RICO Lawsuit Against Mark Driscoll

August 29, 2016 - The RICO lawsuit was dismissed without prejudice on August 25. This is actually good news, since it allows the lawsuit to be refiled when we get the funds to proceed. See Update 3 for more information and a financial status update.

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Please support those who are standing against fraud in the church.

Mars Hill Church leaders made fraudulent representations to solicit contributions for specific purposes (Global Fund, Campus Fund, and the Jesus Festival) and then redirected those designated donations to other unauthorized purposes. In the Real Marriage book campaign, general funds were used by Mars Hill Church to scam the New York Times bestseller list and to promote Mark Driscoll’s book, resulting in personal enrichment of Driscoll and Sutton Turner. These practices were so deeply embedded, pervasive, and continuous that it was effectively institutionalized as a business practice at Mars Hill Church.

A RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) lawsuit has been filed against Mark Driscoll and Sutton Turner, both former Mars Hill Church executive elders. The lawsuit complaint details how the two executive elders, together with their co-conspirators, brought to ruin a once thriving church by fraudulently exploiting the trust, generosity, and sense of community of thousands of people. There is link to the filed complaint at the bottom of this page.

By contributing to this fund, you will help ensure we are able to get to the truth about what transpired at Mars Hill Church. Costs will include many depositions, a forensic audit of the MHC books, a voluminous document production including emails and other documents, the necessary expert witnesses, as well as the legal work and other expenses that will be necessary to carry this lawsuit to its conclusion. 

Because of the complexity of the lawsuit, we don't know the total amount needed. The goal is subject to change based on the process and the need. 

Thanks for your support!

Donate
All funds donated through this GoFundMe page are charged an 8% handling fee. If you wish to save this fee by sending a check, you can make it out to Brian Jacobsen. Please include a note on the memo line indicating it is for the Mars Hill lawsuit.  The mailing address is: 
       Brian Jacobsen
       PO Box 556
       Snoqualmie, WA 98065

If you want to use PayPal or donate in another manner, please contact me.*

All offline giving will be included on this page. Please let me know if you wish to remain anonymous.

There is provision in the RICO statutes for the recovery of legal fees. If we do recover legal fees at the end of this process, we will want to reimburse those who have donated, so please provide me with your contact information.*

Share
Please share this page and other information about the lawsuit in as many ways as you can, using Facebook, Twitter, email, etc.

Thank you,
Brian & Connie Jacobsen
Ryan & Arica Kildea

* To send a private message to Brian Jacobsen, click on Contact Organizer within the Contact area at the bottom of this screen. Depending on your device, you might need to click on the Contact button to find the Contact Organizer option.

For information about the Mars Hill situation, you could start at this Seattle Times article - www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/mars-hill-church-reeling-as-pastor-mark-driscoll-quits/. 

The Daily Beast posted a more recent, fairly comprehensive article - www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/21/mars-hill-s-controversial-pastor-mark-driscoll-is-back-with-a-new-megachurch-in-phoenix.html. 

Some of the source documents and background information about what happened at Mars Hill Church can be found at marshilllawsuit.com/. 

A copy of the RICO lawsuit complaint can be found at - www.patheos.com/blogs/warrenthrockmorton/2016/02/29/rico-lawsuit-filed-against-former-leaders-of-mars-hill-church/.