Shawn Davis, one of Michael Tait’s many alleged sexual abuse survivors, told People magazine that he is in the process of building a legal case against the Christian Contemporary Music (CCM) icon.
Editor’s note: This article refers to reports of alleged sexual assault that some readers might find triggering and/or disturbing.
On Jan. 16, Tait abruptly announced that he was leaving Newsboys. He had been the band’s lead singer since 2009. Tait was previously a member of DC Talk, a band that has been on hiatus since 2000.
Since leaving Newsboys, Tait has been accused of grooming, sexually assaulting, and drugging young men—including minors—as well as of watching a young woman be raped in 2014.
Shortly after the first news report was released, Tait acknowledged some of the reports in a statement that said, “Recent reports of my reckless and destructive behavior, including drug and alcohol abuse and sexual activity are sadly, largely true.”
Tait continued, “For some two decades I used and abused cocaine, consumed far too much alcohol, and, at times, touched men in an unwanted sensual way.”
The Christian singer said that he is “ashamed of [his] life choices and actions” and that he makes “no excuses for them.” Tait added, “I will simply call it what God calls it—sin. I don’t blame anyone or anything but myself…while I might dispute certain details in the accusations against me, I do not dispute the substance of them.”
After Allegedly Being Drugged and Sexually Abused by Michael Tait, Shawn Davis’ Goal Is To Send the ‘Jesus Freak’ Singer to Prison
“We’re trying to head this and do everything we can in our power to take him down,” Davis shared in his interview with People.
Davis, a business owner in Nashville, Tennessee, told The Guardian in June that he was sexually abused by Tait when Davis was 17 years old. Like others who have reported sexual misconduct allegations against Tait, Davis looked up to Tait as a hero.
Davis alleges that after Tait befriended him, the “Jesus Freak” singer introduced him to cocaine and encouraged him to consume alcohol. Tait “destroyed my life,” Davis said. Davis claims that on one occasion in 2003, while at Tait’s residence, Tait spiked Davis’ drink with something that made Davis lose consciousness and sexually abused Davis.
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