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Two women and Texas church settle lawsuit

June 26, 1998	Contact: Linda Green*(615)742-5470*Nashville, Tenn.
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By United Methodist News Service

A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit in which two women had
charged that United Methodist Church officials in Fort Worth, Texas,
ignored their complaints about a pastor's sexual misconduct.

The settlement comes only days before the June 29 trial date set by
Judge Jeff Walker in the 96th State District Court.

Gail Cooke and Dorayne Levin, who were members of First United Methodist
Church in Fort Worth, had sued First Church, the United Methodist
Church's Central Texas Conference, Fort Worth Area Bishop Joe Wilson,
and three First Church officials, the Revs. William Longsworth, Weldon
Hayes and Kay Johnson.

The two women had charged that officials were negligent in dealing with
alleged sexual misconduct on the part of former First Church pastor
Barry Bailey.

The settlement was reached during the week of June 22, but details were
not disclosed by attorneys because of a confidentiality agreement.
Bishop Wilson will release an official statement after all the paperwork
has been processed, said Carolyn Stephens, director of Central Texas
Conference Communications.

Cooke and Levin contended that after they complained to church officials
about Bailey's behavior, nothing was done to prevent further misconduct.
They filed separate lawsuits, which were later joined for the trial.

Bailey was the senior pastor at 10,500-member First Church, the third
largest congregation in the denomination, when allegations by several
other women of sexual misconduct surfaced in 1994. In August 1994, he
retired, ending 18 years as the pastor. The following March, at the
request of the Central Texas Conference, he surrendered his clergy
credentials rather than face a church trial. Bailey consistently
proclaimed his innocence.

Cooke had edited materials for Bailey throughout most of his tenure at
First Church. In June 1995, she accused him of inappropriate touches,
telephone discussions of sexual acts and exposing himself to her.

Levin's lawsuit alleged that when she met with Bailey on Sept. 1, 1993,
he discussed sex, sat with his legs apart and made suggestive motions
with his hands.

United Methodist officials initially sought to have the Cooke-Levin
lawsuit withdrawn. They argued that a court trial about church
supervision of Bailey could conflict with the First Amendment separation
of church and state.  

Walker allowed the church to protect some internal information, but he
did not dismiss the case nor eliminate individual defendants on First
Amendment grounds.

The trial was predicted to last eight weeks and would have entailed
re-examining the information and allegations from 1994. Numerous women,
who were church members or church employees, had complained to officials
about Bailey. Eight women and the husband of one had accused the pastor
of "sexual predatory conduct," including fondling, offensive language
and telephone calls, lewd behavior and seduction. They sued him for $14
million.

In January 1997, a jury awarded more than $3.7 million to seven of the
eight women. The jury determined that Bailey had inflicted emotional
distress on the women, invaded their privacy and exploited a counseling
relationship. Neither Cooke nor Levin were part of that case.

According to reports, church officials denied that they were negligent.
However, during the Cooke-Levin case, some defendants said they knew of
complaints about Bailey's conduct.

The settlement could lead to a resolution of another Bailey-related
lawsuit pending against the denomination's South Central Jurisdiction
and other defendants.

United Methodist News Service
(615)742-5470
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