TULSA, Okla. (AP) - A judge has refused to dismiss a
civil lawsuit that accuses a Tulsa megachurch of trying to cover up the
rape of a 13-year-old girl by a worker on the church's campus.
The Victory Christian Center had argued that the
girl's mother, who filed the suit, was not entitled to any relief under
the law. A judge on Monday rejected the church's request to dismiss the
lawsuit.
Ex-janitor Chris Denman was sentenced to 55 years
in prison after pleading guilty to multiple sex-related charges. Denman
admitted raping the teenage girl in a stairwell on church property.
The lawsuit accuses employees of not reporting the
August rape to the authorities while the church conducted an in-house
investigation.
The mother is seeking more than $75,000 in damages.
Copyright 2013 The
Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
