Man who was brutally abused by priest as a child,wing $650,000 judgement against church,in MN
Joe1orbit
Hello,
Over in Minnesota, a fellow named David Samarzia recently won a $650,000
judgement in court against a a child molesting priest, who began sexually
assaulting David when he was 11 years old, by the reverend Daniel Reeb. This
pedophile priest abused numerous boys during the 1960's, using his position
within your society of being a "respected man of god", to sexually abuse MANY
boys. Three of those boys eventually committed SUICIDE.
This court judgement of $650,000 against the serial child molestor of a
reverend will result in the church that hired and employed this reverend, being
SOLD, in order to satisfy the judgement, since rev. Daniel does not have
$650,000 in personal assets. Below we hear from several brainwashed believers
in the ridiculous god myth, who also happen to be members of this church, where
they are CONDEMNING David for being "vindictive" and for accepting the $650,000
judgement and compelling the church building itself to be auctioned off. Oh
yeah, the god myth is alive and well in the minds of these malicious humans,
who place their church building above the right of Daniel to be compensated for
the brutal torture that a priest inflicted upon him as a child.
Church "leaders" declare that they should not be "punished" for what their
reverend did 30 years ago, since he is no longer employed by their church. They
are upset and angry at David, because they don't want to lose their church. Oh
no, it is important to them to have a building where they can offer up prayers
to a NONEXISTENT entity. Ha! How pathetic! What they really want to keep is
their MONEY and their PROPERTY for themselves, because the church and land
where the church sits is obviously worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. One
church leader proudly declares, from the depths of her insane mind, that:
"It's immoral for David to be taking God's house away.'' Sorry Shelly Jo, but
god does not exist, and your desire and acts as a church leader, in which you
seek to brainwash children into believing in and accepting the validity of the
perverse god myth, as well as your attempt to deny David financial compensation
for the torture that your church inflicted upon him, are FAR more immoral than
David could ever hope to be.
I believe that the church, the land upon which the church sits, and every
item inside of the church, including the bibles, should ALL be auctioned off,
until the entire $650,000 judgement is fully satisfied. No consideration should
be given, from a legal point of view, to the brainwashed humans who claim to
believe in god, and who are upset over the possibility of losing their church.
They are Inferior beings, as evidenced by the simple fact of their belief in a
ridiculous myth, and are unworthy of having their false belief coddled or
validated by society in any way.
Take care, JOE
The following appears courtesy of today's United Press International news
wire:
Wednesday May 13, 1998
Molestation victim may seize church
DULUTH, Minn., May 13 (UPI) - A northern Minnesota accountant who was molested
as a boy by his pastor has decided to seize the church that employed the
molestor to satisfy a $650,000 judgment.
The contents of Redeemer Lutheran Church go on the auction block Friday and
since that is unlikely to satisfy the judgment, the building and grounds could
be auctioned off as well.
Four years ago, a court found church leaders failed to act despite evidence the
Rev. Daniel Reeb was abusing youngsters and awarded David Samarzia $650,000.
Reeb headed the church in the 1960s. Three of his alleged victims committed
suicide while four others sued. Reeb eventually confessed to the abuse and was
defrocked.
Church leaders say they never knew what was going on and see themselves as
victims as well. They also call Samarzia vindictive. Church council member
Shelly Jo Wick told today's Minneapolis Star- Tribune: ``We should not be held
responsible for what a man did 30 years ago. I won't apologize. I didn't do
anything wrong. And it's immoral for David to be taking God's house away.''
Samarzia said he was 11 when the abuse began. He said it went on for three
years and led to self-destructive behavior. He suffered depression and panic
attacks and once tried to commit suicide in his family's garage.
Church leaders say they will picket Friday's auction.
-----------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of the 5/13/98 online edition of The
Minneapolis Star-Tribune newspaper:
Published Wednesday, May 13, 1998
A church may be taken to pay for ex-pastor's sins
Larry Oakes / Northern Minnesota Correspondent
DULUTH -- Daniel Reeb was the pastor at Redeemer Lutheran Church in the 1960s.
He was charming, popular and the worst nightmare of several of the
congregation's pubescent boys.
It started with skinny-dipping and degenerated to things unspeakable, then and
for many years. Redeemer's boys grew up. Three from that period killed
themselves. Four others sued. Questioned by lawyers while at a new post in the
Bahamas, Reeb confessed his sins and was defrocked.
It's a sadly familiar story in these times when nightmares are spoken and
monsters are routinely yanked from under the bed. But this abuse story is
headed for an ending that it is anything but routine. In fact, it may be a
first.
One of Reeb's victims, Duluth accountant David Samarzia, is seizing Redeemer
Church as payment toward the $650,000 that he was awarded four years ago by a
Duluth jury after it decided that church leaders didn't act although they had
reason to believe Reeb was abusing youngsters.
The grief-stricken congregation plans to gather tonight for a last dinner and
service. The St. Louis County sheriff is scheduled to auction the church's
contents Friday.
The proceeds from the auction of the contents almost certainly won't cover the
debt, meaning Samarzia could order the auction of the building and grounds.
"The courts have held that church leaders turned their heads to what was
happening," said Samarzia, 44. "They left other kids in harm's way, and they
still don't admit any responsibility. People need to see there are consequences
for that."
Church leaders emphatically deny that they knew anything concrete enough to act
on, especially by the standards of the era..
They also see themselves as victims -- of Reeb, of religious and secular
systems that they say mishandled the case from the beginning, of what they see
as Samarzia's vindictiveness.
"We should not be held responsible for what a man did 30 years ago," said
Shelly Jo Wick, of the church council, who was a child when Reeb abused the
boys. "I won't apologize. I didn't do anything wrong. And it's immoral for
David to be taking God's house away."
Sins of the pastor
Samarzia said he was 11 when Reeb began three years of "progressive, coercive"
abuse.
"He'd take you swimming, and everything was fine," Samarzia said. "A few months
later, he'd suggest nude swimming. Then it was a nude shower."
The abuse progressed. "It felt good, but at the same time it didn't seem
right," he said. "So right away I learned not to trust how I feel. My
self-esteem just went down."
Samarzia said he started drinking, gave up church and his plans to be a
minister and tried to commit suicide in the family garage. His parents got him
into therapy for what would become a decades-long battle with depression and
panic attacks.
In 1990 he first disclosed the abuse to a counselor. In 1991 he heard that
Redeemer's latest pastor was bringing a dozen kids from a sister church in
Wrenshall, Minn., to visit Reeb at his newest church in the Bahamas.
"I realized that it was up to me to protect those kids," Samarzia said. He told
his story to church leaders, but after consulting with parents in Wrenshall,
the group went anyway.
"They pretty much snubbed me," he said. "I decided if they weren't going to
act, I would have to take it to the court system."
When Samarzia's 1991 lawsuit hit the news, three former Redeemer boys called
him and said they had been abused by Reeb. The families of three suicide
victims also called -- all had been boys at Redeemer when Reeb was pastor.
Reeb admitted the abuse, but the statutory period for criminal charges had
expired. The church fired him. As the lawsuit progressed, Samarzia was angered
to learn that Reeb's behavior wasn't as secret as he thought.
A child who reported that Reeb masturbated during a confirmation class in the
1960s was beaten by his mother for "lying." A schoolteacher told church leaders
that kids were telling disturbing stories about Reeb.
In retrospect, "we did turn a blind eye" toward the rumors, said Graeme Wick, a
church trustee then and now. But no one knew children were being abused, he
said. If they had known, Reeb would have gone swiftly to jail, he said.
The church's insurance company settled out of court for $20,000 to $30,000 with
each of the three others who came forward, but made no offer to Samarzia, which
he said he's never understood.
"It was like they were trying to get me for starting it," Samarzia said.
Church and synod leaders say they left such decisions up to the Church Mutual
Insurance Co. They deny fighting Samarzia out of spite, although some now say
they regret that they regarded him more as an enemy litigant than a wounded
brother.
John Cleary, secretary and general counsel to Church Mutual of Merrill, Wis.,
said Redeemer never exercised its right to demand that Church Mutual settle
with Samarzia before trial, which cost the insurance company $400,000.
"It might have been clear that he wouldn't accept the amount we were willing to
offer," Cleary said. "Or they might have felt we would win the case. No one
expected a verdict like the one Samarzia achieved."
Church leaders said they mistakenly believed that it was the insurance
company's fight and that any damages would be covered. They'd heard, they said,
that Samarzia promised never to take the church. He denies that.
Members were shocked when the jury found Reeb and Redeemer responsible for
$644,000 in damages, including lost wages, therapy and expensive
antidepressants. The church's liability policy covered only $215,000.
Redeemer's membership, which had fallen from 150 to 40 during the battle, was
stuck with the rest.
Days of reckoning
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod -- the 6,000-church organization of which
Redeemer is a member -- was found blameless in the case.
Redeemer Church leaders said the jury must have disregarded testimony showing
that a Redeemer deacon reported suspicions about Reeb to the synod. And the
jury may have relied on testimony that the synod exercises very little
authority over its churches.
The Minnesota Court of Appeals and Minnesota Supreme Court upheld the jury's
ruling. No one squeezed Reeb for the money. "You can't get blood from the
proverbial turnip," said Samarzia's attorney, Jeffrey Anderson of St. Paul, who
gets half of any money collected. "He was living in a trailer park."
Church leaders say they've offered Samarzia $500 a month for life or $100,000
cash to let them keep the church. Samarzia says those offers have never been
put in writing, and he questioned whether Redeemer Lutheran would have the
money or the will to follow through.
The church rejected simply giving the building and contents to Samarzia, which
forced him to spend thousands to seize the property -- the sheriff's auction
assessment alone is $37,000.
"We're not guilty, and just turning the church over would make it look like we
are," church elder Chuck Smithson said. Several church leaders plan to picket
Friday's auction.
One will hold a sign saying, "Deserted by the Missouri Synod."
Though legally off the hook, the synod has made gestures to Samarzia. The Rev.
David Bode, president of the synod's Minnesota North District Office in
Brainerd, said the synod paid Samarzia an amount similar to that given the
other three victims, "out of the goodness of our hearts," to help with legal
and medical bills.
But the synod has no plans to help the church out of its jam.
"We were advised by our attorney that should we do that we'd open a whole ball
of wax in terms of setting a bad precedent," Bode explained.
That angers the Rev. Kenneth Kothe, of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Burnsville.
An outspoken critic of some synod policies, Kothe said, "Like Pontius Pilate,
[the synod is] washing their hands of the whole affair." To avoid looking
guilty in the eyes of the law, both the synod and Redeemer shamed themselves in
the eyes of God, he said.
To that criticism, Bode replied: "Rather than loving [the victims], nothing was
done. When you're involved with attorneys, sometimes those things happen."
Samarzia says Redeemer Lutheran's day of reckoning has come.
"This case has been proved and tested and tested again," he said. "Still they
say they did nothing wrong. When somebody's that way, you have to follow
through and shut them down."
Joe1orbit
Hello,
Here's a quick update on this priest-pedophile child abuse case out on
Minnesota, where a fellow named David Samarzia won a $650,000 judgement against
a church, for sexual abuse that a priest inflicted upon him decades ago. The
entire church and the lan upon which the church sat were set to be auctioned
off today, in order to satisfy the $650,000 judgement. But guess what? David
chose to REMAIN a VICTIM. He refused to act and go forward with the sale. He is
SACRIFICING hundreds of thousands of dollars, all because the church leaders
apologized to him and "accepted responsibility" for having allowed the abuse to
occur. How RIDICULOUS! You can BET that church leaders are CELEBRATING the
profound gullibility of David. Once a victim, always a victim, that's how some
people choose to live their lives.
David WON in court. He GOT a $650,000 judgement. There was NO WAY that
anybody could have stopped him from collecdting ALL of the money, and having
the church and land sold. He CHOSE to NOT do this. Pathetic! He deserves to
suffer. If he is stupid enough, as an adult, to accept this apology from the
church, throw away his chance to have the church DESTROYED and to collect the
full amount of his cash judgement, then he deserves whatever fate befalls him.
NEVER FORGIVE, never show MERCY, that is the lesson that David SHOULD have
learned as a result of his abuse, but clearly did NOT learn. Oh well. Plenty of
stupidity running rampant in the world, I shouldn't get worked up over David's
pathetically irrational choice to aid the very church that destroyed his
childhood, in an insane bid to appear moral and forgiving, to a society that is
immoral, and unforgiving. It's just so damn stupid of him!
Meanwhile, the church is actually PROFITTING from the incident, gaining
hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations and lines of credit, from local
faithful, though MENTALLY ILL, believers in the insane god myth and the
importance of "saving this church".
If you would like to see a facial photo of our stupidly forgiving man, who
has just thrown away hundreds of thousands of dollars, simply point your web
browser to:
http://webserv1.startribune.com/cgi-bin/stOnLine/article?thisSlug=luth19
This is what society does to people. It DESTROYS their own sense of
self-worth. It makes a man, a VICTIM of HORRIFIC abuse, choose to THROW AWAY
hundreds of thousands of dollars, as he STILL accepts the validity of the god
myth, thanks to a lifetime of brainwashing, and lacks the SELF LOVE necessary
to go forward and simply ACCEPT the $650,000 cash judgement that a court
awarded him.
Congratulations folks, the church has been saved. THOUSANDS of helpless and
open-minded children will now be doomed to being forcibly brainwashed and
indoctrinated into the noxious and toxic god myth.
Take care, JOE
The following appears courtesy of today's United Press International news
wire:
Tuesday May 19, 1998
Apology accepted by abuse victim
DULUTH, Minn., May 19 (UPI) - A man who was abused by a Duluth pastor in the
1960s has accepted the apology of church leaders and agreed not to auction off
their building. Redeemer Lutheran Church issued its apology Monday, saying the
church accepts responsibility for the actions of defrocked minister Daniel
Reeb.
--------------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of the 5/19/98 online edition of The
Minneapolis Star-Tribune newspaper:
Published Tuesday, May 19, 1998
Apology from church in sex-abuse case keeps it from auction block
Larry Oakes / Northern Minnesota Correspondent
DULUTH -- Accountant David Samarzia accepted Redeemer Lutheran Church's apology
Monday and agreed not to auction the church to pay for the damage inflicted on
him 30 years ago by a former pastor's sexual abuse.
"I think the healing process can now start for everybody," said Redeemer
president Tom Pederson, who convinced church leaders in a pivotal moment Sunday
that Redeemer should accept some responsibility for the abuse, even though
leaders from the time said they weren't aware of it.
David Samarzia said the money was less important than seeing the church admit
it was wrong.
"It is certainly understandable and reasonable that someone in authority at
Redeemer Lutheran Church should have known," the Church Council said in a
statement council members plan to sign by Sunday and read to the congregation,
a step Samarzia insisted on.
Samarzia also accepted the church's promise of $204,000 -- less than half of
what it still owes him from the $644,000 a jury awarded him in 1994 for the
abuse by the Rev. Daniel Reeb. Samarzia said Reeb began abusing him at age 11
and continued for three years, until Samarzia stopped attending church. He said
he began drinking and attempted suicide before getting counseling that helped
him understand how he had been victimized. He sued in 1991.
Three other men abused by Reeb filed suit after Samarzia and settled out of
court with the church's insurance company. Samarzia also heard from the
families of three men who killed themselves.
All had been boys at Redeemer while Reeb was there.
Samarzia earlier forgave about $200,000 in interest that accumulated since the
award. The church's insurance company already paid him and his attorneys
$215,000 -- the limit of the church's liability policy.
Samarzia, 44, said the money was less important than seeing the church admit it
was wrong. "I'm relieved," he said. "I've waited many years for pretty much
what this statement [of apology] says."
Auction was scheduled
He was legally seizing the church and planned to auction it within two months,
but he offered last week to stop the process and halve the amount owed if the
church apologized to him for what he said were victim-blaming actions and
statements, and acknowledge as true what the jury found: that some Redeemer
members had reason to believe that Reeb was behaving inappropriately with
children.
The St. Louis County Sheriff's Department on Friday auctioned the contents of
the church, prelude to an auction of the building and grounds. But to give the
church more time to meet his demands, Samarzia bought the contents for $25,000
and kept them with the church.
He said he was happy the church's apology stopped the process. "I never wanted
it to go the other way," he said.
In a statement, he added: "I wish my dad was here for this day. He was there
with me when we started in 1991, and he stuck with me and encouraged me when I
felt like giving up." Joe Samarzia died last year, on the day the Minnesota
Supreme Court affirmed the jury's findings on behalf of his son.
On the bright side, the case refocused statewide attention on child sexual
abuse, especially by clergy, Samarzia said. "My hope is that we be more aware
and that we as individuals take responsibility for preventing abuse," he said.
"Anybody -- anybody -- who suspects a child is in harm's way should act on it,
even if a pastor is involved."
Pederson, the church president, said the 40-member congregation will worship at
St. John's Lutheran in Wrenshall until the settlement is final, then move back
to Redeemer's building in Duluth's Morgan Park neighborhood.
The small congregation is in a position to pay the reduced judgment, thanks to
a $200,000 line of credit from the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and $110,000
in donations, including a $100,000 pledge that came last week from an anonymous
company whose owner read about Redeemer's plight.
But "we have a long, uphill battle," Pederson said. "We've lost members, and
it's like having a mortgage payment back again." The congregation has to
recover from emotional trauma, he said.
"It's amazing how something like this abuse can affect so many lives," Pederson
said. "Besides what it did to David, it's caused division among family members,
friends, and between the church and the synod. It's a sad deal, and I hope this
will bring light and healing to all sides."
david.s...@gmail.com
> Hello,
I am David Samarzia and am still alive and well. I want to make very clear to everyone what happened and how this came about. In 1991 I found out that a number of children from Minnesota were going to stay with this serial pedophile minister on a retreat in the Bahama's . My parents Joe and June Samarzia attended the Redeemer Lutheran Church in Duluth, and brought home this church bulletin tell about the retreat. I knew I had to step up to the plate and do something to protect other children from the child molester. I set up several meeting with leaders of the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church and pleaded with them not to let children go to the Bahama's with Reeb. After several attempts and not seeking a dime. They completely ignored me. The only way I knew at the time to protect and save the innocence of other children was to take them to court. What I learned after nearly 10 years in court was outrageous, and I also learned that our legal system was very much not into protecting our children. They and attorney's were very greedy and it was all about money to them. I was going to take the church after the fought me and spent millions and put my family through living hell. I decided to turn the church into a home for abused children, and have them just make an apology to all the other victims, those who committed suicide because they turned a blind eye as leaders of the outrageous things this minister did. Like masturbating in front of a confirmation class. It was reported to ministers and ignored, and he was allowed to continue molesting children for years and years.
I was never out for a dime, and this is all documented in all records. What little was given to me was nothing compared to what I spent going through this lawsuit . Volunteering all over the country, taking my business time doing this, and also putting my own money into donation for child abuse organizations.
Today I still believe legal loopholes are in our system, and will continue to fight until all these pedophiles are registered, and our communities, and police and authority' s warn the public when they come into an area. Now this isn't being done, and all your children are at risk of abuse.
Travis McGee
believes that you have any involvement in this.