Lawsuit accuses ACNA congregation of negligence that led to child sexual abuse

When Cherin Marie joined Christ Our Light Anglican Church in 2013, she couldn’t imagine filing a lawsuit against the close-knit Anglican Church in North America church plant in Big Rock, Illinois, which many of her relatives attended. But three years after her then nine-year-old daughter first said she was sexually abused by Mark Rivera, a lay minister at the church, Cherin feels she has no other option.

Cherin, who declined to use her last name to protect her daughter’s privacy, filed a lawsuit on May 18 against the church, arguing that her daughter has experienced mental anguish and emotional and physical pain because of the church’s negligence. The lawsuit requests over $50,000 in damages. The case cocounsel will be longtime sexual abuse attorney Boz Tchividjian and local counsel Evan Smola.

“My biggest hope is that by raising public awareness through this suit, any survivors that haven’t been reached might be made aware of safe avenues to reach out to and get help,” Cherin said in an interview. She hopes the lawsuit will hold the church accountable.