Four men are suing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the state of Washington, alleging the church reinstated a known pedophile to the position of high priest without warning members, allowing him to continue sexually abusing children as young as 5 years old.
In a
complaint removed to Washington federal court on Monday, the four, suing anonymously as John Roe 1 through 4, say they were each abused by David Herget, who had previously admitted to raping his own 13-year-old daughter in 1993 but then was rebaptized by the church and allowed to rise to a position of authority once again.
According to the complaint, Herget was convicted of raping his daughter but only served 180 days in prison after the church urged leniency. And despite the church excommunicating Herget, he was allowed back into certain church services by 1997 and became a regular presence in the church in Mountlake Terrace.
The plaintiffs allege the church encourages forgiveness and reintegration of excommunicated members, even those who sexually prey on children, and expected church members to treat Herget as if he was a "new man" and his previous crimes hadn't happened.
As a result, Herget was allowed to participate in church services involving children and was elevated to high priest, the complaint says. On at least one occasion, he was allowed to play the role of Santa Claus, and children were encouraged to sit on his lap despite LDS policy holding that churches should not allow child sexual predators to take positions that directly involve children, according to the complaint.
Herget was allowed to give young boys rides to and from events and to create "special programs" for children that included pieces of candy, the complaint says. Herget used the authority of the church to isolate, groom and abuse the children between 2001, when he was released from state supervision, until 2005, when he was once again arrested for child rape and molestation, according to the complaint.
Herget committed suicide in July 2025 while incarcerated, according to the complaint.
The four plaintiffs allege the church owed them a duty to protect them as minor children, but instead hid and overlooked Herget's crimes against them for the sake of protecting the church's reputation and avoiding scandal.
The suit includes claims for negligence and negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
"Pedophiles should not be given access to children," Alexandra M. Walsh of
Anapol Weiss, representing the plaintiffs, said Tuesday. "Here, these LDS defendants ignored that basic principle, letting a convicted child rapist give candy to children at church and dress up as Santa during the holidays. These four brave plaintiffs are now bravely coming forward to hold defendants accountable and help prevent this nightmare from happening to other kids."
Representatives for the church could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.
The plaintiffs are represented by Ian M. Bauer and Darrell L. Cochran of
Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala PLLC, Alexandra M. Walsh and Paige N. Boldt of Anapol Weiss and R. Stanley Gipe and Matthew A. Dolman of
Dolman Law Group.
The church is represented by Meeghan Dooley and Harry H. Schneider Jr. of
Perkins Coie.
The case is Roe 1 et al. v. The Corporation of the President of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Successors et al., case number
2:25-cv-02177, in the
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.
--Editing by Janice Carter Brown.
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