Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/589905
ByCarolynThompson TheAssociatedPress NEWHARTFORD,N.Y. Called to a meeting in the sanctu- ary of their church, teenage brothers Christopher and Lucas Leonard were told to stand and answer for what they had done. When the answers didn't come, the beatings began. Christopher Leonard, 17, said he was punched in the stomach by a fellow church member. Then his parents, his half sister and other con- gregants delivered a beat- ing that racked his whole body, until he was taken to another room with earplugs and earmuffs to keep him from hearing what was go- ing on around him, he said. "It hurt," he said, "every- where." When he was finally brought back to the sanc- tuary, he saw his 19-year- old brother collapse on the floor, moaning — and, then, not breathing. His voice barely audible in court, Christopher Leon- ard gave his first public ac- count Wednesday of the vi- olence last week that sent him to the hospital and killed his brother. Six peo- ple have been arrested, in- cluding the brothers' par- ents and half sister. Testifying at a hearing for the half sister, Christo- pher didn't explain what the brothers were being pun- ished for, and the judge stopped him from disclos- ing what questions they were asked. Outside court, authori- ties have said the beating erupted during "spiritual counseling" over Lucas' de- sire to leave Word of Life Christian Church, a small, secretive and highly regi- mented congregation in up- state New York. The teens' parents, Bruce and Deborah Leonard, are charged with manslaughter. The half sister, 33-year-old Sarah Ferguson, and three other church members are charged with assault. At the conclusion of Wednesday's hearing, the judge ruled there is suffi- cient evidence for the case against Ferguson to go for- ward. Christopher Leonard tes- tified that after an eight- hour Sunday service Oct. 11, pastor Tiffanie Irwin asked the Leonard family and some others to stay be- hind for a meeting. The purpose? The slight, bespectacled teenager paused, then said only: "To talk about what we had done. Lucas and I." He said he and his brother answered some questions during the inter- rogation but didn't want to answer others. Over what Christopher Leonard estimated was six or more hours, he was pummeled with fists and whipped with a 4-foot, folded electrical cord on the back and elsewhere, he said. He suffered injuries to his torso and genitals. Later, he said, he rushed over to Lucas on the floor in the sanctuary, noticed he wasn't breathing and tried with a church leader to re- vive him. Barred from riding in the family van that carried his brother to a hospital, Chris- topher was taken to the hos- pital by other congregants but didn't go in, he re- called. Instead, they drove him back and made him a bed on the second floor of the school-turned-church. He went to sleep, though it hurt to breathe and he re- peatedly vomited. Police have said the teens' parents and other congre- gants wouldn't tell officers where the injured Chris- topher was, and authori- ties searched for hours be- fore a former church mem- ber helped get him on the phone. The mother's lawyer has said she was too timid to stop the beating. The fa- ther's attorney has said prosecutors haven't proved the couple intended to in- flict serious injuries. The pastor hasn't been charged and hasn't com- mented on the beating. During the hearing, Fer- guson stared down at the defense table in a small courtroom that officials had rearranged so that her brother would be a little far- ther away from her while he was on the stand. "I can't imagine the stress he was under to go into a courtroom ... to tes- tify against his sister," Dis- trict Attorney Scott McNa- mara said. Ferguson's lawyer, Thomas O'Brien III, de- scribed her as a "very sweet" and caring mother of four. He declined to com- ment further. The case has dragged the reclusive church's ways into public view in New Hart- ford, a town of 22,000 peo- ple about 50 miles from Syr- acuse where many had won- dered what went on behind the brick walls. Since the arrests, former members have described a once-vibrant and joyous house of worship that de- clined into a place of fear and intimidation. The teens' uncle Jimmy Stewart said Wednesday that he and his wife at- tended Word of Life in the 1990s but never joined be- cause they felt "something wasn't right." The church's pastors then forbade the Leonard children to asso- ciate with his family, he said. Stewart said he long wor- ried that "something like this would happen." Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz in New York contributed to this report. CHURCH KILLING Te en r ec ou nt s de ad ly b ea ti ng i ns id e se cr et iv e ch ur ch PHOTOSBYMIKEGROLL—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A memorial for Lucas Leonard and his brother Christopher is set up next to the Word of Life Christian Church, Wednesday in New Hartford, New York. Sarah Ferguson is escorted to New Hartford Town Court for a hearing. Advertisement IfthiswasyourService Directory ad customers would be reading it right now!! Suzy 530-737-5056 Gayla 530-737-5044 For more information Landscape/Fence Steve's Tractor &LandscapeService •FenceBuilding•Landscaping • Trenching • Rototilling • Disking • Mowing • Ridging • Post Hole Digging • Blade Work • Sprinkler Installation • Concrete Work Cont. 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On November 16, 2015 at 02:00 PM, at the main entrance to the Tehama County Courthouse, 633 Washington Street, Red Bluff, CA 96080, MTC Financial Inc. dba Trustee Corps, as the duly Ap- pointed Trustee, under and pur- suant to the power of sale con- tained in that certain Deed of Trust recorded on April 12, 2006, as Instrument No. 2006-007857, of official records in the Office of the Recorder of Tehama County, California, executed by EVELYN JOHNSTONE AND RAY- MOND A. JOHNSTONE, WIFE AND HUSBAND AS JOINT TENANTS, as Trustor(s), in favor of SENIOR FREEDOM CORP. as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, in law- ful money of the United States, all payable at the time of sale, that certain property situated in said County, California describ- ing the land therein as: AS MORE ing FULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OF TRUST The property hereto- fore described is being sold "as is". The street address and oth- er common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 710 THISTLE STREET, RED BLUFF , CA 96080 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any in- correctness of the street ad- dress and other common desig- nation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regarding title, pos- session, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest thereon, as provided in said Note(s), advances if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and ex- penses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obliga- tions secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimat- ed costs, expenses and advan- ces at the time of the initial pub- lication of this Notice of Trust- ee's Sale is estimated to be $202,038.71 (Estimated). Howev- er, prepayment premiums, ac- crued interest and advances will increase this figure prior to sale. Beneficiary's bid at said sale include all part of said Beneficiary's may include all or part of said amount. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept a cashier's check drawn on a state or na- tional bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union or a check drawn by a state or feder- al savings and loan association, savings association or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the California Financial Code and authorized to do business in California, or other such funds as may be acceptable to the Trustee. In the event tender other than cash is accepted, the Trustee may withhold the issu- ance of the Trustee's Deed Upon Sale until funds become availa- ble to the payee or endorsee as a matter of right. The property offered for sale excludes all funds held on account by the property receiver, if applicable. If the Trustee is unable to con- vey title for any reason, the suc- cessful bidder's sole and exclu- sive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. Notice to Potential Bidders If you are considering bidding on this property lien, you should under- stand that there are risks in- volved in bidding at a Trustee auction. You will be bidding on a lien, not on the property itself. Placing the highest bid at a Trustee auction does not auto- Placing highest Trustee auction does not auto- matically entitle you to free and clear ownership of the property. You should also be aware that the lien being auctioned off may be a junior lien. If you are the highest bidder at the auction, you are or may be responsible for paying off all liens senior to the lien being auctioned off, be- fore you can receive clear title to the property. You are encour- aged to investigate the exis- tence, priority, and size of out- standing liens that may exist on this property by contacting the county recorder's office or a ti- tle insurance company, either of which may charge you a fee for this information. If you consult either of these resources, you should be aware that the same Lender may hold more than one mortgage or Deed of Trust on the property. Notice to Property Owner The sale date shown on this Notice of Sale may be post- poned one or more times by the Mortgagee, Beneficiary, Trustee, or a court, pursuant to Section 2924g of the California Civil Code. The law requires that in- formation about Trustee Sale postponements be made availa- ble to you and to the public, as a courtesy to those not present at the sale. If you wish to learn whether your sale date has been postponed, and, if applicable, the rescheduled time and date postponed, and, applicable, the rescheduled time and date for the sale of this property, you may call In Source Logic at 702- 659-7766 for information regard- ing the Trustee's Sale or visit the Internet Web site address listed below for information regarding the sale of this property, using the file number assigned to this case, CA05000717-15-1. Informa- tion about postponements that are very short in duration or that occur close in time to the scheduled sale may not immedi- ately be reflected in the tele- phone information or on the In- ternet Web site. The best way to verify postponement informa- tion is to attend the scheduled sale. Date: October 5, 2015 MTC Financial Inc. dba Trustee Corps TS No. CA05000717-15-1 17100 Gillette Ave Irvine, CA 92614 949- 252-8300 TDD: 866-660-4288 Myr- on Ravelo, Authorized Signatory SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OB- TAINED ON LINE AT www.insourc elogic.com FOR AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL: In Source Logic AT 702- 659-7766 MTC Financial Inc. dba Trustee Corps MAY BE ACTING AS A DEBT COLLECTOR AT- TEMPTING TO COLLECT A DEBT. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED MAY BE USED FOR THAT PUR- POSE. ORDER NO. CA15-003544-1 , PUB DATES: 10/15/2015, 10/22/2015, 10/29/2015 i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià i}> ÌVià | NEWS | REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2015 6 B