Bishop T.D. Jakes is facing a new challenge—this time a legal one—following a medical emergency he experienced during his sermon on Nov. 24.
Jakes, who is now in stable condition, has filed a defamation lawsuit against Duane Youngblood, a Pennsylvania-based pastor who accused him of sexually assaulting him when he was 18 or 19 years old. Reps for Jake believe the Pastor is lying for financial gain.
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The allegations were made public on Oct. 27 during an episode of the Larry Reid Live podcast, where Youngblood claimed that Jakes attempted to embrace him and kiss him after a local church event in Pittsburgh. He allegedly asked if they could sleep together during a second alleged incident, said Youngblood.
Jakes denied the allegations in his defamation lawsuit against Youngblood, which was filed in Pennsylvania federal court, reports The New York Post. Legal representatives for the 67-year-old pastor suggested that the stress from the lawsuit may have played a role in the medical emergency he experienced on Sunday when mid-sermon while speaking at his church, The Potter’s House, in Dallas, Texas.
“This lawsuit is intended to bring that scheme to a halt,” Jakes’ team wrote in the suit. “To end the extreme emotional, physical, and spiritual toll Defendants’ conduct has caused Bishop Jakes, to set the record straight so the world understands the patent falsity of the accusations, and to restore Bishop Jakes’s reputation.”
On Nov.15, Youngblood and his attorney, Tyrone Blackburn—who previously represented Lil Rod in his lawsuit against Diddy—filed a complaint demanding $6 million from Jakes to resolve the matter quickly and privately. Youngblood, 57, the founder of Higher Call World Outreach Ministries, Inc., stated that if Jakes did not comply with the financial demand, he would proceed with a lawsuit for sexual assault and harassment, according to Triblive.
Jakes and his legal team believe that Youngblood is making up the story for financial gain.
“Bishop Jakes believes with all his heart that actual victims of sexual abuse should be treated with the utmost respect, kindness, empathy, and sympathy — and that true perpetrators of such abuse should be held accountable for their actions,” the filing stated. “But that is not the case here. Youngblood has used and abused the might of social media and the legal process to … make knowingly false accusations for his own personal and financial gain.”
The defamation suit also noted that Youngblood is a registered sex offender in the state of Pennsylvania and is currently on parole.
According to the New York Post, Youngblood had previously pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting at least two teenage boys. He spoke about one of those incidents publicly while talking to Larry Reid last month.
“In 2006, I was arrested for an SA charge from something that happened in 2002. On October the 31st, 2002, I, as a pastor, was counseling someone who was a member of my congregation, an underage individual,” Youngblood said at the 27-minute mark of the interview with Reid.
According to the pastor, the victim was a 15-year-old boy, and he admittedly inappropriately touched him.
“At the time, [I] crossed the line with the individual. This was sadly a 15 minute destructive experience in my life and their life ….This thing went back and forth for several years and in 2006, I was arrested and I was given seven years probation and one year house arrest.”
Youngblood said that he was also charged with “Corruption of Minors” for having a conversation with a 17-year-old who shared personal struggles with him. The conversation violated legal restrictions, leading to the revocation of his parole. He began serving a five to 10-year sentence for the 2002 incident in 2014, and TribLive reports that he has to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
Now, Youngblood describes himself as reformed and has even published a book titled Freedom from Homosexuality: No Longer Living the Lie.
What do you think of these latest accusations against Bishop T.D. Jakes?