TEXAS
National Catholic Reporter
Brian Roewe | Mar. 10, 2016
A lawsuit against the Legionnaires of Christ approaching trial in Texas alleges one of its priests attempted to extort, via text message, an additional $94,000 from a Houston-area developer as contingent to closing a land deal between the parties.
The suit, filed in Harris County State District Court, names the Legionnaires of Christ, Legionary Fr. Daniel Massick, former president of Northwoods Catholic School, in Spring, Texas, and Northwoods Educational Foundation as defendants. Robert Pinard, the developer and president/CEO of Pinard Development LLC, is suing for fraud and breach of contract.
At the center of the case is a claim that Massick supposedly texted Pinard that he would need to provide an additional $94,000 donation for an upcoming school gala in order to secure the priest’s signature on the paperwork finalizing an 8.5-acre land deal.
The suit, filed March 3, was the third revision for a case first brought in April 2015. Pinard is seeking an unspecified monetary amount, though the suit claims $3 million in lost profits. A trial is tentatively set for July 25.
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