Judge clears way for demolition of Texas church where 26 people were killed in mass shooting
A judge has cleared the way for the demolition of the Texas church building where a mass shooter killed 26 people during a worship service in 2017, including the pastor's daughter.
District Judge Russell Wilson of Wilson County denied a request on Monday to extend a temporary restraining order preventing the leveling of First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, which now worships in a new building constructed after the shooting.
Wilson's decision allows an order granted earlier this month by District Judge Jennifer Dillingham to expire and opens the possibility of the building being demolished, according to The Associated Press.
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Since the church voted to level the building in 2021, church attorney Matthew Swantner told the court that the litigation is "a question of church governance on how the church is going to proceed with its own property," according to The San Antonio Express-News.
Sam Fugate II, an attorney for members who oppose the demolition, was quoted by the AP as saying that while his clients "no longer have an order preventing the church from being destroyed," they were hopeful that "the defendants will honor the suit and not take the church down while we deal with some of these issues."
On Nov. 5, 2017, Devin Patrick Kelley, who was discharged from the U.S. Air Force after serving one year in military prison, entered FBC Sutherland Springs during a worship service and killed 26 people. He later shot himself and died.
While Kelley had a history of anti-religious social media posts, authorities concluded that his motive for the shooting was because his ex-wife had family members who attended the church.
Following the tragedy, the congregation built a new worship space, which was completed in 2019, while having the building where the shooting took place serve as a memorial.
"This is a tangible sign as people drive through Sutherland Springs in the future they will know that this is a place where goodness triumphed over evil," said Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in remarks made at the new building's grand opening.
Pastor Frank Pomeroy also told The Wall Street Journal soon after the shooting that the building might be torn down.
"There's too many that do not want to go back in there," he told the outlet in 2017. "We will probably turn it into a memorial for a while. We're playing it day by day right now."
In August 2021, the congregation voted 69-35 to demolish the old building as it was considered structurally unsafe, KTSA reported at the time.
However, a group of families tied to the congregation filed a complaint against the decision, reported KENS 5, claiming that the church wrongfully barred some members from voting.
