Despite facing a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison for lying to federal investigators looking into a case of alleged sexual abuse, former pastor Matthew Queen received six months of house arrest after repenting for his crime.
In a six-page judgment on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York Lewis Kaplan sentenced Queen to six months of home confinement during which time he is not allowed to leave except to get medical care for himself or his wife or with permission from his probation officer. He will also have to wear an electronic monitor.
Queen was ordered to participate in an outpatient mental health treatment program, not incur any new lines of credit or credit charges without the permission of his probation officer and pay a total of $2,100 in fines and assessments.
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Queen’s charges stem from a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into “multiple SBC entities” following a Guidepost Solutions report detailing how some leaders mishandled allegations of abuse and mistreated victims of abuse.
Last year, the DOJ decided not to file any charges against the Protestant denomination but did pursue charges against Queen, a former Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary evangelism professor, provost and church pastor, for falsifying records connected to its investigation.
Kaplan appears to have also been moved by some 59 letters submitted in court and reviewed by The Christian Post from family, friends, former students and colleagues, testifying to Queens’ moral character and the unfortunate circumstances that led him to betray himself and almost made him take his life.
“Dr. Queen recognizes that the Southern Baptist Convention, including SWBTS, has had a history of covering up and minimizing sexual abuse allegations. He opposes such cover-ups and has always supported victims of such abuse,” Queen’s attorney, Sam A. Schmidt, wrote in a March 2 letter to Kaplan just three days before his client was sentenced on Wednesday.
“When the opportunity has arisen, he has acted on behalf of those who were abused. The most recent time was this past fall while on administrative leave from Friendly Avenue Baptist church. A woman told his wife and him about her experience. Both Dr. Queen and his wife explained to the woman how important it was to report the abuse both for herself and the community,” Schmidt added.
“Dr. Queen also noted that as a mandatory reporter his obligation was to report it if she did not. After their discussion, the woman agreed to have them call the police on her behalf, and both Matthew and Hope Queen [his wife] stayed with her while she spoke to a local police officer. Dr. Queen also gave other information to the police officer and explained that, as a mandatory reporter, he was facilitating her report.”
The case against Queen, 49, was opened following a November 2022 report of alleged sexual abuse committed by a Texas Baptist College student, according to a statement by Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Seminary officials later said they helped facilitate the arrest of the student who withdrew from the college.
Before the sexual abuse allegation in November 2022, the Justice Department issued a grand jury subpoena to the seminary in October 2022, which required the seminary to produce all documents in its possession related to allegations of sexual abuse against anyone employed by or associated with the seminary, among other things.
Investigators said Queen “attempted to interfere with a federal grand jury investigation by creating false notes in an attempt to corroborate his own lies.” He pleaded guilty last October.
In a submission to Kaplan on Feb. 19, Schmidt, his wife and others explained that Queen was under a lot of stress around the time the investigation began.
“This letter informs of the stress and difficulties Dr. Queen faced in 2023 as a result of his new position as provost and the continuing tense atmosphere at SWBTS as a result of the turnover of multiple presidents and provosts. Fear of dismissals was but one cause of the stress,” Schmidt wrote.
Queen’s wife also shared her observations of how the investigation impacted her husband.
“Mrs. Queen not only gives insight [into] the difficulties that her husband was facing in early 2023 but also its impact on him. As a result of the DOJ’s subpoena and investigation, Dr. Queen was told by the SWBTS president not to discuss the investigation with anyone else,” Schmidt said.
In her letter, Hope Queen explained how her husband struggled with the “enforced silence” around the investigation.
“We did not even tell our extended family. Matt has always been an extreme extrovert, and the enforced silence, coupled with intimidation, led to a downward spiral in his mental health which was fueled by the dysfunctional atmosphere at the seminary. Matt was frequently appearing as a guest on podcasts to talk about his book; yet he was anxious and scared regarding the investigation,” Hope Queen wrote.
“Having been led to believe that he would be in legal trouble if he told anyone about the investigation and assured that the seminary lawyers represented him, Matt sought help from neither a counselor nor an attorney. He had questions about the investigation but did not feel the liberty to ask the seminary’s attorneys out of fear of repercussions at work,” she added.
“Matt’s anxiety grew. On a regular basis, I walked into our bedroom and found him on our bed with his chest heaving and limbs shaking. I watched with concern but felt trapped without a way for him to get help due to the instruction not to tell anyone about the investigation.”
In his own letter to Kaplan seeking mercy, Queen expressed deep remorse for what he did and described the first five years after Paige Patterson’s presidency ended in 2018, as “tumultuous.” He said when current president of Southwestern Seminary, David Dockery, asked him to serve as the institution’s interim provost and vice president for academic administration, he “was not ready to function well within the dysfunctional dynamics of the time.”
“As the DOJ’s investigation unfolded, I felt anxious and overwhelmed. I enjoy working with others in collaboration but being told that I could not discuss the situation or the accompanying investigation with anyone sent me into a state of anxiety unlike anything I had ever experienced,” Queen explained. “The isolation and feeling of being unable to trust some colleagues and attorneys led me to make skewed and unwise decisions based on my own reasoning.”
Queen said he lost about 40 pounds during the ordeal and admitted to losing himself.
“Your Honor, I lost a little bit of myself. I did something quite out of character for me — I lied to two colleagues to make myself more credible by claiming I had made notes that I had not written. I’m shocked by that behavior because it is simply not who I am or how I have lived my life and ministry,” he wrote.
The former professor said after he lied to federal authorities, he made plans to take his life.
“That I lied to government agents when questioned about the date that I had written the note shocked me back to reality. I apologized and asked for forgiveness. I testified in the grand jury. After testifying, the government investigators interviewed me in a manner that frightened and traumatized me,” he wrote.
“As I traveled home, I made a plan to commit suicide. After my wife realized my intent, she took me to a local hospital. Even typing these words arouses feelings within me of disgrace, humiliation, and disbelief. Your Honor, I deeply and sincerely regret my conduct,” Queen added.
Queen said that he has “repented of [his] sin before God” and “made it right with the government by correcting my false statement to them.”
“I will forever live with the knowledge that I lied, an action contrary to my faith, my character, and my morals,” Queen told Kaplan in his letter.
“I am daily reminded that my lie has disappointed my God, my wife, my daughters, my parents, my brothers, my church, my friends, and my students. I fully understand the responsibility I have to respect both law and judicial agents. I commit to you, your Honor, to apply the lessons I have learned from my mistake for the remainder of my life and ministry.”
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