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Abuse of Power or Authority / Child Molestation / Child Rape

1031: David Duffett

Cajsa LilliehookLeave a comment

David Duffett was the youth director at Bible Baptist Church in Fairbanks, Alaska for over twenty years. He was listed as the youth director, bus ministries director, and teacher of the Teen Church and Teens N Training programs. The website further states Duffett runs a yearly youth camp and is the head of Teen Bible Time.

In February, 2023, he was arrested for felony sexual abuse of a minor by a person in authority. His father is the pastor of the church and is alleged to have protected him for years. The abuse is alleged to have happened fifteen years ago. The victim attended Bible Baptist Church. He began giving her gifts when she was fifteen. He began engaging in sex acts when she turned sixteen. Her family found out and put a stop to it. Duffett’s father is the pastor of the church and is alleged to have protected him.

The victim said that she was shunned by her “church family” when she and her family told the pastor when she was a child. She said that women in the church victim-blame. She opposed a bail relaxation that would permit him to see his nieces and nephews saying she did not trust the proposed supervisor to tell the truth.

He is charged with having engaged in sex acts with a 16 or 17-year-old girl while in a position of authority.

Youth pastor's request for bail to see nieces and - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK) - March 2, 2023 - page 1 March 2, 2023 | Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK) | Haley Lehman A Fairbanks judge denied a youth pastor's request Wednesday to have a third-party custodian so he could see his nieces and nephews. David Duffett, 44, was indicted on Feb. 1 on a charge of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor when he was in a position of authority. Duffett has been a youth pastor at Bible Baptist Church of Fairbanks for over 20 years. Duffett reportedly had a relationship with a 15-year-old girl beginning in 2008. According to Assistant District Attorney Tylor Schmitt, the relationship turned sexual after she turned 16. The two stopped their relationship after the girl's family learned of it. Duffett reportedly admitted to Alaska State Troopers to having a relationship with the girl and apologized to the girl and her family after it was discovered. Defense attorney Bill Satterberg requested that David Duffett be supervised by Lindsay Duffett, David's, and Nehemiah Greenfield, David's brother-in-law, so David could see his 11 nieces and nephews. The victim told the court that she disagreed with Duffett's request. She said she understood that it is hard to be away from family. "I felt that when I came forward to his father about what happened to me," the woman told the court. She said she was shunned from the church family she had grown up with while Duffett was allowed to continue his life in the church as normal
March 2, 2023 | Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK)
Author/Byline: Haley Lehman | Section: Local News
The woman also said that women at Bible Baptist Church take part in victim blaming and are told to be silent, so she doesn't trust Lindsay Duffett to tell the truth. Of Greenfield, the woman said, "His loyalties lie with the Duffetts and not the court." "David has demonstrated an ability to abuse young, minor children that look up to him," the woman said. Lindsay Duffett testified that she has been married to David Duffett for 12 years and they have six children together. They normally visit with their nieces and nephews two to three times a week, she said. Nehemiah Greenfield testified that he works at Bible Baptist Church performing maintenance and administrative tasks. He said he grew up going to Bible Baptist Church in Fairbanks and is married to Duffett's sister. According to court records, Greenfield paid Duffett's bail of $50,000. Both Lindsay Duffett and Greenfield told the court that they would report David Duffett to the court if necessary. Assistant District Attorney Dominic Plantamura said the state shared the concern of the victim. He argued that Lindsay Duffett and Greenfield would show favoritism to Duffett and fail to report him if he violates bail conditions. Defense attorney Bill Satterberg argued that Duffett has shown no interest in harming children or in reoffending. He said that as family members to Duffett, Lindsay Duffett and Greenfield have a stake in the game and would watch out for their own children as well. Superior Court Judge Kirk Schwalm expressed his concern that the number of nieces and nephews seemed to vary and the contact with the children did not seem well regulated. The arrangement does not seem adequate to protect the public, Schwalm said.
Duffett remains on house arrest and is not allowed to have contact with anyone outside of his immediate family under the age of 18. Copyright (c) 2023 Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. All Rights Reserved.

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