Picture Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Day by day Beast/Getty
Last week, a Michigan girl got here ahead to accuse her brother-in-law, the state’s former speaker of the Home of Representatives, of sexually abusing her when she was his teenage scholar at a personal Baptist faculty run by his household.
Former college students now inform The Day by day Beast that the household’s faculty was a “cult-like” establishment the place spanking and compelled chores stored college students in line, the place ladies had been educated to be subservient to males, and the place at the very least one former scholar needed to publicly apologize to the congregation for accusing a boy of rape.
Final week, Rebekah Chatfield, 26, advised nonprofit information outlet Bridge Michigan that her husband’s brother, former politician Lee Chatfield, started abusing her round 2010, when she was 15 or 16, and that the Republican former lawmaker continued to groom and rape her till 2021. (Mary Chartier, a lawyer for 33-year-old Lee, denied Rebekah’s allegations and claimed they'd a consensual “years-long grownup relationship,” which Chartier described as one in every of a number of of Lee’s extramarital affairs.)
Rebekah mentioned she didn’t inform anybody in regards to the assaults as a result of she feared a backlash from her tiny Cheboygan County non secular group, which revolved round Lee and his household, who’d develop into the middle of her universe. Lee’s father, Pastor Rusty Chatfield, had helmed the church since 1983 and is the college’s principal and historical past instructor, whereas Lee’s spouse, Stephanie, is an elementary faculty instructor. Lee was a soccer coach and instructor till he was elected to state authorities in 2014. “They preach on the pulpit that the boys are at all times proper, the ladies don't have any say,” Rebekah advised Bridge, including that feminine church members had been anticipated to marry younger, have children, and obey male kin.
She additionally claimed the Burt Lake church and faculty—the Northern Michigan Baptist Bible Church and Northern Michigan Christian Academy (NMCA)—imparted a mistrust of outsiders. “My complete world was the Chatfield household. So if I advised (the Chatfields), that might, that might damage every little thing,” Rebekah added. “I couldn’t see what would occur previous then. I didn’t know there was an choice to report. I didn’t know there have been choices for remedy.”
However Rebekah isn’t alone in her views of the agricultural, tightly knit faculty, the place a graduating class can have only a dozen individuals. A number of former college students advised The Day by day Beast that whereas they didn’t observe any sexual misconduct on the faculty, they felt the academy was “controlling,” “cult-like,” and fostering a repressive setting for younger ladies.
“NMCA could be very closed-minded and controlling. You have to consider as they are saying, costume as they are saying, and obey as they are saying. You aren't to query the authority or have any concepts outdoors of theirs,” mentioned one former scholar, who requested to stay nameless. “Males are additionally on the high of the meals chain and girls should silently observe. You aren't to have opinions as a feminine, and when you converse there will likely be penalties.”
The previous pupil mentioned that the concept that ladies should be subservient was strongly implied throughout the congregation and faculty: “Which means you'll see a husband and spouse speaking, and if the spouse spoke as much as give her ideas she can be advised to hush, she would then stand quietly behind the person till she was advised to depart or converse.”
“The management and manipulation they've is powerful, you consider you don't have any escape and might solely proceed of their path,” the particular person advised The Day by day Beast. “They are going to do something to maintain their path (the college) going regardless of the implications.”
Reached by The Day by day Beast on Thursday, Rusty Chatfield declined to touch upon Rebekah’s, or anybody else’s, characterization of his group.
“The allegations are false,” the elder Chatfield mentioned. “I'll don't have any different remark.”
Nonetheless, Rusty appeared to lash out on the rape accusations towards Lee, who final 12 months appeared to be mulling a run for governor, in a current sermon. “We’re within the highlight,” Rusty fumed, including, “The enemy, he needs to distract us from the work of God.” He went on to say: “You may’t consider every little thing you learn within the newspaper, on the web or no matter… finally fact will come ahead.” Rusty continued, “What they had been saying right here, there was a measure of fact. I prefer to say there was one-third fact.”
On the pulpit, Rusty crossed his arms, nodded his head, and in a timbre paying homage to the actor Wallace Shawn, declared, “We’re not going to flee.”
“We’ve executed nothing incorrect. Nothing,” Rusty sputtered. “Our church, nothing. Nothing. We now have executed nothing incorrect. We are able to’t let false accusations cease us from doing the work of God.”
Michigan State Police and the Lansing Police Division started investigating Rebekah’s rape allegations final month, when she filed a police report with the latter company.
Lee and his father aren't any strangers to press consideration. Final 12 months, Lee resigned from the financial improvement company Southwest Michigan First days after beginning the job after companies and group members complained about his monitor file of opposing LGBTQ protections within the state Legislature. Chatfield additionally flew to D.C. to meet then-President Donald Trump in November 2020, as Trump unfold rumors of voter fraud in Michigan.
As COVID ravaged the state in March 2020, Rusty was amongst three pastors to file a lawsuit towards Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home order. The case was rapidly dropped after Whitmer made an exception for non secular worship, however that fall, Rusty spoke at a rally towards the governor’s coronavirus measures. The protest, based on stories, was known as “Let MI Folks Go.”
Since her accusations went public on Jan. 6, Rebekah’s attorneys demanded the Chatfields’ faculty and church protect information for a possible lawsuit, and counsel for the Michigan Home of Representatives ordered lawmakers and workers to safe paperwork regarding Lee’s conduct whereas he was in workplace from 2015 by way of 2020.
Rebekah’s lawyer, Jamie White, who has represented victims of convicted youngster molester and former USA Gymnastics physician Larry Nassar, advised The Day by day Beast he suspects there can even be an “ongoing investigation into [Lee’s] conduct on the Capitol.”
White mentioned his regulation agency’s investigator is trying into Lee’s “conduct related to youngsters” and whether or not he misused authorities funds. The legal professional additionally referred to feedback made by Aaron Chatfield, Lee’s brother and Rebekah’s husband, within the Bridge article. Aaron mentioned he labored as Lee’s driver in Lansing and was tasked with taking his brother to strip golf equipment or trysts with ladies. (It ought to be famous Aaron additionally mentioned he totally helps his spouse and had been suspicious for years of how Lee behaved towards her.)
“We consider, primarily based on our investigation, that there have been different issues on this church which have been squashed by Mr. Chatfield’s father by way of varied means and we’re going to proceed to discover all of that,” White mentioned. “However proper now we’re making an attempt to wrap our arms round Rebekah and ensure she’s acquired the instruments to get by way of this.”
Requested whether or not he believed Rebekah was the one particular person Lee allegedly focused, White answered, “I consider that there are others.”
The previous scholar who spoke with The Day by day Beast, and who attended the academy for years, described Rebekah as “a lady of character and integrity” who “has by no means given me a purpose to query her actions or morals.” They added, “My coronary heart breaks for Rebekah. She has been in or across the Chatfield household since she was 14 years previous and my preliminary response was ‘it doesn’t shock me.’ What stunned me was that she got here ahead after a lifetime of being instilled to remain quiet and ‘know your home.’ I stand behind her as I grew up with the NMCA beliefs and know the worry she should be feeling for coming ahead.”
Whereas the graduate didn’t observe something inappropriate with Lee and his college students, they mentioned he was “just a little too pleasant” and typically acted like extra of a classmate than a instructor, coming into into conversations about who appreciated who in school and giving his opinion. He advised college students he’d give them additional credit score on a take a look at in the event that they adopted him on Twitter, the place in 2013 college students posted, “@LeeChatfield= greatest instructor ever! What instructor begins a twitter contest simply to provide away additional credit score? Observe me to assist him! #Superior.” Lee additionally enlisted college students to create posters, handouts, and marketing campaign concepts for his run for the Michigan Legislature.
The previous scholar mentioned they left the college as a result of, from their household’s perspective, it started to focus extra on Lee’s political marketing campaign and sports activities than core courses.
“The Chatfields personal NMCA and the church,” they added. “They'll come off as controlling, manipulative, and brainwashing. If you will get into the interior circle of the church and faculty, the Chatfields are so intertwined with each that they may develop into your whole world until you might be fortunate sufficient to flee.”
The varsity additionally got here with uncommon types of self-discipline, permitting academics to make use of corporal punishment (until mother and father or guardians opted out of the follow) and directing college students to jot down out Bible verses for hours. College students had been additionally anticipated to do day by day chores, together with cleansing the college’s bogs, changing toiletries, vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping.
“We additionally had chores for quarter-hour on the finish of the day,” the previous scholar mentioned. “Every scholar was assigned one factor they needed to full earlier than leaving. In case you didn't do your chore, you'll be punished with a Bible verse of easy methods to not be a sluggard.”
A second former scholar advised The Day by day Beast that the church and faculty setting “was very controlling, and… how a lot cash your loved ones gave to the college or church gave you extra liberties than the remainder of the children.”
From their perspective, the college neglected when some college students engaged in medication, alcohol, and intercourse, whereas different pupils had been reprimanded in entrance of the whole faculty for lesser offenses, like sporting “too quick” shorts or going to a movie show. The coed mentioned faculty workers held an meeting after a feminine soccer participant posted one thing on social media in regards to the dangerous conduct of male college students at a recreation; they’d shouted insults at feminine gamers on the opposing staff. Quickly after the participant’s imprecise publish, which indicated she was disenchanted, high-schoolers had been known as to the auditorium and advised “how horrible it was to publish detrimental issues in regards to the faculty.”
“Boys acquired in bother lower than ladies and will principally say what they needed as a result of ‘boys will likely be boys,’” the scholar advised us.
The coed described the Chatfields as “first rate individuals” however mentioned “they undoubtedly loved authority and had been the extra ‘fashionable’ individuals.”
Requested about Rebekah’s accusations, the scholar mentioned, “Whether it is true I hope they can show it so she doesn’t have a bunch of individuals pondering badly of her. And likewise the other I assume: If it isn’t true I hope they'll show it.”
Alexis Prince, 27, mentioned she attended NMCA for her junior 12 months of highschool however wasn’t a member of the Chatfields’ church. “There was undoubtedly totally different therapy of the scholars who didn't attend that church,” Prince advised The Day by day Beast. “Baptist was the one solution to go of their minds, and my household was attending a Pentecostal church on the time.”
“In that one 12 months I didn’t have many associates,” Prince mentioned. “Most college students who went there have been there for years. It was cult-like.”
Prince mentioned she recalled Pastor Rusty making feedback about her hair, which was quick. “A girl’s glory is her hair, if it’s grown out as a masking,” he allegedly advised her. Prince added, “He didn’t say he needed me to develop it out however identified that lengthy hair was higher, biblically talking.”
She mentioned workers had been allowed to spank college students in the principle workplace and that “they didn't rent janitors, so the scholars had chores.”
“Typically, it was preached that males had been superior to ladies. It was principally ingrained into you. Nobody even actually needed to say it. It was only a identified reality. All of the small issues added collectively... You simply knew the boys had been above you. It was taught that ladies weren't supposed to evangelise, solely males,” Prince mentioned.
“Ladies had been helpmates to males,” she mentioned, including that ladies had been anticipated to marry younger, “particularly when you don’t have the self-control to attend to have intercourse—as a result of intercourse earlier than marriage is a sin,” and “replenish the earth” by having plenty of children.
“These are the issues that had been preached commonly,” Prince mentioned.
Prince mentioned that she had one shut buddy on the faculty, nevertheless, and that the lady died in a automotive wreck three years in the past. Whereas they attended the academy, the buddy shared a disturbing story of an alleged sexual assault she had skilled a 12 months or two earlier than Prince arrived on the faculty in 2011.
“Once I heard the story I made a decision I wasn’t going again to that college for my senior 12 months,” Prince mentioned. “She mentioned that she was in a relationship with an older boy on the faculty. He raped her at the back of his automotive. Folks came upon about it. Intercourse earlier than marriage was a sin. And when she mentioned it was rape, Rusty and the present principal insisted that she was mendacity and that basically, she had tempted him.”
“To be able to keep on the faculty and church, she needed to go earlier than the congregation and apologize for her sin and placing this boy in that place,” Prince continued. “She did it. I used to be appalled, listening to the story. Clearly I used to be not there and don’t know what's factual. However I heard related tales from different ladies.”
“Once I heard Rebekah’s story, I didn't doubt any a part of it,” Prince added. “It didn't shock me in any respect. Every thing I learn that she mentioned... I can really feel in my bones that she’s talking the reality and my coronary heart aches for her.”
However not everybody helps Rebekah or believes her.
A number of former classmates and church members advised The Day by day Beast they had been standing by Lee and suspicious of the accusations towards him.
“In all my years at NMCA, I by no means skilled something like what's being accused,” mentioned one former scholar, who requested to stay nameless. “I didn't even hear any type of rumor or data on what's being accused throughout my time there, both.” The particular person advised Rebekah was mendacity for consideration. “Rebekah sells hair care direct and talks about constructing a model on Instagram,” the onetime pupil added. “So the extra followers she will get the higher off her enterprise does. Actually, her assertion simply appears off to me. I simply don’t consider it.”
One other nameless scholar added, “I assumed Lee was an incredible instructor and NMCA was an incredible place. If I had the chance, I’d ship my very own children there! I don’t consider the accusations in any respect!”
Robert Taylor, the college’s athletic director and an alumnus himself, mentioned he’s identified Lee since 2005 and that the ex-politician was his soccer and basketball coach and bodily training instructor. “To me, from the surface trying in, it appeared prefer it was utterly out of left area,” he mentioned of Rebekah’s claims. “I’d by no means heard something like this in any respect earlier than.”
“Lee did do some issues that, from an ethical standpoint, I wouldn’t agree with,” Taylor mentioned, “and he did confess that to the church.”
In keeping with Taylor, earlier than Rebekah’s story was reported within the media, Lee apologized to his church household at a personal assembly and introduced that he had been untrue to his spouse. “It’s like your loved ones coming alongside of you,” Taylor mentioned. “It’s laborious to have secrets and techniques in a household, and he needs individuals to maintain him accountable and stroll by way of this with him, and assist him and encourage him and his spouse and youngsters.”
Taylor mentioned Rebekah is “undoubtedly entitled to her opinion” in regards to the setting of the church-school compound however that he disagrees it was controlling or dismissive of girls. “I believe if that had been true, we wouldn’t have females instructing Sunday faculty and on the church,” he mentioned. “My spouse is a instructor as effectively. I respect her opinion. We do every little thing collectively.”