Lowellville woman sues church, alleges rapes

WARREN -- A Lowellville woman has filed a $10 million lawsuit against Grace Lutheran Church, Hall Avenue, Hubbard, and a former pastor of the church.
Linda Sheridan of Struthers Road filed the suit Friday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court. No hearing date has been set.
Sheridan states that Robert B. Kridler, the former pastor, repeatedly raped her. She states that the rapes started when she was 13 and continued until she was 21.
The suit does not state how old Sheridan is now or the years she alleges the rapes took place.
Kridler has not been charged with any crimes.
Kridler, who now lives in Arizona, and Grace Lutheran Church officials could not be reached to comment.
The suit also names the Rev. Kenneth Sauer, who was the Bishop for the Ohio Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Ohio Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America as defendants. The suit states that the Bishop and the Ohio Synod had authority over Kridler.