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DULUTH 鈥� A former youth pastor accused of sexually assaulting five girls will seek to have the majority of his charges dismissed.

35, a former pastoral assistant at Vineyard Church in Duluth鈥檚 Kenwood neighborhood, rejected a plea offer from the prosecution and will instead proceed with pretrial litigation, attorneys told a judge Monday.

Gatlin is charged in five separate cases with 10 felony charges ranging from first- to fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. Court documents indicate most of the alleged victims were introduced to him through the church, where his parents were senior pastors.

Defense attorney Chris Stocke recently filed motions to dismiss in four of the five cases, citing a lack of probable cause to support the allegations.

He will additionally argue that some counts are barred by the statute of limitations, that Gatlin was not in a 鈥減osition of authority鈥� when the alleged crimes were committed, and that authorities failed to establish that some offenses occurred within St. Louis County.

The one case that Gatlin is not challenging, and which appears headed to trial, relates to allegations that he attempted to rape a 16-year-old who he brought to his eastern Duluth home in 2009.

The woman, who met Gatlin through friends, reportedly told authorities he tied her to a bed and rejected her pleas to stop the assault, causing 鈥渋ntense pain.鈥� A complaint says she eventually convinced him to untie her so she could go to the bathroom, at which point she escaped.

Gatlin is charged in that case with attempted first-degree criminal sexual conduct and second-degree criminal sexual conduct.

The remainder relate to his work at the church, where authorities said Gatlin had 鈥渦nfettered access鈥� to minors for 15 years under the protection of Michael and Brenda Gatlin, who 鈥渕inimized and outright denied allegations when brought to their attention."

Among the cases he is seeking to dismiss:

• One woman told police she was 16 when Gatlin invited her to his house, taking her phone away before pulling down her pants and sexually assaulting her. She said she escaped, having to run barefoot down the street and hide.
• Another reported a series of incidents when she was 15-16, saying Gatlin would routinely give her rides home from the youth group meetings and would 鈥渕ake out鈥� with and fondle her.
• A third said his misconduct started as early as her middle school years, recalling an incident on a bus ride to the Twin Cities in which Gatlin allegedly reached into her shorts and also placed her hand on his genitals.
• The fourth said Gatlin would help her sneak into the basement of his parents鈥� home, where they engaged in sexual intercourse on several occasions when she was 14 or 15.

Because each case is distinct, the charges are expected to be heard in five separate jury trials. However, St. Louis County prosecutor Michael Hagley notified the court that he intends to introduce evidence related to other victims in each proceeding.

Testimony about a defendant鈥檚 other crimes or bad acts is generally prohibited under Minnesota Rules of Evidence. But Hagley argues an exception applies in Gatlin鈥檚 cases, as the evidence points to his 鈥渕otive, opportunity, intent and absence of mistake.鈥�

, who briefly heard the matters in a crowded Duluth courtroom Monday, ordered a series of briefs from attorneys on both issues in the coming weeks. He is expected to issue rulings by early July.

A pretrial hearing was scheduled for July 18.

Gatlin, who remains free on bond, was fired by the church in February 2023 after refusing to cooperate with an internal investigation.

His parents also resigned or were terminated from positions with both the local church and Vineyard USA, and they have reportedly moved out of state.