Was James “Jay” Virtue Robinson IV Listed in SBC Abuse Investigation Report?
In 2008, James “Jay” Virtue Robinson IV pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a 15-year-old church member while serving as pastor of Southwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas. He was sentenced to deferred adjudication probation for ten years. As part of his probation, he was not permitted to be around children other than his own unless accompanied by a court-approved chaperone. He became a member of Alliance Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas.
While still on probation, he was chosen by Alliance leadership to be a part of a team that was launching a new church, Refuge Place, in 2017. Robinson was six months away from finishing his probation when authorities discovered he had been unsupervised around children. His probation was revoked, and he received a ten-year prison sentence. He allegedly violated his probation by working in maintenance at a church in Weatherford, TX, and similar work at Alliance Baptist Church in Fort Worth, TX. He received a ten-year prison sentence.
SBC Investigation Report
According to the Washington Post, a 300-page report was released on Sunday, May 22, 2022. The document contains terrible new details concerning particular abuse occurrences and sheds light on how denominational officials actively opposed abuse prevention and reform for several years.
Southern Baptist Convention leaders have revealed an extensive and independent third-party examination that uncovered that abusers were frequently neglected, forgotten, or perhaps condemned by high-ranking congregation officials from within this religious denomination of greater than 16 million people. Furthermore, it showed these leaders often deceived their very own members to keep them from understanding the widespread sexual wrongdoing.
Read more about the bombshell SBC Investigation Report
A Story of Disregarded Misconduct
For nearly 20 years, victims who were sexually assaulted attempted to get in touch with the administration of the Southern Baptist Convention concerning the priests and church workers. Nearly all of these disclosed incidents fell outside of the statutes of limitations, making it uncertain how many perpetrators were actually charged. According to the report, an internal record was kept. Abuse victims’ cries for fair treatment went unheeded as officials from churches and organizations tried to protect themselves rather than those who have actually been victimized by sexual assault.
The report states that an essential Southern Baptist leader was credibly implicated of sexual abuse just one month after finishing his two-year term as the convention’s president. The report likewise names three previous presidents of the SBC, a former vice president, and the former head of the SBC’s administrative arm as well-known SBC leaders who assisted in covering and even encouraged presumed abusers.
One victim outlined being treated with hostility as she alleged she was sexually assaulted by a youth pastor. The accused pastor served in multiple Southern Baptist churches in several states. During a conference with the SBC leaders in 2007, a member of the Executive Board “turned his back to her during her speech and another chortled.”
Responsibility in the Southern Baptist Convention
Russell Moore, the previous head of the SBC’s policy branch, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, stated ‘this is not all Southern Baptists, look at all the good we do.’ The bombshell report shows a pattern of stonewalling, retaliation, coverup, and intimidation.” He anticipates this document will deliver much-needed change and hold those accountable for their sexual abuse.
To learn more about resources available for survivors in Texas, visit this page: https://abuseguardian.com/sexual-assault-lawyer/texas/sex-trauma-therapist-tx/
Abuse Guardian for Texas
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