A federal bankruptcy judge in Minneapolis has threatened to fine a Hastings lawyer and her client up to $10,000 for making anti-Catholic statements in a Nov. 25 court filing.
The memo, written by Naomi Isaacson, president of Yehud-Monosson USA, Inc., and signed by attorney Rebekah Nett, referred to U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Nancy Dreher as a “black-robed bigot” and a “Catholic Knight Witch Hunter.”
It said the courts were “composed of a bunch of ignoramus, bigoted Catholic beasts that carry the sword of the church” and included other anti-Catholic slurs and allegations of conspiracy.
Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights president Bill Donohue said in a news release on the organization’s website that it is filing a formal complaint in Minnesota and Wisconsin against Nett, who is licensed in both states.
Yehud Monosson USA, Inc., a subsidiary of a Shawano, Wis., religious group called the Dr. R.C. Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology Inc., is involved in a bankruptcy dispute before Dreher. It owns several gas stations and convenience stores.
The judge pointed out 10 passages for which Nett and Isaacson could face sanctions of up to $1,000, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported. A hearing is set for Jan. 4.
Dreher told Nett and Isaacson that she plans to order them to issue public apologies for the filing, according to the Pioneer Press. She also said she plans to require Nett, who runs Westview Law Center in Hastings, to undergo ethics training.
