Kumari Shreya
Investigation Discovery’s ‘Let Us Prey: A Ministry of Scandals’ delves deep into the workings of Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB), an organization that saw many of its members becoming victims of various acts of sexual abuse. Many of those who suffered as members of the church decided to speak up in the show to explain their perspective of the whole story. Kathy Durbin is one such brave soul whose story, from start to finish, has touched many hearts. Naturally, people are quite curious about where she is these days.
Who is Kathy Durbin?
Kathy Durbin’s association with Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB) started at a very young age. Along with a mother who is described as “hateful” and a stepfather with whom she was not on the best of terms, Kathy had moved to Wildomar, California, and started attending the Faith Baptist Church. It was during her time there that she became close with Laverne Paul Fox, who held the title of “Bus Director” and was the principal of the Christian School that the then-teenage girl used to attend.
Kathy gradually grew closer to Fox, his wife, and his two sons. Both families developed a close bond, with Fox and his wife apparently having referred to Kathy as the daughter they never had. In fact, Kathy has shared a memorable story of how her assumed parental bond with Fox was something she cherished, given that he had gotten her a teddy bear when she had been envious of another girl having one. In fact, she would often refer to Fox as “dad,” something that the man apparently did not discourage.
However, the touches and signs of physical affection, which Kathy initially thought were the results of parental affection, soon became more. The man she had come to love as a father had allegedly groomed her. Around the age of 15, Kathy was first involved in a sexual act with Fox, though it was not the last. For about a couple of years, Kathy did not speak to anyone about what was going on as she was apparently too attached to the idea of Fox’s love for her as a father figure and was afraid of losing him.
Things took a turn when Kathy grew upset at Fox’s change in attitude, and she became quite cold with her. Afraid of losing his affection, she mentioned she ended up confessing to the pastor of her church, Bruce Goddard, though things did not go as she had anticipated. Kathy even stated how the pastor’s wife had called her a homewrecker while Goddard tried to contain the situation. According to her, she had had no intention of getting Fox in trouble as she had still been enamored with the parental role she perceived he was fulfilling.
Goddard ended up talking to Kathy’s family and soon arranged for Fox’s family to be relocated away from California, though the teenager did come to know that the man she thought of as a father was now associated with First Baptist Church and Hyles-Anderson College in Indiana. Kathy herself had been unwilling to press any charges against Fox, while Charlie Craze from the Christian Law Association allegedly told Kathy’s mother that she could press charges against Fox, but he would not represent her case and would do anything in his power to have the blame be placed on Kathy.
Kathy herself had still to let go of her image of Fox and even decided to attend the Hyles-Anderson College in the fall of 1993 in order to get in touch with Fox once more. While there, she saw Fox multiple times attending the church with his family and soon learned that he was working alongside teenagers once more. Over the course of the next couple of years, Kathy’s longing for Fox decreased and was instead supplanted by anger as she came more and more to terms with the actual reality of the show situation.
Where is Kathy Durbin Now?
In recent years, Kathy Durbin has more than opened up about all that she suffered during her time as a member of the IFB church. She has taken to social media to share her story in detail with the world so as to help those who might find themselves stuck in a similar situation. She has also been vocal about her dislike for how the church works. Kathy has never shied away from detailing how she feels about the role the church’s members seemingly played in hushing up her own case.
Kathy also took the help of the law in order to get justice for herself. Based on her report, Laverne Paul Fox was arrested on January 23, 2020, in Erie, Pennsylvania, and initially claimed innocence against the three charges that were levied against him. However, on January 8, 2021, Fox pled guilty to two charges of sexual abuse during his time in California. Initially, a plea deal had been made that would allow Fox to serve only 16 months in prison. However, it was later rescinded, and a hearing was scheduled to discuss Fox’s punishment.
On September 15, 2021, the man was sentenced to two years in prison. As of writing, Kathy has a happy family she cherishes from the bottom of her heart. She can often be heard praising her daughter Savannah, of whom she is immensely proud. Kathy is also a mother of three sons and enjoys spending time with her dear husband. The registered nurse has also remained vocal about her opposition to faith-based sexual crimes and did not shy away from expressing her displeasure when Fox was released earlier than his sentence had decreed due to overcrowding in August 2022.
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