Protesters gathered outside a Fort Worth-area church Sunday ahead of a vote to rehire a pastor who allowed his son — a registered sex offender — to serve as a general contractor at an affiliated K-12 school.
Heritage Baptist Church / Inserts of Eric Crawford, left, and Caleb Crawford, right
A church member who asked to remain anonymous confirmed that while a majority voted in favor of rehiring Eric Crawford, 101-79, the 75% threshold required to restore him to the pulpit of Heritage Baptist Church was not met.
“I’m thrilled that members came out and were able to voice their opinion,” said Katie Thompson, a former member who created a Change.org petition calling for Crawford’s removal, an independent review, stronger policies and greater transparency. “While 56% voting yes is still disappointing overall, I believe that the media coverage encouraged others to stand up against what they knew was wrong.”
The anonymous member, who voted against Crawford, said his decision was based on the former pastor’s repeated dishonesty from the pulpit and his failure to meet the biblical qualification of managing his household well.
Secret Exposed
Heritage Baptist Church, a member of the Independent Baptist Fellowship International (IBFI), had promised change following complaints from Heritage Christian Academy parents that Crawford’s son, Caleb, was allowed on school premises during open hours.
In February, parents discovered that Caleb, 31, had a 2016 conviction of indecency with a child for sexual contact with a minor. Parents reported observing Caleb doing maintenance work and installing cameras despite his sex offender status. Caleb had also been leading music at the church, which shares a building with some of the school classrooms and a day care. He reportedly had free access to children’s areas and even carried his own set of keys.
After authorities learned of the situation, several staff members and teachers admitted to police that the school had been instructed to hide Caleb’s criminal record from parents, according to an affidavit obtained by Fox 4.
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In response to the backlash, the church fired Caleb. The pastor then resigned while under suspension and also stepped down as IBFI president. At the time, church officials released a statement to The Dallas Morning News indicating the church would “review and reinforce campus procedures and security measures across all ministries,” with plans to create a new visitor access system and audit background checks.
However, instead of presenting the congregation with alternative candidates for the pastorate, the church invited Crawford to preach the morning and evening services of June 28, after which the vote was held.
Legal Action
Caleb Crawford was 17 when he allegedly began molesting his 12-year-old cousin, Taylor Hamilton. Court documents obtained by Fox 4 say the unwanted touching persisted until he left for college at 19. The age of consent in the state of Texas is 17.
“This is something that he was convicted of and served time for,” Hamilton told Fox 4. “No matter what anyone says, he was found guilty.”
In 2016, Caleb took a plea deal that included a two-year prison term and a lifelong requirement to register as a sex offender. Article 62.063 of the Texas Penal Code states that a person who registers as a sex offender due to a crime against a victim younger than 17 may not “provide or offer to provide a service at any public or private primary or secondary school.” Texas law also limits the freedom of registered sex offenders to enter a school, live on a school campus or be near children.
Since his release from prison, Caleb’s record had been clean. But on Feb. 20, police arrested him for failing to report his job status as required by law. According to The Dallas Morning News, Caleb stopped reporting employment changes after 2021 and listed his work address as Fort Worth rather than Haslet, where the church and academy are located.
Thompson described Caleb’s criminal history as an open secret among church members, many of whom were part of the congregation during the criminal trial.
Thompson left Heritage Baptist in 2003 when Caleb was a young boy, but has kept in contact with other members. She said she knows the Crawfords and two members of the pastoral committee personally, and noted that Caleb’s mother, Tanya Crawford, had been serving as the church secretary until her husband stepped down. Thompson described the congregation as dominated by two families that have grown and intermarried over the years, and said newer members unrelated to those families have faced pushback for raising questions about Caleb Crawford.
“When I first started posting in February, I had many close friends tell me I didn’t know the full story and that [Caleb] was innocent,” Thompson said. “Even to this day, they are claiming innocence is why it doesn’t matter.”
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