Elevation Church Fires Youth Pastor Over Allegations of Sexual Abuse With Students
Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC, the 17,000-member multisite campus with 20 locations led by pastor Steven Furtick, has dismissed youth pastor Tim Somers after allegations emerged that he sexually abused at least one student a decade earlier at a previous church, according to Amy Smith of Watchkeep, who broke the story.
Last month, it was reported that pastor Jerry Nickerson of Hope Fellowship’s Frisco West Campus was terminated after he confessed to having inappropriate contact with a minor 10 years earlier at Oaks Church.
This prompted the Oaks church to conduct an investigation of the situation, looking for further victims, when allegations emerged that Somers, who also pastored here prior to joining Elevation, was engaging in similar conduct with former students.
At present, no charges have been filed against Somers.
A spokesperson for Elevation Church told The Christian Post:
“Recently, allegations were brought forward about Tim Somers’ conduct while serving at a church in Texas approximately 12 years ago. As soon as Elevation learned about these allegations, we reached out to local Texas authorities and immediately placed Tim on leave. No charges have been filed. But Tim understands how impactful these allegations are for his role in ministry and we have agreed he will no longer serve on staff.”