Tom Keesee, son of Religion Life Church founders, accused of abuse

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Tuesday, February 11, 2025

Gary Thomas “Tom” Keesee, a son of Gary and Drenda Keesee, founders and senior pastors of Religion Life Church, a family-run, multi-campus megachurch in Ohio, is dealing with allegations of sexual abuse, together with one from his sister, Kirsten McKinney.

Along with being a son of the Religion Life Church founders, Tom Keesee can also be the previous chief media officer on the church, in response to LinkedIn. He resigned from the place final August.

When requested in regards to the allegations cited in a change.org petition with greater than 2,500 signatures calling for Ohio Legal professional Normal Dave Yost to research Tom Kessee, a consultant on the church instructed The Christian Publish final Thursday that that they had no remark. 

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Nonetheless, the church’s legal professional, Katie Tabor, acknowledged “critical allegations regarding previous conduct involving a member of our church leaders’ household” in a press release to The Columbus Dispatch and expressed a willingness to be clear and cooperative with authorities.

“We need to specific our deepest compassion for many who have come ahead and for anybody who has skilled hurt. We acknowledge the braveness it takes to talk out. We encourage anybody impacted to hunt applicable assist and to report considerations to the correct authorities,” Tabor mentioned. “We ask for prayers for all these affected and for our church household as we navigate this difficult time. We stay steadfast in our mission to serve with religion, love, and compassion.”

In an earlier deal with to the church, clips of which can be found on YouTube, Pastor Gary Keesee said that Religion Life Church is a “household church” and doesn’t condone abuse.

“I am not conscious of anybody at the moment on this employees that has been accused of being concerned with any sort of this exercise. Please be sure you know that. Please know that Drenda and I, our pastoral group has not been accused of something. Our purpose is to hold out the work that God has assigned us to do, and in that course of, regulation enforcement will cope with anybody that could be responsible of such exercise, and the harmless will probably be exonerated,” he mentioned.

“If you already know of a case of abuse, please contact the authorities, or in case you want pastoral care, please be happy to succeed in our pastoral group. We’re the identical church that we have all the time been, and we’ve got all the time been right here for you, and we’ll all the time be right here for you.”

The Ohio Legal professional Normal’s Workplace instructed CP that an investigation into the allegations towards Tom Keesee was being dealt with by the Knox County Sheriff’s Workplace, which didn’t reply to a request for remark.

Licking County Sheriff’s Lt. Gus Moore instructed The Columbus Dispatch that the case had been transferred to them and they might be investigating.

Along with her position as co-senior pastor at Religion Life Church, Drenda Keesee additionally serves as a Knox County Commissioner, a tv host and a political commentator on the channel “Drenda on Guard.” She additionally co-founded Ahead Monetary Providers.

Calls to the Knox County Commissioners’ workplace went unanswered final Thursday.

Yost’s workplace defined that regardless of allegations that his workplace was deliberately blocking the investigation of Tom Keesee as a result of his friendship with Drenda Keesee, the reality is that there’s a authorized battle of curiosity.

The Ohio Legal professional Normal’s Bureau of Felony Investigation (BCI) serves as Ohio’s crime lab and legal data keeper and presents investigative providers to native, state, and federal regulation enforcement businesses, in response to the company’s web site.

To conduct an investigation, native regulation enforcement or prosecutor’s workplace should request an investigation. Earlier than the BCI can transfer ahead with any investigation, any potential conflicts of curiosity have to be evaluated.

A battle of curiosity evaluation confirmed that the BCI had a battle of curiosity within the case due to Yost’s friendship with Drenda Keesee. The Knox County Sheriff’s Workplace was reportedly additionally looking for a third-party company to conduct the investigation into Tom Keesee as a result of a battle of curiosity.

“I’ve spent my life combating for the survivors of sexual abuse, each as a prosecutor and as legal professional basic. If my workplace had accepted this investigation, one among two issues would have occurred: a cost, or a choice to not cost for a scarcity of proof,” Yost mentioned in a press release to CP.

“Both approach, the credibility of the investigation would have been referred to as into query — both by my critics who would declare my friendship prevented a radical investigation, or by protection counsel at trial, who would attempt to declare that I’m overreacting and focusing on his consumer to show my integrity for political functions,” he continued.

“The victims within the scenario deserve higher than that. An impartial third get together should carry out this investigation. By declining to carry out an investigation during which I’ve private battle, I’m honoring the victims, the method, the general public at giant and the reason for justice.”

The petition calling on Yost to research the claims emerged after McKinney publicly revealed that she was additionally a sufferer of her brother, lending assist to the voices already calling for him to be investigated.

“Many are conscious of allegations involving a member of the family. I used to be a sufferer, and once I discovered of ongoing considerations for others’ security together with different’s tales I already knew, I felt a accountability to step ahead. A personal police investigation has been engaged on this case alongside different victims,” McKinney wrote on Fb.

Among the many different alleged victims is Olivia Wooten, who publicly revealed that she’s a survivor in response to McKinney’s disclosure.

“I’m a survivor of sexual abuse, and my story was one which was silenced and lined up by the very neighborhood that was supposed to guard me. My previous fears tried to cease me when deciding to open this case and It is taken a very long time for me to search out my voice, however I’m not afraid to share my reality,” she wrote on Fb.

Olivia Wooten’s husband, Nathan Wooten, who’s a former worker of Religion Life Church, additionally alleged in a press release on Fb that Tom Keesee confessed to him greater than a decade in the past that he had sexually assaulted his spouse whereas she was a minor.