Sexual assault trial set for former Duluth youth pastor – Duluth News Tribune

DULUTH – The first of several possible trials has been scheduled for a former youth pastor accused of sexually abusing numerous girls.

Judge Dale Harris on Thursday set November 18 as the trial date for Jackson Michael Gatlin, who served for a long time under his parents as a pastor at the Vineyard Church in the Kenwood neighborhood of Duluth.

Harris last month rejected motions to dismiss most of the charges against Gatlin, paving the way for a trial in those cases.

The case to be heard first concerns a woman identified only as “Victim 1.”

According to a criminal complaint, she was 16 and new in town when Gatlin, then 19, invited her to his home to watch football. He assured her his parents would be home, she reported, but when she arrived, they weren’t there.

The woman told police Gatlin took her into his bedroom and locked the door, took her phone and placed it on a high shelf out of reach. She said he then pushed her onto a futon and pulled down her pants, sexually assaulting her with his hand while she resisted and told him to stop.

The woman told police that she was only able to escape after asking for a drink, running barefoot down the street and hiding.

Gatlin is accused of third and fourth degree sexual abuse in this case.

However, the trial is expected to include substantial evidence of his other alleged crimes and sexual assaults. Harris ruled in favor of a prosecutor’s request to introduce evidence of Spriegl or bad acts to prove a motive and pattern of behavior.

Authorities allege that Michael and Brenda Gatlin allowed their son to use the church as a “hunting ground” for years and “prey on underage girls without consequence.”

In the case of Victim 1, she reportedly informed her mother about the assault at the time. The mother then called Brenda Gatlin, who reportedly responded, “We know your daughter is struggling,” before hanging up.

Wyatt Buckner / File / Duluth Media Group

The judge’s order could allow prosecutors to take witness statements in the four other pending criminal cases. All of these cases involve girls the prosecutor knew from church when they were between the ages of 11 and 16.

Five other alleged victims were also identified. One has since died, while others were not sexually abused or could not be charged for other reasons.

Gatlin, who is free on bail, was fired from the church in February 2023 after refusing to cooperate with an internal investigation.

His parents have also resigned or been fired from their positions at the local church and at Vineyard USA and have reportedly moved out of state.

The trial is expected to last up to a week and a half and end just before Thanksgiving, as Judge Harris tried to fit it into his calendar before he retired in early January.

The cases are being prosecuted by St. Louis County Assistant District Attorney Michael Hagley, while Gatlin has hired Duluth defense attorney Chris Stocke.

Tom Olsen has covered crime and courts and the 8th Congressional District for the Duluth News Tribune since 2013. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth and has lived in the city since birth. Readers can reach Olsen at 218-723-5333 or [email protected].