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Posted on 07/23/2026 12:23:59 PM PDT by Morgana
A lawsuit filed Tuesday, July 21, alleges that former Pawleys Island Community Church (PICC) volunteer and convicted sex offender Warren Perry sexually abused a child who attended the church’s school in 2022. The suit, filed by Jane Doe, is one of two new lawsuits involving PICC and Pawleys Island Christian Academy (PICA), which are located on the same campus.
PICC, PICA, and their leaders are at the center of controversy after it came to light that Perry was volunteering on campus, even though the church’s pastor and other church and school leaders knew of his sex offender status.
“How could you? How could you, for so many years, knowingly allow this man around our children?” said Samantha Blake, whose 5-year-old son attended PICA, in an open letter on Facebook. “Whether you believed he found God and was a new man or not, he was a convicted s*x offender who was not supposed to be around children. The conditions placed on him weren’t a suggestion. They were…legal restrictions put in place to protect children.” Andrew Murray Collector Set Thumbnail
Pawleys Island Community Church in Turmoil
Pawleys Island Community Church and its affiliated school, Pawleys Island Christian Academy, are in turmoil after it came to light that volunteer custodian Warren Perry was a convicted sex offender. After a concerned citizen alerted the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) that Perry was volunteering on a school campus, authorities looked into the matter and discovered Perry was violating his probation. Perry was charged in 2020 with two counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. He pleaded guilty to one count in November 2023.
He was arrested on July 14 for violating his probation and was released on bond. Then-Pastor Don Williams held a congregational meeting July 15 where he read a statement explaining that he, several other church leaders, and PICA Director Niki Howard knew that Perry was a sex offender and explained why they concealed that information from parents and teachers. The meeting was tense and emotional as angry parents shouted questions and statements that Williams did not engage with.
On July 17, PICC announced that Williams; his wife, Ginny; Niki Howard; and several church elders had resigned. Also on July 17, a class action lawsuit seeking more than $25 million dollars was filed against PICC.
On July 20, Georgetown County Sheriff Carter Weaver held a press conference announcing that his office was bringing charges against Don Williams, Ginny Williams, Jennifer Nicole “Niki” Howard, and Warren Perry. Don Williams and Howard were charged with obstruction of justice, unlawfully placing a child at risk, and criminal conspiracy. Ginny Williams and Perry were charged with obstruction of justice and criminal conspiracy.
All four were arrested. A judge denied bond for Perry and set bond for the other three at $25,000 per charge. Records show that Howard was released on bond July 21 and Don and Ginny Williams bonded out on July 22.
Howard’s attorney, Erin Bailey, stated at the bond hearing that Howard “feels like she was led astray” by Don Williams.
“My client’s boss was not just her boss but also her pastor. He exercised a great amount of power, not only over that church but over her individually,” said Bailey.
“She trusted her boss and her pastor to be truthful and honest with her and to take care of the children and the security on that campus,” the attorney said. 2 New Lawsuits Filed Against Pawleys Island Community Church
Two new lawsuits were filed Tuesday, July 21. First, Jane Doe filed a lawsuit against PICC doing business as PICA, Howard, and the Williamses alleging that her son, John Doe, was sexually abused.
"Pawleys Island Community Church, by and through both its religious and lay leadership, deliberately and recklessly hid a sex offender within its walls,” states the complaint. “Over the course of many years, through Defendants’ indifference and willful concealment, John Doe, a minor, and likely many others, suffered sexual abuse and lifelong harm.”
The complaint alleges that in late July 2022, the 5-year-old told his parents about a sexual “game” he said a white-haired man at the school had taught him. The plaintiff alleges that man was Perry.
The suit describes the alleged abuse in graphic detail and says the boy told his parents where on school property it occurred.
The suit states that Jane Doe told Howard immediately about the alleged abuse. “Defendant Howard claimed nothing like that had ever happened at the school before and questioned whether John Doe was making it up,” says the suit.
According to the complaint, the mother pulled her son from the school and reported the incident to law enforcement. Her child began to receive counseling. At the time of this alleged incident, Perry had been charged with two counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor but had not yet been sentenced to probation.
The suit also alleges that in 2024 and 2026 the South Carolina Department of Social Services (DSS) found PICC to be “noncompliant with background check requirements.”
According to the lawsuit, “on or about July 10, 2026, former and current teachers” who had discovered Perry’s status as a sex offender brought their concerns to Don Williams and to Howard, who allegedly told the teachers they already knew about Perry’s sex offender status and dismissed the teachers’ concerns.
The mother seeks compensatory damages for her son’s alleged physical and emotional harm, as well as punitive damages. The complaint requests a jury trial.
A second Jane Doe filed a different lawsuit July 21 naming PICC, PICA, Don and Ginny Williams, and Howard as defendants, along with Perry and 10 unidentified members of the church’s elder board.
Jane Doe 2 alleges that her preschool-age son was unknowingly exposed every day to a registered sex offender whom church and school leaders allegedly allowed to work around young children while assuring parents that the school was safe. Jane Doe 2’s son is identified as R.K., under age 5. The parent said her child attended PICA starting in September 2025 through July.
The complaint alleges that the defendants exposed R.K. to a known registered sex offender, causing psychological and developmental harm, while inflicting severe emotional distress and financial losses on his mother, who might never know what her child experienced while being exposed to a sex offender.
This complaint notes that Pawleys Island Community Church, then known as Pawleys Island Baptist Church, and Don Williams were sued in 2005 over an earlier situation involving a youth director accused of sexually assaulting a minor. That case was settled. Andrew Murray Collector Set ThumbnailBest of Andrew Murray $59.96 $32.99
The mother alleges negligence, gross negligence and recklessness; negligent hiring, retention, supervision and training; negligent misrepresentation; breach of contract and good faith; unfair trade practices; reckless infliction of emotional distress; institutional negligence; and a claim to recover expenses associated with caring for her child.
She seeks compensatory and consequential damages, punitive damages against the individual defendants and Perry, recovery of tuition and treatment-related costs, treble damages and attorneys’ fees under South Carolina’s unfair-trade-practices law, and a jury trial.
ChurchLeaders has reached out to Attorney Kenneth Berger, Attorney S. Randall Hood, and Pawleys Island Community Church for comment. At ChurchLeaders’ request, Hood provided a copy of the second complaint but did not offer any comment.
An email obtained by ChurchLeaders sent by PICC to congregants July 21 does not mention the arrests of its former staff members, nor does it mention any of the three lawsuits.
“Over the past several days, many of you have experienced uncertainty and disappointment following the resignation of our pastor,” said the email, signed by “Elders and Church Staff.”
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“We understand that this has created questions, concerns, and, for many, a sense of confusion. We are sorry for what must feel to you like a delay in communication,” church leaders said. “We ask for your patience as we navigate these circumstances. It is complex and is requiring many hours of work and discussion.”
“A group of elders, Kyn Gdanian, Brent McClellan, and Tom Powell, with the support and counsel of some senior elders, are working with the church staff to begin the process of moving forward,” said the leaders. “We want to assure you that our church staff continues to faithfully serve and carry out the day-to-day work of the church.”
The email said leaders were praying for congregants, requested prayer, and quoted Romans 15:33. Leaders signed off by saying, “Stand firm.” 1 2 3 Jessica Mouser Jessica is a content editor for ChurchLeaders.com and the producer of The Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast. She has always had a passion for the written word and has been writing professionally for the past eight years. When Jessica isn't writing, she enjoys West Coast Swing dancing, reading, and spending time with her friends and family.
The mother alleges negligence, gross negligence and recklessness; negligent hiring, retention, supervision and training; negligent misrepresentation; breach of contract and good faith; unfair trade practices; reckless infliction of emotional distress; institutional negligence; and a claim to recover expenses associated with caring for her child.
She seeks compensatory and consequential damages, punitive damages against the individual defendants and Perry, recovery of tuition and treatment-related costs, treble damages and attorneys’ fees under South Carolina’s unfair-trade-practices law, and a jury trial.
ChurchLeaders has reached out to Attorney Kenneth Berger, Attorney S. Randall Hood, and Pawleys Island Community Church for comment. At ChurchLeaders’ request, Hood provided a copy of the second complaint but did not offer any comment.
An email obtained by ChurchLeaders sent by PICC to congregants July 21 does not mention the arrests of its former staff members, nor does it mention any of the three lawsuits.
“Over the past several days, many of you have experienced uncertainty and disappointment following the resignation of our pastor,” said the email, signed by “Elders and Church Staff.”
“We understand that this has created questions, concerns, and, for many, a sense of confusion. We are sorry for what must feel to you like a delay in communication,” church leaders said. “We ask for your patience as we navigate these circumstances. It is complex and is requiring many hours of work and discussion.”
“A group of elders, Kyn Gdanian, Brent McClellan, and Tom Powell, with the support and counsel of some senior elders, are working with the church staff to begin the process of moving forward,” said the leaders. “We want to assure you that our church staff continues to faithfully serve and carry out the day-to-day work of the church.”
The email said leaders were praying for congregants, requested prayer, and quoted Romans 15:33. Leaders signed off by saying, “Stand firm.”
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The women in the church went full Aunt Esther on him when they found out.
Looks like things are now worse.
Our church had an interim pastor. I stopped to say hello one day and recognized the janitor, who had been arrested for sexual misconduct. I recall he was later convicted. The pastor’s children were running the halls and having fun. I told the pastor about the man, and he made calls. Yup, people knew and didn’t say anything. He fired the man on the spot. The statement by the PICC church to the congregants is too smooth to have been written by those idiots. “Delay” in information; congregants may be confused, experience uncertainty . . . No church with this leadership is worth attending. Every board member should be sued. If they didn’t know, they should have known.
Back ground checks are your friend.
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