Jennifer Lyell, Southern Baptist whistleblower, dies at 47 ahead of SBC meeting

A former executive whose public allegations of sexual abuse rocked the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has died at the age of 47.

Jennifer Lyell passed away on June 7, just days before the SBC’s 2025 Annual Meeting in Dallas. Her friend and fellow advocate Rachael Denhollander announced on social media that Lyell had suffered catastrophic strokes earlier in the week and was found in her home days later.

According to a report on PBS News, her death cast a shadow over the two-day convention, which opened Tuesday with worship and reports of rising baptisms but was marked by an atmosphere of mourning and reflection. Outside of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, two individuals held a vigil, displaying photos of Lyell and another survivor, Gareld Duane Rollins, who died earlier this year after accusing longtime SBC leader Paul Pressler of abuse.

AL.com shared that Lyell had been a prominent voice in the denomination’s reckoning with sexual abuse. In 2019, she publicly alleged that she was sexually abused by seminary professor David Sills, beginning on a 2004 mission trip and continuing for years. Sills later filed a defamation lawsuit in Alabama in 2022 against Lyell and several SBC entities, claiming the allegations were false and part of an institutional effort to rehabilitate the denomination’s image in the wake of mounting scandals.

Her case contributed to the commissioning of a third-party investigation, which in 2022 culminated in a landmark report by Guidepost Solutions. The report found that SBC leaders had consistently mistreated survivors and minimized their allegations. That same year, the SBC Executive Committee issued a formal apology, admitting it had failed to support Lyell and had initially mischaracterized her experience.

The 2022 convention also approved the creation of a new database to track church leaders credibly accused of abuse. However, recent statements by SBC Executive Committee President Jeff Iorg indicated the database is no longer a priority. Instead, the committee plans to refer churches to existing sex offender registries and focus on abuse prevention education — a shift many reform advocates have criticized.

Survivors and reform advocates who had previously participated prominently in recent SBC meetings were notably absent from this year’s gathering, citing emotional strain and frustration over a perceived lack of progress.

Lyell held a Master of Divinity from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and worked for Lifeway Christian Resources during her career. Friends say the backlash she received after coming forward took a profound toll on her well-being.

Sherri Blevins is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You may contact her at [email protected].