Case dismissed over SC Christian school’s hiring of sex offender

A federal judge recently dismissed a lawsuit against Pawleys Island Community Church, the Southern Baptist Convention, and others over the South Carolina church’s hiring of a registered sex offender as a janitor at its associated school, Pawleys Island Christian Academy. The judge cited a technicality for the dismissal, and the case could be filed again. The plaintiffs, an unidentified couple whose child attended the school, filed the lawsuit in August. The sex offender was knowingly allowed to work near children, the couple argued. They included the Southern Baptist Convention in the lawsuit because the church is affiliated with the denomination.

U.S. District Judge Richard Mark Gergel dismissed the case last month in response to a motion from the Southern Baptist Convention’s lawyers. He wrote that he did so because the couple sued under a federal law requiring class-action lawsuits to involve amounts of over $5 million. The lawsuit didn’t meet that standard, he said. He dismissed the case without prejudice, meaning that the couple can try to pursue their claims again.

Any further lawsuits would likely take place at the state level. Several other state-level cases over the same situation are ongoing, according to local media.

Dig deeper: Read Christina Grube’s previous report on the case for more details.