(CP)Â Former Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr visited the campus for the primary time since he reached with a settlement with school officials regarding disputes over his 2020 resignation.
Falwell and his wife, Becki, attended a football game on the Lynchburg, Virginia-based Evangelical institution founded by his father on Saturday, having previously been banned from the campus in the course of the litigation.
“It’s so wonderful, after spending the higher a part of 40 years imagining and constructing what’s here, to give you the option to return and revel in it without the entire responsibility on my shoulders,” Falwell told WSET News.
Falwell was barred from campus following his resignation in 2020 amid extramarital sexual misconduct allegations against him and his wife. Falwell’s ban from the campus where his brother, Jonathan, now serves as chancellor was lifted last month.
The Falwells were greeted by dozens of attendees on the homecoming football game against the University of Texas at El Paso, in line with WSET, including hugs and the occasional selfie.
“We see them on the town; they arrive as much as us and seek advice from us and need to get pictures and that was all the time happening the entire time. Looking forward to seeing all the scholars again,” he said.
The son of Liberty University founder and distinguished conservative religious political activist the Rev Jerry Falwell, Jerry Falwell Jr became head of the university following his father’s death in 2007.
Falwell Jr garnered national media attention during 2016 presidential election cycle when he became one in all the primary notable Evangelical leaders to endorse former President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.
In August 2020, the Liberty Board of Trustees announced that they’d accepted Falwell’s immediate resignation from his positions as chancellor, president and board of directors member.
The resignation got here after revelations surfaced that Falwell’s wife had had an affair with a 29-year-old man named Giancarlo Granda, which commenced several years earlier.
Granda later attempted to blackmail the couple, telling Reuters that the Liberty president was aware of the extramarital affair and even “enjoyed watching from the corner of the room.”
While Falwell had acknowledged in a press release that his wife “had an inappropriate personal relationship with” Granda, he denied any involvement within the affair.
Later, in 2020, Falwell sued Liberty leadership, alleging that they accepted inaccurate claims against his moral character with none proper research and compelled him to resign.
“While I actually have nothing but love and appreciation for the Liberty community, and I had hoped to avoid litigation, I need to take the needed steps to revive my popularity and hopefully help repair the damage to the Liberty University brand in the method,” Falwell said in a press release in 2020.
Since 2020, Falwell and the university have filed various lawsuits against one another.
In July, Falwell and Liberty announced they reached a settlement, noting that this could resolve “all outstanding disputes on each legal and private matters.”
“This agreement is grounded in a firm commitment to protecting and preserving Liberty’s original mission of developing Christ-centred men and ladies with the values, knowledge, and skills essential to affect the world,” they said.
“It relies on a mutual understanding regarding the quantity Liberty University can pay its former president in authorized retirement and severance under the assorted disputed agreements and in step with the law; and the conditions under which the University will make use of Dr Jerry Falwell Sr’s name, image, and likeness.”
The two parties noted they “regret the lengthy and painful litigation process,” with both sides taking “responsibility for his or her part within the disputes.”
“Falwell acknowledges and apologises for the errors in judgement and mistakes made during his time of leadership. The Board of Trustees acknowledge and apologise for the errors and mistakes made on their part as well,” they added.
