NASHVILLE, Tenn. -
A lawsuit was filed Friday in Davidson County against Mt. Zion Baptist Church.
Bishop Joseph Walker III, along with five church leaders is accused of abusing four former members.
The lawsuit claims in part, repeated incidents of clerical malpractice by sexual exploitation in counseling, sexual battery, aggravated sexual battery, assault through threats and false imprisonment.
The suit filed by Nashville attorney Connie Allison also claims exploitation of women at the church is a vast and very profitable act involving possibly hundreds of women over the last 10 years.
On Monday security at Mt. Zion was tight, with a guard patrolling the campus located on Murfreesboro Road.
The 25,000 member congregation has three area locations. There are also locations on Jefferson Street and Old Hickory Boulevard.
Walker began his work at Mt. Zion 20 years ago with 175 members.
The church now has an estimated worth of $30 million.
The church released a statement on the lawsuit reading in part, "It is truly sad that a church and its leaders can be attacked with such shocking and ugly charges when the apparent motive is to extract huge sums of money from the congregation and its leaders. Mt. Zion is a welcoming and caring community."
Only one name is listed as a plaintiff in the lawsuit, with three additional Jane Doe's referenced in the complaint.
Nashville's News 2 spoke with the plaintiff's attorney Connie Allison over the phone.
She told Nashville's News 2 the lawsuit is not about money and that she and her client are only trying to stop this from happening to other people.
The lawsuit states the damages are believed to be $5 million.
Attorneys for Mt. Zion have not commented on the case.
