Happen to you,
This very day.
While Richard's dad, Oral Roberts, had a mini-scandal of his own some 20 years ago when he asserted God was going to "call him home" if he didn't get enough money for his (now-defunct) City of Faith hospital or ORU, the son ain't as lucky as the dad. He's embroiled in a major lawsuit and scandal:
Saying he'd spoken with God, school President Richard Roberts told students and faculty during a weekly chapel service, "Here's what he told me to say to you, ‘We live in a litigious society. Anyone can get mad and file a lawsuit against another person whether they have a legitimate case or not.
"‘This lawsuit ... is not about wrongful termination. It is about intimidation, blackmail and extortion,'” he said.
The breach of contract lawsuit was filed Tuesday against the university, Roberts, provost Mark Lewandowski, associate provost Jeff Ogle and dean Wendy Shirk by three professors who said they were fired or resigned under pressure.
And:
Tim Brooker joined ORU in 2001. He was recruited by the Republican National Committee to develop a program to further the political group's efforts. Over several years, the program had success in political races, all outside of Oklahoma, and financed either by the RNC or individual campaign committees, the lawsuit said.
In December 2005, Tim Brooker was summoned to meet with Richard Roberts and Roberts' sister-in-law Stephanie Cantese, community and governmental liaison for the ministries, the lawsuit stated.
Brooker was instructed by Roberts to use his talent and his students in local political races, specifically that of Randi Miller, seeking the Republican nomination for Tulsa mayor, according to the lawsuit. Miller is now a county commissioner.
Of course this is in violation of the federal tax code.
It gets juicier:
On the same day a lawsuit against Oral Roberts University, President Richard Roberts and three school officials was amended to add libel, slander or defamation accusations, the school announced an investigation into allegations made in the suit.
And it gets even better:
The summary of the report in the lawsuit alleges:
* One of Richard and Lindsay Roberts' children vandalized and removed athletic department equipment from ORU property.
* University and ministries employees regularly do the homework of the Roberts' children.
* ORU paid $29,411 for one Roberts daughter to vacation with friends in Florida and the Bahamas and use the ORU jet for transportation.
* Lindsay Roberts routinely uses ministries security personnel during personal vacations.
* Lindsay Roberts awarded 13 non-need-based scholarships to friends of her children, two of whom had test scores below ORU's admission requirement; and more.
And it gets even better:
_ A longtime maintenance employee was fired so that an underage male friend of Mrs. Roberts could have his position.
_ Mrs. Roberts — who is a member of the board of regents and is referred to as ORU's "first lady" on the university's Web site — frequently had cell-phone bills of more than $800 per month, with hundreds of text messages sent between 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. to "underage males who had been provided phones at university expense."
You can read the lawsuit here.
