Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News

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More information has emerged about the Justice Department’s investigation into widespread sex abuse that occurred across Southern Baptist Convention churches over 30 years. It seems that for now, the DOJ’s focus is solely on the SBC Executive Committee.

As first reported by the Baptist Press, the Department of Justice has subpoenaed the committee, but no other entity or individual.

“The SBC is fully cooperating with authorities, and remains committed to addressing the scourge of sexual abuse,” Jon Wilke, media relations director for the Executive Committee, told the Baptist Press.

It is not yet clear what the substance of the investigation is, beyond that it is in regards to hundreds of credible accusations of sexual abuse at SBC member churches and the convention’s subsequent failure, critics have argued unwillingness, to address the problem for decades.

The Tennessean, a Nashville-based newspaper, previously reported that the Justice Department is almost certain to withhold comment as the investigation plays out.

“While we are aware that the SBC has made certain confirmations about this matter, the U.S. Attorney’s Office does not confirm or deny the existence of an investigation,” David Boling, spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, told the Tennessean. “Also, grand jury matters are secret and we do not comment on whether or not a case may be before the grand jury.”

As previously reported on FISM, the Southern Baptist Convention has faced an extensive road to rehabilitating itself and accounting for hundreds of confirmed cases of sexual abuse, many involving minors.

One of the steps the SBC took was to partner with Guidepost Solutions, a crisis management consulting firm that conducted a massive internal investigation. Per the Baptist Press report, the findings of what became a yearlong process, one approved by SBC voting members, could have been what led to the Justice Department’s investigation.

For Guidepost to complete its internal review to the specifications of the resolution passed at the SBC’s 2021 annual meeting, the executive committee was required to waive attorney-client privilege.