BRANSON (MO)
Baptist News Global [Jacksonville FL]
March 2, 2025
By Mallory Challis
Last week, Christian County judge Jessica L. Kruse ruled against motions made by Kanakuk Kamps and ACE Insurance Co. in a fraud case filed against them by sexual abuse survivor Andrew Summersett. Despite their arguments that Summersett’s claim was filed after the statute of limitations, the case will proceed.
Summersett is suing Kanakuk, ACE and other individual parties for fraudulent concealment and civil conspiracy related to sexual abuse he experienced as a child at the hands of Kanakuk camp counselor Pete Newman.
Newman was a serial offender during his tenure at Kanakuk and is currently serving two life sentences plus 30 years for sexual abuse against children.
This decision follows a contrasting decision made by another Christian County judge, Raymond M. Gross, in a lawsuit filed against Kanakuk and other relevant entities by Logan Yandell, who also was abused by Newman while at camp. Yandell’s case recently was dismissed for being “time-barred” and unable to “establish actionable fraud or conspiracy.”
However, an appeal of this decision was filed shortly after, so litigation in the case may still proceed.
Evidence in both cases shows defendants were aware of Newman’s tendency to abuse children as early as 1999, yet Newman was allowed access to children through leadership roles at camp. This led to the abuse of what attorneys believe may be hundreds of victims until his confession and arrest about a decade later.
According to other survivors who talked with BNG last year about their camp experiences, Kanakuk brushed abuse under the rug before Newman even came onto the scene, with some telling BNG that disclosing experiences of abuse to camp leadership did nothing to prevent further abuse.
In his lawsuit, Summersett alleges he was encouraged to “back off” and “not make a mess of this” by former staffers Jamie Jo (Braner) Johnson and her ex-husband, Andrew Braner, having discussed his experiences of abuse with them after turning 18. Believing claims they were unaware of the prolific extent of Newman’s sexual misconduct with children, Summersett took their advice.
However, now aware there are likely hundreds of survivors who experienced sexual abuse at Kanakuk Kamps because of Newman’s serial criminal behavior, Summersett alleges in his lawsuit that defendants conspired to conceal pertinent information concerning their knowledge of Newman’s sexual misconduct. He also argues that defendants all “reaped financial gain” because of these actions.
Due to defendants’ misrepresentation of and conspiracy surrounding this knowledge, Summersett did not pursue litigation against them, he says. However, he may have acted differently if the proper information was made available to him at the time.
As litigation proceeds, Summersett seeks to recover compensatory damages for the bodily injuries and damages he suffered during his abuse in 2001-2002 for an equal amount to what he would have received had he chosen to collect a settlement or pursue civil litigation.
Related articles:
Judge dismisses Yandell v. Kanakuk claims, but litigation may proceed
Judge to decide if Yandell v. Kanakuk suit is within statute of limitations
Yandell v. Kanakuk lawsuit amended to include civil conspiracy claims
Motions to dismiss conspiracy charges in Yandell v. Kanakuk denied
Kanakuk sex abuser Pete Newman denied parole