Parents sue 2 churches after youth pastor solicits daughter

[TexasTowelie]

The parents of a teenage girl are suing two well-known Houston churches, claiming the organizations were negligent by employing a youth pastor who was convicted of sexually soliciting their daughter while working there.

According to the lawsuit, filed this week in Harris County, Second Baptist Church and Community of Faith Church were careless in their supervision and hiring of 35-year-old Chad Foster, a one-time youth pastor who pleaded guilty to trying to pressure the girl into having sex using the Internet in 2011.

Both churches told KPRC-Channel 2 that they sympathize with the accuser, but denied any wrongdoing.

"Second Baptist Church did not know of any of those allegations," church spokesman Gary Moore told KPRC on Thursday. And Mike King, attorney for Community of Faith, says, &quot Foster) was provided extensive training as it relates to appropriate contact with minors by the senior pastor. Any allegation of a lack of training is false."

Foster was part of a "marketing scheme" by Second Baptist that allowed youth pastors to encourage students in public schools to attend church activities and events, enticing them with fast food, the suit states. The goal was to recruit their parents to join. He later went to work for Community of Faith, the suit states.

Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Parents-sue-Houston-churches-after-youth-pastor-5797657.php

[HeiressofBickworth]

1. Public School?????

From the article:
Foster was part of a "marketing scheme" by Second Baptist that allowed youth pastors to encourage students in public schools to attend church activities and events, enticing them with fast food, the suit states...
The girl met Foster during her lunch hour at school, where he was able to get her involved in activities with Second Baptist. The two started a relationship as one of religious guidance, the suit states...
"This is no different than a pedophile with candy in his pocket," said Cris Feldman, attorney in the case for the parents of the girl, now 17. "It's just someone who worked for Second Baptist and was told to go into school lunch rooms and recruit."

Just how does the school district justify allowing religious trolling in a public school? Who in the district allowed this? Not only is this a separations issue, but a security issue -- obviously this guy wasn't vetted and was allowed full access to female students. When does the ACLU start its lawsuit?

[gopiscrap]

2. That public school partnership with churches needs to stop