In 1997, Hyles and the First Baptist Church of Hammond were sued "for negligence in connection with alleged sexual assaults on a mentally disabled church member over a six-year period" The lawyer for the woman, Vernon Petri, "says Hyles is a defendant because he failed to protect the woman", such that "controls have to be set to be sure things are conducted appropriately." However, "Christianity Today" pointed out that no criminal charges were ever filed in the case. Also, Hyles denied the allegations that either he or his church were negligent in the care of the woman in an October 12 advertisement in the Hammond Times. According to the lawyer, "a church program instructor led her to a room and served as a lookout while two to three males raped her." The women developed a "serious" infection and doctors "found, embedded in her, a plastic object." The "civil suit filed in Lake Superior Court in Gary claims the Chicago woman was "induced by agents" of the church in 1991 to ride a bus to attend Sunday." The women and church settled the lawsuit for an undisclosed sum.