In recent news, it turns out Bob Malm is not the only dirtbag clergyperson to sue his members in an effort to suppress free speech.
James MacDonald, the senior pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel, recently filed suit against the bloggers behind The Elephants Debt, a publication that criticizes MacDonald for allegedly misgoverning the church, inflating his salary, and all the usual antics you’d expect. (Sound familiar?)
In my review of the materials on The Elephants Debt, I don’t see anything defamatory, but then I am retired as an attorney, and never practiced law in Illinois, the relevant jurisdiction. But some sounds strikingly familiar, including the efforts by the plaintiff’s attorney to run up the bill, including via claims that his motion is an emergency. Sounds like he comes from the Sugarland Chiow school of legal ethics.
Details of the situation are at https://theelephantsdebt.com/the-authors/, with great coverage on The Wartburg Watch and other major publications. Until I have time to write more, I’ll point those interested to those sources.
Note too that the defendants are facing extraordinary expenses as they defend against the lawsuit. If you wish to contribute — and I encourage you to do so — you can find the relevant GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/the-elephant039s-debt-legal-defense.