Rob Jr.

Deborah Rodriguez

September 27, 2013

Assignment 8

Annemarie Kelly

Tort law

Statement of Facts

Rob Sr. and Bunny Sherman have a 15-year-old son named Rob Jr. Rob Sr. and Bunny want to bring suit against the Church of Divine Light. It is similar to the Church of Scientology, but not actually related to any one, organized church.

The parents allege that Rob Jr. was tricked into attending some meetings. One night about a year ago, Rob Jr. was getting ready to return home after one of their youth meetings. The organizer of the youth retreat, Tom Marsden, allegedly made numerous excuses for keeping Rob there. It reached a pinnacle when Tom told Rob Jr., “If you leave, you will be thrown into the eternal fires of Hell, and you will not be allowed back.” Rob Jr. acquiesced and remained. The next day Tom had Rob Jr. write a letter to his parents telling them that he was planning to stay with the Church, as they were his “new” family. Rob Jr. was also told to demand money from his parents to cover his expenses.

Rob Jr. remained with the church for a period of roughly 6 months. Rob Sr. and Bunny arranged to meet with Rob Jr. to give him his money for that month, and pulled him into the car and brought him home. They had to watch him carefully for about two weeks, but he finally came out of the “brainwashing.”

They want to sue the Church for a number of things. They want to sue on their son’s behalf for the intentional torts that were inflicted on him, as well as for the torts committed against them.

Intentional Torts & Rule of Law

“Assault has three elements: Intent, apprehension of a harmful contact, and causation. The Restatement (2nd) of Torts states: 1) An actor is subject to liability to another for assault if (a) he acts intending to cause a harmful or offensive contact with the person of the other or a third person, or an imminent apprehension of such a contact, and (b) the other is thereby put in such imminent apprehension.”...