The Edmond Sun

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December 7, 2009

Ex-church youth worker pleads guilty

Action allows civil lawsuit to move forward

Mark Schlachtenhaufen

EDMOND — An Edmond area church’s ex-youth volunteer has received a 10-year prison sentence for his role in an alleged sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl.

In court Monday morning Charles W. “Chuck” Bryan Jr., 47, of Oklahoma City, pleaded guilty and received 10 years in prison and a 10-year suspended sentence. Additionally, upon his release Bryan must register as a sex offender, according to the plea agreement.

Bryan faced three counts of committing a lewd or indecent act with a child under age 16. The criminal felony initial filing was in December 2008. Initially, the defendant pleaded not guilty.

Jerry Kirksey, an Edmond attorney representing the victim’s family in a related civil lawsuit, said the plea agreement is a welcome development in that it means the victim will not have to testify in open court during a criminal trial.

“I think it’s a good thing,” Kirksey said of the punishment. “I think (Bryan) deserves the time in the penitentiary.”

Kirksey said now that the criminal side of the case has been resolved, the civil lawsuit may proceed and the discovery phase will begin.

In June 2008, the victim’s mother filed the civil lawsuit against an Edmond-area church, claiming that Bryan, a former youth ministry volunteer, allegedly conducted an illegal sexual relationship with her daughter.

The lawsuit names Chisholm Creek Baptist Church, 17600 N. Western Ave., Dan Maxwell, the church’s pastor, and Bryan as defendants. The church has an Edmond mailing address, but lies within the Oklahoma City Police Department’s jurisdiction.

Oklahoma City Attorney Mickey Walsh is listed as the attorney for the church and Maxwell. Walsh did not immediately reply to a message left Monday by The Sun seeking comment.

In October 2007, Maxwell called the Grace Rescue Mission in Oklahoma City asking the organization for volunteers to assist with various tasks at Chisholm Creek Baptist, according to court records. Bryan was one of the volunteers.

In January 2008, the church hired Bryan’s son to be the youth minister. Whether the son was salaried or not was not known, according to a previous Edmond Sun report. Then Charles “Chuck” Bryan became a youth ministry volunteer.

As a result, Bryan met the victim. During a three-month period Bryan allegedly “molested, assaulted, battered, and conducted an illegal sexual relationship” with the victim, the lawsuit claims. The plaintiff also contends that Bryan acted “under the color of authority” as assistant youth director.

The plaintiff claims that due to the alleged abuse the victim “has suffered severe, permanent psychological, emotional and physical injuries ...” The victim has and will face medical expenses due to the sustained injuries, the plaintiff claims.

The alleged misconduct was discovered when the victim’s mother examined text messages and found her daughter had been receiving messages from a man she met at church.

In 2007, Bryan pled guilty to three counts of second-degree forgery. In May 2007 he began serving a five-year deferred sentence for uttering forged instruments, according to an online state court records database.



marks@edmondsun.com | 341-2121, ext. 102

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