Ethnos360 Investigation of Historical Abuse Wrapping Up
The long process may be concluded with a report by the end of the year.
Photo via Facebook
In 2011, Ethnos360 (then New Tribes Mission) commissioned an investigation of abuse allegations spanning decades. Twelve years later, it may finally be reaching its conclusion.
The latest round of investigative interviews related to abuse allegations against New Tribes Mission (NTM) employees is complete, and the master report of its findings should be presented to a recommendations panel in July, according to the investigation’s coordinator Theresa Sidebotham.
The master report will not be released publicly because it contains confidential details that could harm survivors and undermine their courage to come forward, Sidebotham said. A summary report will be released. Similar summaries can be found on the investigation website.
IHART (Independent Historical Allegations Review Team) was commissioned by Ethnos360 in 2011 to “look at historical allegations brought forward by any individual regarding any person associated with NTM over the course of its 70+ year history,” Sidebotham told MinistryWatch. It includes allegations of misdeeds from 1942 until 2004.
According to Ethnos 360, it began uncovering issues in the 1990s and “apologized for their leadership style, acknowledging that it led to people being treated poorly, and that leaders had been defensive when their authority was questioned.”
The most recent portion of the historical abuse investigation started in 2021 and is the final step of examining allegations against NTM anywhere in the world, whereas previous investigations were defined by geographical area. According to Sidebotham, this investigator “spoke to over 140 people, reviewed thousands of documents, and interviewed witnesses all over the United States and in two other countries.”
Access to MinistryWatch content is free. However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.
Once the investigation master report is ready, it will be presented to a recommendations panel made up of “independent experts,” including children of missionaries, ministry leaders, and counselors. Ethnos360 has no control over the make-up of the panel, Sidebotham said. As IHART coordinator, she will choose the panel members.
“My goal is to find people who have background and experience with abuse and trauma, understand ministries, have a heart to care for survivors and address abuse, and also are not inherently biased in any direction. This is important, given that many allegations are substantiated, but some are not,” she explained.
The panel members are given a “modest” honorarium and their travel expenses are paid.
After reviewing the master report, the panel recommends possible disciplinary actions to the Ethnos360 board of directors, who generally accepts them and occasionally increases them.
Concurrently, Sidebotham will create individual “statements of findings” for each of the participants who presented allegations.
These last two steps will take several more months, but Sidebotham “hopes and plans” to complete the process by the end of 2023.
Recently, the Ethnos Truth project created a website questioning the independence of the IHART investigation. Dave Richardson, who says he’s been a long-time supporter of Ethnos, is the aggregator and administrator and claims that about 20 people—none of whom he named—have contributed information and documents to the website. He attests to the authenticity of the documents found there.
One accusation is that Sidebotham had previously served as “outside general counsel” for NTM. This is based, at least in part, on the Professional Investigators International report about missionary Donn Ketcham from March 11, 2016 stating, “Theresa Lynn Sidebotham was employed by New Tribes Mission as General Counsel and then as the coordinator of [IHART].”
Sidebotham and Ethnos360 deny this allegation, saying she “is not now and has never” been the general counsel or in-house counsel for NTM or Ethnos360. “In 2014, after she provided some limited assistance with the IHART process, we asked her to take over the IHART Coordinator role because of her expertise in this area.”
Sidebotham replaced former IHART coordinator Pat Hendrix in 2014. “As we progressed through the first investigations with IHART, we came to realize that having an attorney at the helm of an investigative team … provided an additional layer of legal protection for the [victim’s] stories beyond the confidentiality IHART was already offering through Ms. Hendrix.”
Sidebotham also said the investigative team is not connected to Ethnos360. The list of investigators is not made public due to previous attacks and threats of violence, she explained. Its investigative standard for evaluating allegations is by a preponderance of the evidence, the same standard used in civil trials. It can be described as the allegations are found to be “more likely true than not.”
Ethnos360 funds the IHART investigation. According to its website, “Ethnos360 has other income sources, such as investment income, which are used to cover our operating expenses and other areas that do not typically receive many designated funds. Ethnos360 uses these funds to cover the expenses associated with the historical inquiries and counseling.”
