Nun Who Was in Legal Dispute with Katy Perry Passes Away after Collapsing in Court

A nun by the name of Catherine Rose Holzman who was involved in a long dispute with singer Katy Perry died on friday after collapsing in court. She was 89 years old. She along with a group of another nuns opposed Katy Perry’s efforts to purchase their 8 acre convent in Los Angeles. The nun belonged to the Most Holy and Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

A couple of hours before her death, sister Holzman spoke to KTTV criticizing the judge’s ruling, that cleared the way for Katy Perry to purchase the 8 acre convent. “To Katy Perry, please stop,” Holzman said. “It’s not doing anyone any good except hurting a lot of people.” 

Katy Perry desired to buy the 8 acre property and its Roman villa style buildings for $14.5 m to convert it into a home for her and her mother. The elderly nuns intended to sell the beautiful hilltop property to a local entrepreneur- Dana Hollister who apparently wanted to transform the property into a boutique hotel. However the judge ruled in 2016 that the sale is invalid.

The Jury also accused Dana of fraud for interfering in the sale of the property. Although, according to sister Holzman, it was they who desired to sell the property to her. The jury even ordered Dana to pay 15 million in damages to the Los Angeles Archdiocese and Katy Perry’s lawyers. However since Dana has filed for bankruptcy, the proceedings are on hold. The sisters are in complete support for Dana Hollister.

The sisters owned the property for the past 40 years however they never lived in the property. They claim that they have documents to prove that they are the rightful owners and that the property was stolen from them. They said the convent is under the direct control of the Vatican and has never been part of the Los Angeles Diocese. They have the agreement in writing that states that if there are any disputes, it has to be settled in Rome. Now, the nuns intend to make an appeal to Pope Francis.