6/20/24, 11:46 PM Paul Pressler (politician) - Wikipedia

Paul Pressler (politician)

Herman Paul Pressler III (June 4, 1930 – June 7, 2024)
Paul Pressler
was an American politician and judge who was a justice of
the Texas 14th Circuit Court of Appeals in his native Judge of the 14th Texas Court of
Appeals
Houston, Texas. Pressler was a key figure in the
conservative resurgence of the Southern Baptist In office
Convention, which he initiated in 1978. He was accused of 1978 – 1992
sexual misconduct or assault by at least seven men, some of Judge of the 133rd Judicial District
in Harris County
whom were underage at the time of the alleged activity.[1][2]
In office
1970 – 1978
Early life and education Texas House of Representatives
Pressler was born on June 4, 1930, to Herman P. Pressler from Harris County
Jr. and Elsie Pressler. His father was the vice president of In office
Exxon and his mother helped found the Baptist church the January 8, 1957 – January 13, 1959
family attended. He attended the The Kinkaid School, later Preceded by James Watson Yancy
transferring to Phillips Exeter Academy at the age of Jr.
sixteen.[3][1] Pressler studied government as an Succeeded by Roger Daily
undergraduate student at Princeton University, graduating
Personal details
in 1952.[1] He received his law degree from the University of
Born Herman Paul Pressler
Texas School of Law.[1]
III
In 1959, Pressler married Nancy Avery, and they had three June 4, 1930
children.[1] Houston, Texas, U.S.
Died June 7, 2024
Political career (aged 94)
Political party Republican (after
On January 8, 1957, Pressler became Texas State
1982)
Representative for Harris County, until January 13, 1959.[4]
Other political Democratic (before
He was elected as a Democrat, and remained a member of
affiliations 1982)
the party until joining the Republican Party in 1982.[1]
Spouse Nancy Avery ​(m. 1959)
In 1970, Pressler became judge of the 133rd Judicial District Children 3
in Harris County, until 1978.[4] In 1978, he became judge of
Education Princeton University
the Texas 14th Circuit Court of Appeals in his native
Houston, Texas, until 1992.[4] University of Texas at
Austin
In 1988, he became president of the Council for National Known for Southern Baptist
Policy (CNP), a conservative advocacy group, until 1990.[4] Convention
The Southern Poverty Law Center describes CNP as a conservative
shadowy, secretive group that "is a key venue where resurgence
mainstream conservatives and extremists mix."[5]

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Anne Nelson's 2021 book, Shadow Network, alleges that Pressler convinced the senior Republican
Party leadership to attempt the same practices to establish minority as in the SBC, one-party
control of the United States federal government.[6]

Ministry
In 1967, Pressler and Paige Patterson met in New Orleans to plan a political strategy to elect
conservative convention presidents and in turn members of Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)
boards.[7]

In 1978, Pressler along with W. A. Criswell, Adrian Rogers and Paige Patterson, met with a group
of determined conservative and Republican pastors and laymen at a hotel near the Atlanta airport
to launch the resurgence.[8] The Atlanta group determined to elect Rogers, pastor of Bellevue
Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, as the first Conservative Resurgence president of the
convention.[3]

In 1984, he was nominated on the SBC Executive Committee until 1991 and on the International
Mission Board in 1992 until 2000.[4] In 2004, he was elected vice-president of the Southern
Baptist Convention.[9]

During his time as a leader of the SBC, Pressler was instrumental in pushing its 47,000 churches to
adopt literal interpretations of the Bible, strongly denounce LGBTQIA+ acceptance, ban women
from preaching, align with the Republican party's political stances and goals, and help members of
the GOP get elected into public office.[10][11][12]

In 2009, Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana, announced that its new law school to be
constructed would be named in Pressler's honor. However, for financial reasons, the project was
suspended in 2013.[13]

Sexual misconduct allegations

In April 2018, the Houston Chronicle reported that Pressler was accused by Toby Twining and
lawyer Brooks Schott of sexual misconduct in separate court affidavits. Both men said Pressler
molested or solicited them for sex. In the Chronicle report, Toby Twining was a teenager in 1977
when Pressler, a youth pastor at Bethel Church in Houston, grabbed his penis in a sauna at
Houston's River Oaks Country Club.[14] The next year, Pressler was ousted from his position after
church officials received information about "an alleged incident."[12]

Brooks Schott also stated in an affidavit that he resigned his position at Pressler's former law firm
after Pressler invited him to get into a hot tub with him naked. Brooks also accused Jared Woodfill,
Pressler's longtime law partner in their firm Woodfill & Pressler LLP, who from 2002 to 2014 was
chairman of the Harris County Republican Party, of failing to prevent Pressler's sexual advances
toward him and others claiming his indiscretions were well-known at the firm.[14] Woodfill
provided sworn testimony that he had known of a child sexual abuse allegation against Pressler
since 2004.[10]

Woodfill also testified that instead of paying Pressler a salary, their firm would provide personal
assistants—mostly young men—to work out of Pressler's River Oaks mansion. Two of these former
assistants have gone on to accuse Pressler of sexual assault or misconduct.[10]

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In 2017, Pressler's former assistant Gareld Duane Rollins Jr. filed a lawsuit claiming he was
regularly raped by the conservative leader. Rollins met Pressler in high school and was part of a
Bible study Pressler led. Rollins claims he was raped two to three times a month while at Pressler's
home.[15] According to the Chronicle, Pressler agreed in 2004 to pay $450,000 to Rollins for
physical assault.[16] Southern Baptist leader Paige Patterson is also named in the suit, for helping
Pressler cover up the abuse.[17] The SBC settled the Rollins case out of court for an undisclosed
sum and the case was dismissed with prejudice on December 28, 2023.[18]

In 2019, after the scandals of sexual abuse accusations involving Pressler and sexual abuse cover-
ups involving Paige Patterson, the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary removed the
stained glass windows depicting the actors of the conservative resurgence, located in the
MacGorman Chapel and opened in 2011.[19]

In May 2022, Guidepost Solutions released an independent report stating that Pressler was the
defendant in a civil lawsuit alleging that he repeatedly abused the plaintiff beginning when the
plaintiff was 14. Two other men submitted affidavits accusing Pressler of sexual misconduct.[20]

By December 2023, seven men accused Pressler of sexually abusing them.[21]

Death
On June 7, 2024, Pressler died at the age of 94. However, his death was not reported until June 15,
the day of his funeral service.[22] No prominent SBC leaders would comment about Pressler's death
during the annual SBC conference which was held around the time of his death.[22]

References
1. Bailey, Sarah Pulliam (June 16, 2024). "Paul Pressler, Disgraced Christian Conservative
Leader, Dies at 94" (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/16/obituaries/paul-pressler-dead.html).
New York Times. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062347/https://www.nytimes.
com/2024/06/16/obituaries/paul-pressler-dead.html) from the original on June 17, 2024.
Retrieved June 16, 2024.
2. Downen, Robert (March 27, 2023). "Houston GOP activist knew for years of child sex abuse
claims against Southern Baptist leader, law partner" (https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/27/
houston-jared-woodfill-gop-paul-pressler-southern-baptist/). The Texas Tribune. Archived (http
s://web.archive.org/web/20240617062347/https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/27/houston-jar
ed-woodfill-gop-paul-pressler-southern-baptist/) from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved
March 27, 2023.
3. Adams, Liam; Gang, Duane (June 16, 2024). "Paul Pressler, ex-Christian conservative leader
accused of sexual abuse, dies at 94" (https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/06/16/
paul-pressler-southern-baptist-convention-sexual-abuse-allegations/74119761007/). USA
Today. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062348/https://www.usatoday.com/stor
y/news/nation/2024/06/16/paul-pressler-southern-baptist-convention-sexual-abuse-allegations/
74119761007/) from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
4. Todd Starnes, Paul Pressler to be nominated for SBC first vice president (https://www.baptistpr
ess.com/resource-library/news/paul-pressler-to-be-nominated-for-sbc-first-vice-president/)
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062348/https://www.baptistpress.com/resourc
e-library/news/paul-pressler-to-be-nominated-for-sbc-first-vice-president/) June 17, 2024, at the
Wayback Machine, baptistpress.com, USA, March 26, 2002

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5. "The Council for National Policy: Behind the Curtain" (https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/201

6/05/17/council-national-policy-behind-curtain). Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived (http
s://web.archive.org/web/20210112030118/https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2016/05/17/cou
ncil-national-policy-behind-curtain) from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved June 17,
2024.
6. Nelson, Anne (2019). Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical
Right. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781635573190.
7. Jacob Lupfer, Shadows in the stained glass: Patterson and Pressler chapel windows come
down (https://religionnews.com/2019/04/11/shadows-in-the-stained-glass-patterson-and-pressl
er-chapel-windows-come-down/) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062348/http
s://religionnews.com/2019/04/11/shadows-in-the-stained-glass-patterson-and-pressler-chapel-
windows-come-down/) June 17, 2024, at the Wayback Machine, religionnews.com, USA, April
11, 2019
8. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., The Southern Baptist Reformation—A First-Hand Account (https://www.ch
ristianpost.com/news/the-southern-baptist-reformation-151-a-first-hand-account.html) Archived
(https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062349/https://www.christianpost.com/news/the-souther
n-baptist-reformation-151-a-first-hand-account.html) June 17, 2024, at the Wayback Machine,
christianpost.com, USA, May 31, 2005
9. Smietana, Bob (June 15, 2024). "Paul Pressler, SBC legend accused of abuse, is dead at 94"
(https://religionnews.com/2024/06/15/paul-pressler-sbc-legend-accused-of-abuse-is-dead-94/).
Religion News Service. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062349/https://religion
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original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
10. Downen, Robert (March 27, 2023). "Houston GOP activist knew for years of child sex abuse
claims against Southern Baptist leader, law partner" (https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/27/
houston-jared-woodfill-gop-paul-pressler-southern-baptist/). The Texas Tribune. Archived (http
s://web.archive.org/web/20240617062347/https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/27/houston-jar
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June 17, 2024.
11. "Longtime Southern Baptist leader Paul Pressler, who was accused of sexual abuse, dies at
94" (https://apnews.com/article/paul-pressler-death-southern-baptist-convention-abuse-ac42aa
8817b287fb6963edf3b0110273). AP News. June 16, 2024. Archived (https://web.archive.org/w
eb/20240617041132/https://apnews.com/article/paul-pressler-death-southern-baptist-conventio
n-abuse-ac42aa8817b287fb6963edf3b0110273) from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved
June 17, 2024.
12. Downen, Robert (December 29, 2023). "Southern Baptist Convention settles high-profile
lawsuit that accused former leader of sexual abuse" (https://www.texastribune.org/2023/12/29/
southern-baptist-convention-sexual-abuse-lawsuit-settlement/). The Texas Tribune. Retrieved
June 17, 2024.
13. Christopher Schelin, New speaker of the House once led never-opened Paul Pressler School
of Law (https://baptistnews.com/article/new-speaker-of-the-house-once-led-never-opened-paul
-pressler-school-of-law/) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20231030002919/https://baptist
news.com/article/new-speaker-of-the-house-once-led-never-opened-paul-pressler-school-of-la
w/) October 30, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, baptistnews.com, USA, October 25, 2023
14. Downen, Robert (April 13, 2018). "More men accuse former Texas judge, Baptist leader of
sexual misconduct" (https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Mo
re-men-accuse-former-Texas-judge-Baptist-12831892.php). Houston Chronicle. Archived (http
s://web.archive.org/web/20180506035650/https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-tex
as/houston/article/More-men-accuse-former-Texas-judge-Baptist-12831892.php) from the
original on May 6, 2018. Retrieved May 5, 2018.

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15. Flynn, Meagan (December 27, 2017). "Houston man's lawsuit alleges retired judge sexually
assaulted him" (https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Lawsuit
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wsuit-against-ex-judge-Southern-Baptist-13596126.php). Houston Chronicle. Archived (https://
web.archive.org/web/20200910143914/https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/
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17. Merritt, Jonathan (May 3, 2018). "The Scandal Tearing Apart America's Largest Protestant
Denomination" (https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/05/sbc-patterson/559532/).
The Atlantic. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
18. Adams, Liam (December 29, 2023). "Southern Baptist Convention settles in abuse case
against Paul Pressler, case dismissed" (https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/religion/2023/
12/29/southern-baptist-convention-sbc-settles-abuse-case-against-paul-pressler/7113358900
7/). The Tennessean. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20240617062850/https://www.tenn
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(https://baptistnews.com/article/seminary-removes-stained-glass-windows-celebrating-conserv
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22. Downen, Robert (June 15, 2024). "Paul Pressler, a former Southern Baptist leader accused of
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