A federal judge stopped short on Monday of completely dismissing a defamation lawsuit filed by former Southern Baptist Convention President Johnny Hunt against the SBC and the SBC Executive Committee because of a tweet from former SBC President Bart Barber.
While he dismissed all the claims against investigative firm Guidepost Solutions and dismissed most of the claims against the SBC and its Executive Committee, Chief U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Tennessee's Nashville Division William L. Campbell said Hunt's defamation claim based on a tweet from former SBC President Bart Barber couldn't be dismissed.
"Guidepost's motion is GRANTED as to all claims," Campbell wrote. "The motions by the Southern Baptist Convention ('SBC') and the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention ('Executive Committee') are GRANTED as to the claims for false light (Count III), public disclosure of embarrassing private facts (Count VI), negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress (Counts IV and V), and the defamation claim (Count I) arising out of the Report and the Letter," he added before noting, "SBC and the Executive Committee's motion are DENIED as to the defamation claim (Count I) based on the Tweet."
Hunt filed his six-count, 330-page lawsuit in March 2023, naming the SBC, the SBC Executive Committee and Guidepost Solutions after he was accused of sexual assault by a young minister's wife in an independent report produced by Guidepost Solutions in 2022.
Hunt previously admitted to engaging in "kissing and some awkward fondling" with the younger minister's wife, who accused him of sexual assault while on a beach vacation with his family in Panama City, Florida, in 2010.
The longtime former pastor of Woodstock Baptist Church north of Atlanta has since argued that he was stalked and seduced by the woman in a 368-page deposition on April 18, 2024, conducted as a part of the federal defamation lawsuit.
Guidepost Solutions was hired by the SBC in 2021 after it was alleged that America's largest Protestant denomination had for decades "condoned and covered up sexual abuse on the part of its clergy and leadership," according to a motion to dismiss Hunt's lawsuit filed by the New York City-based investigative firm, which was reviewed by The Christian Post.
Hunt accused the defendants of: defamation/libel, defamation/libel per se, invasion of privacy or false light, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and public disclosure of private embarrassing facts.
The "Tweet" referenced by Campbell is a post from Barber published on Dec. 5, 2022, which Hunt's attorneys argue "intentionally and maliciously created the false impression that Pastor Johnny is a sex criminal."
"On December 5, 2022, the then-current President of the SBC, Bart Barber, publicly tweeted: 'Hunt was the subject of a third-party investigation in response to allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman half his age in ways that would, to my knowledge, constitute a felony in any jurisdiction in the US,'" Hunt's complaint noted.
"Mr. Barber's tweet was demonstrably false. Even if the factual accusations against Pastor Johnny contained in the Report were factually true, they would not amount to a felony in Florida (where the incident occurred) or Texas (where Mr. Barber resides). Mr. Barber made his contrary statement knowing it was false, particularly given that Pastor Johnny's counsel had previously sent a letter to the SBC pointing out the specifics of Florida law," he added.
In their successful motion for dismissal of Hunt's lawsuit, lawyers for Guidepost Solutions raised several arguments, including the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine. The filing noted that the company was "acting as agent of the EC and the SBC Task Force."
"Because Hunt's allegations of defamation and the related torts are inextricably intertwined with the SBC's investigation into its internal ecclesiastical affairs, the court should refrain from exercising jurisdiction over this matter," they noted.
Guidepost's attorneys also argued for the dismissal of his claims of libel because "Hunt is a public figure for all purposes and the Complaint fails to plead facts plausibly supporting an inference that Guidepost published the Report with actual malice."
The Guidepost Solutions report detailed allegations SBC's leadership mishandled sexual abuse allegations, mistreated victims and advocates, engaged in an abusive pattern of intimidation and repeatedly resisted reforms aimed at making associated churches safer, largely to avoid legal liability.
Last September, current SBC President Clint Pressley squashed speculation that the denomination was possibly settling Hunt's case despite spending a significant amount on legal bills.
"Despite what you may be hearing, there is no settlement with Dr Johnny Hunt," said Pressley in a response on X to the speculation cited in reports made by news outlets such as Baptist News Global.
The SBC had asked the court to make a summary judgment on Hunt's lawsuit to avoid a trial.
