SHOELSES WON'T DEAL
COLUMBINE PARENTS REFUSE SETTLEMENT, WANT TRIAL BY JURY

Author: Jeff Kass - ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS

Three sets of parents - one whose child was gunned down at Columbine, the other two whose sons were the suicidal killers - are locked in an escalating court fight.

``My kid and their kids would still be living if they had done their parental duties,'' says an angry Michael Shoels.

The Shoels family - who lost their 18-year-old son Isaiah at Columbine - is in an unusual dispute with the parents of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold.

The Harrises and Klebolds say the Shoelses have agreed to settle their lawsuit over the Columbine kilings. The Shoelses insist they have not.

The parent vs. parent battle shows no signs of abating.

``Unfortunately, this matter cannot be resolved,'' Shoels attorney Geoffrey Fieger recently wrote to the Klebolds' attorney. ``I do believe that this is a case that will get to the jury.''

Last year, the Klebolds and Harrises offered $1.6 million to settle various lawsuits and head off potential claims of 36 victims' families. The three gun suppliers anted up homeowners' insurance money, bringing the total settlement amount for the cases to approximately $2.85 million.

Many families accepted the money. The Harrises and Klebolds say that includes the Shoels.

Five other families have refused to settle - and that's a different battle altogether.

``Exhibit A'' in the Shoels' dispute with the Klebolds and Harrises is an April 19, 2001, letter from Fieger to attorney Stephen Wahlberg.

``This letter shall serve to confirm that Mr. and Mrs. Shoels have approved settlement with Defendants Klebold, Harris, Manes, Anderson and Duran,'' Fieger wrote.

But in a July 22 court filing, he backtracks.

``The missive itself was misworded since it was not my intent to 'settle' the Shoels' claims, since no offer had ever been made,'' Fieger wrote.

Fieger said that he was ``falsely'' told that all the other victims' attorneys had agreed to participate in a settlement.

An April 26, 2001 letter from Wahlberg to Fieger says: ``I indicated to you yesterday that you may not have to settle with Harris and Klebold, but that was in error.''

Wahlberg added in the letter: ``Based on your correspondence, Harris and Klebold went forward with the settlement.''

Wahlberg says there was no intent to trick anyone.

``When you're dealing with 36 different families, and lawyers in different states, misunderstandings can occur.''

Michael Shoels says the settlement dispute proves his lawsuit is about finding the truth behind Columbine.

``I'd a been settled a long time ago if it was about money,'' said Shoels, who has moved to Texas.

With a nod to the Harrises and Klebolds, he added: ``If I would have let my boys get guns and build bombs, then been asked why, I would try to hurry up and settle too.''

Klebold attorney Gary Lozow declined comment. But a letter he sent on June 6 to Fieger is in the court file.

It was included by Fieger to show that settlement talks were ongoing - and so had never been concluded.

``As I suggested, I have been involved in this family's representation from the commencement of Columbine,'' Lozow wrote.

``I know the historical facts concerning the parenting relationship between my clients and their son, Dylan. I for one see no sustainable legal basis for the Shoels' claim against the Klebolds.''

Michael Montgomery, an attorney for the Harrises, declined to go into detail on the dispute. ``As far as we're concerned, the case has been settled.''

Criminal defense and civil rights attorney David Lane said disputes over whether a settlement was reached are rare. It's relatively easy to decide, he said.

``If somebody has a piece of paper with everyone's signature, then there's a settlement, and until that moment, there is not,'' he said.

The court file contains an agreement on dividing the settlement money that is signed by the Shoels and Fieger. But it does not apply to the Harrises and Klebolds, only gun suppliers Robyn Anderson, Mark Manes and Philip Duran.

A key part of the Harris, Klebold, and Shoels dispute remains secret: The exact amount of settlement money offered.

In fact, few details have ever been released regarding how much victims and their families were paid.

The News has reported that victims with severe injuries received the most money. Families who lost a loved one at Columbine on April 20, 1999, received up to $23,000.

The Shoelses and their attorney say they do not even know the amount they were being offered.

But recent court filings - most of which have never been reported publicly - give clues.

Fieger discussed money in several court filings: ``This correspondence is to reiterate my statement to you that the Shoels will never settle a claim with the Harris' and Klebolds whereinthey stand to receive $28,000-84,000.

``The Shoels agreed to participate in the process only upon the condition that . . . the Shoels' expected recovery would be in the range of $100,000 to $200,000.''

Lozow, the Klebold attorney, discusses dollar amounts in his June 6 letter.

``The exact amount of money attributable to the Klebold settlement figure is $10,833,'' he wrote to Fieger.

``This is the amount arrived at by the arbitrator in terms of allocating funds to each family, at least based upon the Klebolds' insurance coverage in this case.''

Court filings do not reveal a detailed breakdown of the Harris settlement money. But a letter from the Harris attorney, Montgomery, says: ``The amount allocated to Mr. and Mrs. Shoels' claim is exactly the same amount as allocated to the claims of other parents who lost a son or daughter at Columbine.''

Fieger now says settlement is not a goal.

``The only process I've ever wanted to see was a trial to permit the public to see what happened inside the the Harris and Klebold homes to permit the two teen children to amass sufficient munitions to arm a small army,'' he said.

The Klebolds have other thoughts.

``My clients are anxious to settle your clients' claim and perhaps do what else might be necessary to help your clients get through the pain and healing process in this difficult matter,'' Lozow said.

``Please assure your clients that the Klebolds continue to grieve and mourn your clients' loss as well as theirs.''

Brian Rohrbough, the father of slain student Daniel Rohrbough, is among the other five families who have refused to settle. He has indicated that he might drop his lawsuit if he could have a face-to-face talk with the Harrises and Klebolds.

For Shoels, that is not enough.

``You can tell me anything while we're face to face,'' he said. ``But the only way we're going to get the truth is if we do it legally, under oath.''

Copyright (c) 2002 Rocky Mountain News