Former Duluth Youth Pastor Sentenced in 2 of 5 Cases

Jackson Michael Gatlin pled guilty to sexual assaulting children, while he served as a youth pastor from the Duluth Vineyard Church

DULUTH, Minn. -A former youth pastor for Duluth’s Vineyard Church, was sentenced to 13 years in prison Monday, after entering a guilty plea earlier this month.

Jackson Michael Gatlin, 36, of Duluth, was a former youth pastor for Vineyard Church, where he sexually assaulted five girls from the congregation. On Monday, Gatlin was sentenced to 13 years in prison in two of the cases. His sentencing for the three remaining cases is scheduled for Tuesday.

Gatlin faced First Degree Criminal Sexual Assault charges, with enhancements for being an adult in a position of authority, after victims came forward about the abuse they suffered, some dating back to 2007.

Victims and their families have previously mentioned bringing civil suits against the church, its parent company Vineyard USA, and Gatlin’s parents, who were both leaders within the church. The families allege that the parents’ position within the church, and a blind eye from the church itself, enabled the allegations against Gatlin to go unnoticed for so long.