SECTION 4 TITLE 4.1 : FIRST EFFORT TO STAY AWAY FROM NEWMANN & SARAH

 

WALLS OF SILENCE

SECTION 4 TITLE 4.1 : FIRST EFFORT TO STAY AWAY FROM NEWMANN & SARAH

THE FIRST ACT OF AGGRESSION: PREDATORY ENVIRONMENT 

 Witnessing passive violence in plain sight and then being victim of it

Moving into a new home is supposed to be a fresh start—a chance to rebuild and find peace. Yet, from the very first day I encountered a chilling display of power and abuse that shattered any illusion of safety. Despite paying the $700 safety deposit and anticipating a smooth lease signing, I encountered an environment marked by abuse, control, and degradation.

Upon arriving to sign the lease, I was greeted by an inebriated woman, Sarah, who claimed property management was on the roof. Because of my physical limitations, I waited, though her visible intoxication made me uneasy. I witnessed Sarah, a woman visibly struggling to cope with her circumstances. Her inebriation and demeanor reflecting the weight of her situation. When property managers, Rick Newmann and Anthony Anderson, arrived, the atmosphere became oppressive. Newmann’s hardened demeanor contrasted sharply with his initial charm as they took turns degrading Sarah, a spectacle that seemed designed for my entertainment. But I wasn’t entertained—I was horrified. It was embarrassing as a stranger to be at the center of these men publicly humiliating Sarah while she was inebriated and clearly struggling to maintain her dignity amid desperation for stability. If they truly had a problem with the trouble she caused when drinking, they would have used their authority of lease enforcement to remove one or both from her, the trouble or the alcohol—she didn’t drive so she didn’t buy it herself. They liked having an easy target to pick on.

Her desperation to cling to shelter and financial stability came at the cost of her dignity. Meanwhile, Anderson’s girlfriend, Sandra, appeared equally trapped, intoxicated beyond recognition and only roused to deliver a violent rant about her grief. Their lives seemed intertwined in cycles of dependency and degradation—a nightmare too common for women and those battling addiction.

Out of left field, Newmann unnecessarily inserted himself into the paperwork process, overriding prior agreements I had made with Anderson. This seemingly minor act carried a darker implication: it was an assertion of control, a form of passive violence aimed at establishing dominance. By denying me access to my documents, Newmann effectively made me dependent on him for something as basic as a copy of my own rental documents—exploiting my vulnerability for his own gratification.

That was the second time he pushed a vulnerable persona on me. The first time was in an oddly stated comment at the salutation of the tour date suggesting I was a vulnerable damsel with an implication he had what I need. It was slight but I still noticed. He leaned in too close and gave a fake, forced, smile, in an attempt to charm me, that for a split second it almost looked like he unintentionally scowled. Then he goes, you want Your Own place. 

The thing is we already talked about me being alone in a four bedroom house that was too much to manage because it was worst than my brother led me to believe and then he ran off without ensuring I had the supplies to upgrade the house and be well on my own. The last winter was brutal on my body; I literally had trouble getting in and out of the house after a snow storm; the snow would cover my thighs and barely have mobility. I cannot navigate that without some help setting up, and consistent healthcare. An apartment would remove the barrier of contending with the snow. I couldn't do it in my health, from this location and condition. I had too much of my own house. I didn't go into that much detail with him but he was totally aware I was overwhelmed with house and for something where I am responsible for less maintenance. 

His comment came across like he's used to people or women that don't have a place to stay and he was letting me stay with him. It felt like he tried to make it personal. I guess I thought, hmm, Ok, Weird because I’m looking for an apartment and you’re renting one so that’s that and I let it go.  Obviously, now I know he was absolutely making it personal. He groomed me through the entire showing; from the bathtub comment under is his breath to that demonic smile and comment at the salutation.

But now he just committed an act, that irrespective of how minute—made me exactly that: a vulnerable damsel, he publicly humiliated Anderson, neutralizing his power to do this and took perversely, palpable, gratification in having successfully accomplished all the things—he had humiliated me to but it was an invitation for more, for me to earn a copy of my documents and it was a total taking control of my autonomy.

Newmann’s use of a rental interaction to assert dominance had already become part of a broader pattern of grooming and control that would never stop during the tenancy and never stop escalating in foulness or aggression. Each day would present calculated moves to exploit perceived vulnerabilities and establish power, even if it required him first creating those vulnerabilities, to establish power; like here lease signing day. Silently, my guard went up. By God's grace it never come down because a woman needs not just a guard but a stronghold in close proximity to him.

This interaction was my first introduction to the real Rick Newmann, and it revealed his predatory nature. His actions were not just unprofessional but emblematic of a deeper misogyny. His demeanor suggested that he believed women should be controlled and subjugated—a belief Anderson seemed to share. As they degraded Sarah, I silently resolved to limit my interactions with all of them to the bare minimum.

The experience left me shaken. I realized immediately that this place could never be a safe or therapeutic environment for me. There was another unit upstairs and across the hall from the rental office; the furthest distance from the hotspot in the building.

It was not upgraded I waited until I got home to ask Newmann to switch my unit to the one further away in an attempt to avoid insult by making it seem like it was based on what I just experienced during that lease signing that felt like an hour long or so social event—even though, that was exactly why I needed to be moved. I didn’t want to ever experience that again or even be privy to the details of their lives vs. to avoid being dragged into any drama.  

Newmann seemed to still take offense suggesting I’d have to pay more for less unless I stayed overtop him where he could monitor my actions from below when he had just marketed the unit to me for $50.00 less, he even suggested a unit I hadn’t seen in Anthony Anderson’s building which may have been the better idea after all but I didn’t want to rent with out seeing and didn’t want to put my body through another of these grueling walks I’m medically not supposed to be doing only to return to a home with mold, no hot water and no heat in the dead of winter—because the county in general has not been warm or exactly legal to me as a Black woman.

In fact, I’ve never witnessed the level or racial hostility anywhere else that I have been subjected to here. Its not a small town thing, it’s a sundown thing. In elementary school I was the only black girl in the city of Grand Rapids, Minnesota. The racial hostility within the county; set within a state that took everything I owned and my right to housing in order that I would end up here absolutely impacted every single decision I made throughout my residency.

I agreed to pay a higher price in rent, approximately and additional $600.00 throughout leasing period to maintain autonomy and minimize interactions with Newmann and girlfriend Sarah.

I decided that I would leave as soon as my lease ended that lease signing day. I kept my moving boxes after unpacking, ready to leave the same way I arrived.

However, an infestation has complicated my plans. To move safely, I need plastic boxes to protect my belongings, and it is only fair that the property management provides financial support for these. After all, no tenant should have to bear the cost of escaping an unsafe and unsanitary environment they never chose to endure.

This is not just my story—it’s a reflection of the systemic issues that perpetuate abuse and control. By sharing it, I hope to shed light on the subtle yet insidious ways predators operate, often hiding in plain sight, and to advocate for the support and protection every tenant deserves.

EVIDENCE

This screenshot shows that I had no intention of any personal involvement with Sarah Newmann's girlfriend or Newmann or anyone on the property for the matter. I took a tattered unit at a higher cost to avoid encouraging a social relationship with Rick Newmann and his invitee Sarah who were living below the upgraded unit as both of their behavior gave me a bad feeling. This expose proves that my feeling was correct. We were never going to hang out. I stay away from trouble in all forms. This proves that I was willing to pay more accept less to ensure it. Accusations of carelessness, recklessness, trouble or problems stemming from me should never stand. That's not who I am. That's not who I have ever been. I do everything that I can to remain mature, rational, calm, responsible and stay away from trouble in the first place. If I fail to do that it because I have been pushed to it.

Also, the screenshot demonstrates that Newmann began with a professional tone and respect for boundaries. He's escalated, just as I have reported. That puts me in a very dangerous situation in proximity to an offender that's willing to go further and further to achieve something I am not supplying and that's a sexual relationship or an explosive argument for rejecting one. In later unanswered text, Rick Newmann referring to me as "sunshine" "beautiful" those are not compliments. Those degradations and coercing by a  extremely abusive groomer by pattern. That is his underhanded, sneaky way, he's two faced. The real Rick Newmann is a nightmare. Every female on the property subjected to his presence has a short fuse, that's not a coincidence.