Garland Church Should Have Known Youth Ministers Were Child Sex Abusers, Suit Says
Even before Joshua and Jordan Earls were formally charged with making child pornography and child molestation in 2013, it should have been obvious to the Garland church where they worked that something was awry, one of their victims says.
Josh moved to Texas to work as a youth minister at the Arapaho Road Baptist Church in 2008, and his brother "Jordy" followed him the next year. They quickly fell into favor with the kids in the youth group and their parents. They paid particularly close attention to several teenage girls, attention that would eventually lead to criminal charges.
They gave the girls gifts and cards, one girl identified only as "Jane Doe 103" says in a lawsuit, and picked the girls up from school without telling their parents. The brothers also held an exclusive "book club" meeting for the girls at the apartment they shared together and offered to give Doe private guitar lessons. From there, the brothers moved into "inappropriate full-body hugs" and other sexual touching.
It escalated from there. Finally, two years ago now, the brothers were arrested. Joshua Earls pleaded guilty and last year was sentenced to 12 years in prison on child pornography charges for "sexting" with a 16-year-old girl. His brother also pleaded guilty on molestation and child pornography charges, and faces his sentencing on this month.
Read more: http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/2015/02/garland_arapaho_baptist_sex_abuse_lawsuit.php
