from The Associate Press
CHARLESTON, S.C.
Members of a Columbia church have filed a lawsuit to gain access to financial records and determine how it was saddled with multiple mortgages and large tax liens during a former pastor’s tenure.
The Post and Courier of Charleston reports (http://bit.ly/1XVffqX) 11 members filed the civil suit against Reid Chapel AME and the foundation which operates the church’s school. The plaintiffs want a judge to order the church to grant access to its financial records and bank accounts to find the source of a $558,000 debt.
Reid Chapel had been led by the Rev. Norvel Goff, who was named interim pastor of Emanuel AME Church in June after nine black church members were shot to death during a Bible study. Goff is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit.