Kanakuk Kamps' insurer says it wasn't responsible for withholding abuse info from parents
An insurance company for Kanakuk Kamps has rejected claims by the Branson-based Christian camp that it was responsible for withholding information from parents about a former camp director's past actions.
Kanakuk, which is being sued by a former camper who was sexually abused by camp director Peter Newman, has pointed a finger at its insurance provider, ACE Insurance Company, saying the company told the Branson-based camp to conceal information about its handling of earlier reports of Newman behaving inappropriately with children. In a cross-claim action related to the 2022 fraud lawsuit filed by victim Logan Yandell, Kanakuk alleged that ACE threatened to deny coverage if the information was released.
ACE Insurance Company refuted the camp's claims in a recent court filing, noting that defending Kanakuk was not a part of the camp’s insurance policy and that its warning that coverage could be denied was not the same as repressing information.
Yandell was among several victims sexually abused by Newman, who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 2009. In the aftermath of the scandal, Kanakuk said it planned to send out letters to 8,000 families regarding Newman's abuse and previous disciplinary reports, but was advised by ACE not to proceed.
Yandell and his parents have said they agreed to the settlement and nondisclosure agreement based on statements by Kanakuk and its leaders that they had no previous knowledge of misconduct by Newman. Documents and interviews with former staff members, however, have shown that Newman's supervisor had recommended he be fired in 2003 — several years before Yandell was abused — and that camp leaders had been aware of Newman engaging in nude activities with campers and other inappropriate conduct since at least 1999. The disclosure of that information, previously reported in the News-Leader, prompted the Yandells to file suit.
More: Branson-based Kanakuk blames insurer for withholding information from sexual abuse victim
ACE, which said it participated in the negotiations leading to the Yandells settlement, said in its recent filing that it not responsible for defending Kanakuk now because its policies "do not provide coverage for Plaintiff’s lawsuit against Kanakuk because the lawsuit does not allege 'bodily injury' or 'property damage' caused by an 'occurrence' as that term is defined in the policies."
A jury trial for this case is set for January 2025.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Kanakuk Kamps' insurance provider denies allegations by Branson camp
