| Sugarcreek, Ohio — The request of the "Amish Madoff," Monroe L. Beachy, to dismiss his bankruptcy case was denied Friday by Judge Russ Kendig, who said “the court cannot dismiss this case based on religious motivation.” Beachy filed for Ch. 7 bankruptcy in US Bankruptcy Court in Canton, Ohio last summer. Beachy was sole proprietor of an investment firm which closed in June. The firm's assets were liquidated, generating about $16.4 million. Total liabilities in the bankruptcy case are about $33.3 million. The case affects about 2,700 investors as creditors, with more than 2,550 members of the Amish and Mennonite faiths. As is their custom, many Amish objected to being hauled into court over this civil matter. Amish religious leaders formed a committee to resolve the dispute among their own church members and got Beachy to attempt to withdraw his bankruptcy filing. The bankruptcy judge declined the motion & wrote the court “cannot delegate the bankruptcy to the committee,” and the committee “has failed to establish cause to dismiss” the case. The judge referred to legal arguments based on the First Amendment. “The debtor in this case is clearly asking this court to delegate its function to a religious body,” Kendig wrote. “Any such delegation is forbidden by the Establishment Clause, regardless of the specific facts of a particular case.” |