Georgia pastors named in Southern Baptist Convention sex abuse database. Here’s the list
The Southern Baptist Convention has publicly released a partial list of pastors and other church workers accused of sexual abuse as the country’s largest Protestant denomination grapples with a series of internal and external crises.
The list, which was curated by an SBC staff member, includes hundreds of cases, most of which have been publicly reported in the past. The convention said it was releasing all entries that included confessions, criminal convictions or had another public resolutions. Some names were redacted.
The list includes more than 40 people who worked or volunteered in Georgia churches:
Here are the details on the Macon and Columbus cases:
Charles Samuel Woodall — Macon
The Macon Telegraph reported extensively on Woodall’s arrest and sentencing, and one of the Telegraph’s stories is listed in the SBC’s report. The former GBI agent was convicted in 2017 of molesting three boys he met through his work at Macon’s Northway Church.
He was sentenced to 15 years for multiple counts of child molestation and enticing a child for indecent purposes, and five years for violating his oath of office. He is currently serving his sentence in a southeast Georgia state prison.
During his trial, the then-36-year-old denied all the allegations against him, which prosecutors said happened from 2005 to 2014. In 2005, Woodall moved to Macon and began a summer internship working with youths at Northway Church, formerly known as Vineville North Baptist Church.
In 2011, the GBI hired Woodall as a crime scene specialist. He was working as a field agent at the time of his 2015 arrest.
Michael Lee Krug Sr. — Columbus
Krug, a former associate pastor at Calvary Baptist in Columbus, was sentenced in 2002 to 10 years in prison and 15 years of probation after pleading guilty to two counts of child molestation and one count of aggravated child molestation.
Krug has been released and is not listed as a registered sex offender in Georgia, according to a Houston Chronicle database of Southern Baptist church leaders who were convicted or took plea deals in sex crime cases.
The Associated Press reported that Krug turned to religion after 14 years in the U.S. Army. His teenage accuser asked a Muscogee County Superior Court Judge to “‘show mercy on (Krug)’ and to help him get counseling for his problem.”
Suppressing allegations
The release comes on the heels of a third-party report that the SBC’s executive committee had suppressed claims of sexual abuse and rejected reform proposals for decades.
“Our investigation revealed that, for many years, a few senior EC leaders, along with outside counsel, largely controlled the EC’s response to these reports of abuse,” the report reads. “They closely guarded information about abuse allegations and lawsuits, which were not shared with EC Trustees, and were singularly focused on avoiding liability for the SBC to the exclusion of other considerations.”
The SBC created a hotline where victims of abuse from an affiliated church can submit allegations and get information on care options. Call 202-864-5578 or email SBChotline@guidepostsolutions.com to access the hotline.
The report and list come before the SBC’s annual convention in June.
The Southern Baptist Convention represents thousands of autonomous churches and is mainly responsible for allocating funds to various affiliated programs and seminaries.
