued an order granting summary judgment in the case on Monday, with a memorandum detailing the judge’s decision forthcoming.
“We are grateful for this decision and the forward progress in our legal process,” Jeff Iorg, SBC Executive Committee president told media in a statement.
Hunt had sued Guidepost, an investigative firm, and SBC leaders for defamation and other damages after Guidepost published allegations of sexual assault against Hunt in a May 2022 report on an investigation into how SBC leaders had dealt with sexual abuse.
At issue was a 2010 incident in which Hunt allegedly kissed and fondled another pastor’s wife. Hunt, who had kept the incident secret for years, at first denied the incident occurred then claimed it was consensual.
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In their court filings, Hunt’s lawyers claimed Guidepost had ruined his reputation and claimed the pastor’s sin were no one’s else’s business. Hunt, the former pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock and a former vice-president of the SBC’s North American Mission Board, claimed Guidepost and the SBC had cost him millions and sought more than $75 million in damages.
All counts of defamation, emotional distress, and the public disclosure of embarrassing private facts were dismissed against the SBC and the Executive Committee. However one claim alleging a tweet about Hunt from Texas Baptist pastor Bart Barber, who was SBC president from 2022 to 2024, was defamatory has not been dismissed.
Hunt served from 2008 to 2010 as SBC president and remained a popular speaker before the Guidepost report. Court-ordered mediation on the case failed last fall. A trial had been scheduled this summer.
The Executive Committee has spent more than $3.1 million in legal fees related to the Hunt lawsuit and a second lawsuit related to the Guidepost report.
Last month, the SBC’s Executive Committee decided to ask the denomination for an additional $3 million for the upcoming year to cover its legal bills, including those for the Hunt suit.
Bob Smietana is a national reporter for Religion News Service.
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5 Responses
It has to be really discouraging for Johnny Hunt when, in an era where people like Trump, RFK Jr, Pete Hegseth, Matt Gaetz and others on the right can get away with sexual assault and rape, he can’t.
Yep, he is a creepy old grifter, perhaps politics is the logical next step.
A denomination’s attempt to discipline one of their leading preacher’s for his out-of-wedlock, allegedly consensual fondling of another man’s spouse, allegedly caused the preacher “millions of dollars” in damages? Wow! Remember when John Mark sued Paul for millions of denarii in damages after Paul publicly disclosed John Mark’s flaking out during one of their joint missionary journeys? It was bad enough that it caused a rift between Paul and his other partner, Barnabas. No? You don’t remember that lawsuit? Me either. I do remember reading about Jesus teaching his disciples to turn the other cheek when attacked by “evil” and rely on God’s justice instead. Maybe it would be useful for Jesus’s Disciple Johnny Hunt (he is a disciple of Jesus Christ, right?) to go on a multi-church preaching tour during which his sole text is Matthew 5:39.
I could care less about the financial stability of the SBC, but this is very good news for victims and their advocates also. Any ruling that makes it harder for perpetrators to suppress the truth of their actions via SLAPP defamation suits is a very good thing.
The only Christian way to handle massively failing as a leader, is to confess immediately, fully, and with ZERO excuses!
However, this train wreck would’ve never happened, COULD’VE never happened…IF he’d never been alone with a woman he’s not MARRIED TO!!
I’ve heated all sorts of wonderfully worded reasons why this shouldn’t be necessary, but I’m always reading about the latest church leadership sexual debacle. If you can come up with a method that equally guarantees ZERO sexual train wrecks, I’m sitting on the edge of my seat to hear it! Since I’ve yet to hear a better plan, I want us to admit we need to pursue the plan that’s 100% effective, 100% of the time!