Cheryl Bawtinheimer says legal battle over cartoon mascot is attempt to silence criticism of Plymouth Brethren Christian Church (PBCC) and (RRT)

An Australian charity affiliated with the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church is suing a Canadian sexual abuse survivor in U.S. federal court over her use of a cartoon kookaburra mascot in YouTube videos — a case that critics say bears all the hallmarks of a SLAPP lawsuit designed to intimidate rather than resolve a genuine dispute.

Cheryl Bawtinheimer

"**Get a Life podcast: Ex-Cult Conversations”**

Cheryl Bawtinheimer, who lives in Red Deer, Alberta, alleges she was sexually abused as a child by an elder of the church in Maple Creek, Saskatchewan. After she went public with her story in 2022 and began documenting survivor accounts through the "Get a Life podcast: Ex-Cult Conversations”. In what seemed like a fast reply; the church's Australia-based charity, The Rapid Response Team (RRT) filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against her over the use of its "Cookie Bird" logo.

I watched the video of Cheryl's husband confronting her alleged abuser at his home in Maple Creek, with her, for discussion. It's gut-wrenching, I spoke with Bawtinheimer about her case. "The man appears at times to acknowledge the abuse. And yet instead of that being the focus, we're talking about a cartoon bird."

The two YouTube videos at the center of the lawsuit had “fewer than 500 combined views and were not monetized at all” Bawtinheimer said. The RRT filed its complaint in December 2025 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, where YouTube is headquartered, seeking a jury trial, unspecified monetary damages, and the removal of videos featuring the mascot. A jury trial request in a copyright claim about a cartoon bird seems beyond the nuclear option.

'It's a classic intimidation tactic'

"From where I stand, it has all the hallmarks of a SLAPP-style action — not about protecting a cartoon bird, but about creating financial and psychological pressure on someone who has spoken out," Bawtinheimer said.

The lawsuit followed her public advocacy and came after other survivors began coming forward, she noted. The RRT purchased the "Cookie Bird" logo in September 2025, just months before filing the lawsuit — and soon after Bawtinheimer's husband confronted her alleged abuser in a videotaped meeting.

"The lawsuit followed my advocacy. It followed my going public. It followed other survivors coming forward," she said.

In a statement to Australian media, an RRT spokeswoman said: "Like any responsible organization, RRT has taken steps to protect itself from its own brand being infringed which undermine the efforts of our hardworking volunteers." When asked specifically about targeting an alleged sex abuse victim, the spokeswoman said: "RRT takes any allegation of abuse very seriously and would always encourage appropriate involvement of the authorities".

Apparently, the church PR wants us to think podcast about helping people leave, what Cheryl calls “a cult”, is unrelated. Cheryl supports survivors. The weaponization of a clipart bird legal copyright status in a fair use case, to strike her growing youtube channel, is simply not related, to PBCC: "

**Roadrunner Redpoll Tommy (RRT) is free for anyone to use. it is worthless.**

This bird was generated with Adobe AI Firefly

“The [Rapid Relief Team] has only sought to have its logo removed from the podcasts in which it appears, as this is in breach of copyright law and YouTube’s standards. It is not an attempt to silence anyone. This is evidenced by the fact that the team has not complained about the same content on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, where the logo is not visible.”

That’s from the PBCC response post here.

But, this is from Google (YouTube’s Parent Company):

“In US copyright law, fair use allows someone to use copyrighted content under certain conditions without needing permission from the copyright owner. Common examples can include works of commentary, criticism, research, teaching, or news reporting.
In the EU, the use must fit into specific categories, such as quotation, criticism, review, caricature, parody, and pastiche. Other countries/regions have a concept called fair dealing that may work differently.
In rare cases, we’ve asked YouTube creators to join an initiative that protects some examples of “fair use” on YouTube from copyright removal requests. Through this initiative, YouTube indemnifies creators whose fair use videos have been subject to removal requests for up to $1 million of legal costs in the event the removal results in a copyright infringement lawsuit.”

Church issues denial, offers settlement

The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church issued a statement this week denying that the legal action is an attempt to silence Bawtinheimer.

"Recent reports by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age falsely imply that the Brethren's charity, the Rapid Relief Team or RRT, is suing a person, because she made allegations of abuse against a church member. This is categorically untrue," the church said.

The church stated that it was first made aware of Bawtinheimer's allegations when she spoke on the Blackballed podcast in July 2022, and that it looked into the matter but found no corroborating evidence. The RCMP has confirmed it received reports of alleged historical sexual assaults involving church members in Saskatchewan, but Bawtinheimer says investigators aren’t giving her much confidence any charges will be laid.

The church also noted that the RRT has offered to resolve the copyright dispute: if Bawtinheimer removes or edits the videos where the RRT logo appears and agrees not to use the logo in the future, the charity will "write to the Court and let them know that the issue has been resolved, without her having to pay costs."

Bawtinheimer sees the offer differently. "They want the channel scrubbed of RRT," she said, noting that YouTube has already removed several videos in response to copyright complaints. One video taken down was Lindy Jacomb’s episode on the podcast, she’s New Zealand-based former church member who runs a charity for people escaping "high demand religious groups." Cheryl says “YouTube locked them down and those videos are inaccessible.”

RCMP investigation stalled

The abuse allegations date back to Bawtinheimer's childhood in Maple Creek, a small town in southwestern Saskatchewan. When she first reported her story to RCMP in 2022, she says she was told they would be investigating "child sex abuse, sex trafficking and torture" .

But more than a year later, little has happened. In May 2023, Bawtinheimer expressed outrage when RCMP announced the arrest of a different Maple Creek man in an unrelated historical sexual abuse case just one day after receiving that report. She says the lead investigator on her case told her it was on pause due to lack of staff, and that one of several key witnesses has yet to be contacted.

In a statement, RCMP confirmed it received reports of alleged historical sexual assaults involving members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church in Saskatchewan and said it was "actively investigating the reports".

A pattern of secrecy and control

The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, sometimes called the Exclusive Brethren (it’s former name), is an Evangelical Christian sect with about 50,000 followers globally and communities in Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. Members follow a "doctrine of separation" from non-believers, living in Brethren-only communities, marrying only within the church, and working primarily for Brethren-owned businesses. Many of these social controls are analogous of The Church of Scientology.

Former members describe a restrictive upbringing where they were not allowed to watch television, attend university, or participate in extracurricular activities. Cheryl told me that members even have a special operating system on their cimputers and phones that spies constantly. Cheryl said The application (Developed by their in house business tech dept) alerts church hierarchy when a child looks for mental health apps, and other seemingly over-personal scrutiny of all web-access. Those who leave or criticize the church are often "shunned" — cut off from family and community, even while continuing to live in the same home. Which sometimes results in domestic disputes and civil issues from evictions and rental agreements.

"Once you are shunned, you are as dead," said Marci McDonald, a journalist and author who has studied the church .

The Rapid Relief Team was established in 2013 as the church's charitable arm, coinciding with the church's successful argument to the UK charities regulator that it should retain tax-free status because it serves a genuine public benefit . Critics describe the charity as an attempt to rehabilitate the church's poor global reputation.

According to court documents, the RRT had a $4.3 million cash surplus in its most recent financial filings and has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in Australian federal government grants since 2020.

Cross-border legal battle raises questions

The case has drawn attention from legal experts who note the unusual cross-border dynamics. The RRT is an Australian charity, Bawtinheimer is a Canadian resident, and the lawsuit was filed in California because YouTube is headquartered there.

"This is a Canadian story because the abuse occurred here, the survivor is here, and the chilling effect is here," Bawtinheimer said. "Canadian survivors are watching what happens when someone speaks publicly, and they are weighing the risk."

She has extensive documentation, including court filings, correspondence, and an audio recording from September in which her alleged abuser apologizes to her. That recording, along with video of her husband confronting the man at his Maple Creek home, has not been widely reported in Canada. Watch that video and some highlights of my interview with Cheryl here:
TRIGGER WARING - WE DISCUSS NAMES AND PLACES AND DISTURBING ALLEGATIONS OF CHILD ABUSE

In one particularly striking moment during our conversation, Bawtinheimer noted the absurdity of the situation: the church and its charity are focused on a copyright dispute while allegations of serious crimes remain unaddressed by authorities.

"What hasn't yet been examined by Canadian media is why an Australian organization would use cross-border litigation to pursue a Canadian woman who disclosed childhood sexual abuse and what that says about power, accountability, and the use of legal systems to suppress speech," she said.

The case is scheduled for an initial case management conference on March 23, 2026, in San Francisco. Meanwhile, Bawtinheimer continues to document survivor stories and speak publicly about her experiences.

"This isn't just about past abuse," she said. "It's about how powerful organizations respond when survivors speak and whether Canadians can safely tell their stories without facing cross-border legal retaliation."

Check out her podcast:

Listen in on conversations with former members of the PBCC, Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, (Exclusive Brethren). Ex-members open a window into the world's most powerful and influential cult and it's links to the Conservatives, crime, corruption and pedophilia. Discussions peel back the hidden layers within these cults and reveal the real trauma that occurs behind closed doors. Join members on their journey toward understanding, healing and personal development. Get A Life Podcast - Ex-cult Conversations is owned by Larkrise Archives, Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporation #1001475079.

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