Deirdre Newman
A religious group has averted a trial over charges its members
libeled two Orange County health-code investigators, settling the
case for $10,000 each.
The Piecemakers, also known as the Body of Christ Fellowship, is a
group of about 30 people who live communally in six Mesa Verde homes.
Instead of following a traditional family structure, members view
each other as brothers and sisters. They reject marriage and abstain
from sex.
The lawsuit, filed in November by Karen Newe and Bruce Freeman,
alleged that the leader of the Piecemakers and a former member
libeled them in the group's newsletters and in newspaper
advertisements.
The case was settled in May, avoiding a trial that was scheduled
to start Monday. The attorney for Newe and Freeman said all his
clients really wanted was an apology from Piecemakers leader Marie
Kolasinski and former member Anne Sorenson.
"Early on, all we wanted was a retraction and [for them] to
acknowledge they were wrong, which Kolasinski refused to do,"
attorney John Gulino said. "If she refused, all we had left was to
try to recover enough damages to get some kind of impact, so they
realize what they have done is inappropriate."
The Piecemakers' attorney, Jack Daniels, said the settlement was
an economic decision, pure and simple.
"It would have cost a lot more to try it than to settle it,"
Daniels said. "We felt we would have ultimately prevailed."
Kolasinski is out of town, and Sorenson did not return phone
calls.
Newe said the settlement attained the desired effect of causing
the Piecemakers to stop the personal attacks on investigators.
"I'm satisfied with the settlement," Newe said. "Her latest
newsletter does not mention us by name, and I consider that a
success."
Some of the libelous allegations stemmed from a Piecemakers
newsletter released in November 2000 in which Kolasinski called Newe
and Freeman "two rapists" who violated the group's constitutional
rights by entering the store and citing them for code violations.
Also, on Nov. 29, the Los Angeles Times, Orange County edition,
ran an advertisement placed by the Piecemakers that called the two
"martian reptiles."
After the lawsuit was filed, Kolasinski and Sorenson asked the
judge to dismiss the suit because they believed they did not behave
illegally.
The judge denied the request and made a finding that the
statements were libelous and were not protected by any constitutional
privilege, Gulino said.
"I think that's what spurred the Piecemakers into negotiation,"
Gulino said. "They knew if they tried this they would lose."
The Piecemakers settled a separate harassment suit against the son
of a former member in November 2000.
That case ended with the son apologizing to the group for comments
made after his mother, a 20-year member of the group, failed to
attend his college graduation.
