The founder of a Dallas megachurch is suing a former Homestead pastor convicted of sex assault for libel, accusing him of making false claims in an online podcast and attempting to extort him out of millions of dollars.
Bishop T.D. Jakes, also renown as a motivational speaker and author, filed the federal lawsuit on Monday against Duane Youngblood over comments he made on the Larry Reid Live podcast last month accusing Jakes of sexual abuse.
The complaint alleges that Youngblood is attempting to rewrite history to deflect blame from his own criminal conduct, and at the same time smear Jakes “in a blatant and explicit attempt to extort him for millions of dollars.”
Jakes, 67, founded The Potter’s House, a non-denominational church with more than 30,000 members in 1996. It has locations in Fort Worth and Frisco, Texas, as well as Denver. Jakes served as a spiritual guide for the past three presidents, the complaint said, and led the sermon the morning of former President Barack Obama’s 2009 inauguration.
Youngblood, 57, founded Higher Call World Outreach Ministries Inc. and in 2003, purchased the former SS. Peter & Paul church building on Mifflin Street in Homestead.
Youngblood was accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy in 2002 while counseling him. He pleaded guilty in 2006 to sexual assault and was ordered to serve 4-1/2 to nine years in prison. Then in 2014, Youngblood pleaded guilty to corruption of minors.
He must register as sex offender for the rest of his life.
According to the lawsuit, on Oct. 28, Youngblood spoke in an interview for more than two hours with Larry Reid Live, an online video podcast that has more than 150,000 subscribers on YouTube.
The title of the episode was “The Abused become the Abuser.”
The lawsuit alleges that, in the episode, Youngblood lied about the circumstances of his criminal convictions, and then said that he became an abuser “at the hands of pastors and religious figures he encountered in his youth.”
Youngblood claimed in the interview, which the lawsuit said has gone viral, that Jakes tried to groom and sexually abuse him nearly 40 years ago when Jakes was in Pittsburgh to support a local church, the complaint said.
Youngblood alleged that Jakes wrapped his arms around him and tried to kiss him at the home of an elder in the church and then called him the next morning and told him he wanted to sleep with him.
During the podcast interview, the lawsuit said, Youngblood called the interaction “so extremely damaging.”
Youngblood could not immediately be reached for comment.
Jakes said in his lawsuit that Youngblood’s claims are false.
The complaint alleges that Youngblood went on the podcast again on Nov. 3 and repeated the same story, but this time accused Jakes of attempted sexual assault.
“Youngblood’s intent and motive for making these allegations would be made absolutely clear with his exorbitant financial demands weeks later,” the complaint said.
On Nov. 15, a lawyer who said he represented Youngblood sent Jakes a demand letter for $6 million “to resolve this matter quickly and privately.”
Otherwise, it said, Youngblood would sue Jakes for sexual assault and harassment, the lawsuit said.
“The motivation of the ‘demand’ was clear: pay millions of dollars; otherwise, the podcast strategy and other similar tactics of attempting to publicly harass and shame Bishop Jakes would continue,” the lawsuit said.
The complaint alleges that Youngblood’s comments have tarnished Jakes’ reputation and jeopardized his philanthropic work.
They also allege they’ve taken a physical toll, noting that on Sunday, Jakes “suffered a medical crisis” on stage during church services.
The complaint includes claims for libel and civil conspiracy.
Jakes, 67, had what his church described as a “slight health incident” during a sermon Sunday, according to USA Today.
He was seen to pause his sermon and shake on stage in footage posted to social media.
Paula Reed Ward is a TribLive reporter covering federal and Allegheny County courts. She joined the Trib in 2020 after spending nearly 17 years at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, where she was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team. She is the author of “Death by Cyanide.” She can be reached at pward@triblive.com.