Amish farmer says he forgives teens after arson

Talk about it

FERTILE, Minn. — Elva Miller peers through a window and over a pile of hay in the barn’s hayloft to talk, taking a break from moving hay with his 4-year-old daughter on Wednesday afternoon.

The Amish man is a neighbor of William Bontrager, an Amish farmer near the small town of Fertile, Minn., who lost his barn and three calves to a fire three weeks ago.

Four teenagers, three juveniles and Andrew Mark Dahl, 19, of Climax, Minn., were charged with arson in connection with the fire, the Polk County Sheriff’s Department reported last week.

According to a criminal complaint filed against Dahl in Polk County District Court, the teens started the fire by shooting a flare gun onto Bontrager’s land, causing the barn to ignite about 1 a.m. June 9.

Dahl told a deputy the boys shot three or four flares at Amish farms that night, but he wasn’t sure who fired the shot that ignited Bontrager’s barn, the complaint said.

Miller appears neither angry nor bitter when discussing the fire. On the contrary, he offers his interpretation of the event without losing his good-natured smile.

“It wasn’t like there was a hate thing,” Miller said. “(The teenagers were) just out having too much fun. The fun went a little too far.”

At 1:38 a.m. the day the barn burned down, one of the juveniles sent a text message saying, in part, “its (sic) really bad dude and all could git (sic) in deep (expletive),” the criminal complaint said.

Dahl will have his first appearance in Polk County District Court on July 13, according to the state’s courts website. He is being charged with five felonies: first- and second-degree arson, property damage, drive-by shooting (because the flare gun was shot from a car) and soliciting juveniles to commit a crime.

There was no information available about court dates for the juveniles. They also face arson, property damage and drive-by shooting charges, according to last week’s press release from the Sheriff’s Department.

Miller said that while he wishes the incident could have been avoided, he forgives the teens. He said one of the boys had come out to apologize and offer lumber for rebuilding the chicken house. And, in the end, the property is not his primary concern.

“I’m more concerned for their souls than to try to get even,” Miller said.

He did want to clarify, however, the statement that their “religion demands instant forgiveness of all enemies,” as writer and nursery operator Eric Bergeson of Fertile wrote after the incident in a defense of the Amish on his Country Scribe blog. The Herald quoted Bergeson’s statement in an earlier story.

“It’s not human nature to forgive. It’s a choice to forgive through the gift of God,” Miller said. “You cannot force someone to do that.”

Miller said he and the other farmers moved to the Fertile area four years ago to farm. They came from farms between LaCrosse, Wis., and Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

Bontrager, Miller and other family and friends rebuilt the barn in eight days, Miller said.

“We didn’t want to look at the black charcoal too long,” he said.

Gulya reports on crime and courts. Reach her at (701) 780-1118; (800) 477-6572, ext. 118; or send email to lgulya@gfherald.com.

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