Notice: Fredric Rice may have removed segments of the replies given to
questions if they contained copyrighted materials. After a very short
while, Scientology "experts" refused to answer questions and
started cut-and-pasting copyrighted cult propaganda. Additionally I
removed URLs in some of the replies, and left them in others. And it's
also important to note that eventually the unfortunate "Greg
Churilov" cultist was ejected from
askme.com for his typical Scientological behavior.
Anonymous asked this question on 5/26/2000:
Wow! The evidence I have been reading about against the 'church of scientology'
is mind-boggling. The problem I have come across in the past is that with such
quantity of evidence against an organization, is that it turns out to be
manufactured or planted evidence periodically, especially if the organization is of
a 'radical' nature. My question is: Is there some area of the criminal
justice system which holds conclusive evidence? Or, is there somewhere
else to search for this type evidence? What I am looking for is somewhere to find
evidence in a manner which is conclusive that it is not manufactured or planted.
Thank you.
Desertphile gave this response on 5/30/2000:
SCIENTOLOGY / L. RON HUBBARD GOVERNMENTAL OFFENSE TIMELINE
Below are actual convictions of some governmental offense by L. Ron
Hubbard or the Church of Scientology or someone acting in their capacity as a
member of the Church of Scientology. Also below are currently outstanding
criminal cases not yet completed, such as someone out on bail pending trial
or a warrant for their arrest.
1943 Hubbard found guilty of violating Navy rules when he fires his ship's
guns toward Mexican territory. Relieved of command. [source: Hubbard's
Naval records]
1948, Aug. 17 Hubbard pleads guilty to petty theft. [source: photocopy of
government records]
197? US FDA settles with the church, requiring that the e-meter be clearly
labelled that it cannot be used for physical healing as the church had been
claiming.
1978 Hubbard found guilty in absentia of fraud in France. [source: Catholic
Sentinal, March 17, 1978]
1978 March. Arthur Maren, Church spokesperson, released from prison after 8
months for refusing to cooperate with an FBI investigation about the church.
[source: Los Angeles Times March 31, 1978]
1980 Mary Sue Hubbard and 11 other Scientologists convicted of breaking
and entering, and stealing US government documents. [source: Washington
Post, January 8, 1983]
1988 Heber Jentzsch arrested in Spain along with many other Scientologists
for fraud. Heber still out on $1 million bail put up by the church. [source:
Arizona Republic, September 22, 1988]
1994 May 24. RTC attorney Helena Kobrin and the law firm of Bowles and
Moxon fined $17,775 for filing a frivolous lawsuit. [source: RTC v. Frank
Gerbode (current transfer binder) RICO Bus. Disp. Guide (CCH) par. 8595
(C.D. Cal. May 2, 1994) US District Court Central District of California case #
93-2226 AWT, Judge A. Wallace Tashima
1994 a warrant is issued forthe arrest of Eugene Ingram, Scientology private
investigator, for impersonating a police officer. The warrant is still valid and
Ingram has chosen not to go back to Florida to straighten this out. [source:
copy of warrant]
1996, November. the former head of the Lyon France church convicted of
manslaughter for pushing a Scientologist toward suicide. 14 others convicted
of fraud and other charges.
Desertphile gave this follow-up answer on 5/30/2000:
Convictions
1999: Greece: Scientologists found guilty. 15 Scientologists were accused of
systematically keeping files on politicians, journalists, judges, clergymen and
other Greek leading personalities. The Scientologists were found guilty , but
they were not sentenced, due to procedural errors. (In other words, they got
off on a technicality.) In 1998, a judge ordered the Scientology organization
in Athens to stop operating, since the organization was established under
false pretenses . According to the ruling, the organization was not operating
as a non-profit, and was putting people's mental and physical health at risk.
1997: Italy: Scientologists jailed. 29 Scientologists were sentenced to jail for
criminal association .
1996: France: Scientology executive found guilty of involuntary homicide. "A
former Church of Scientology leader was convicted Friday of involuntary
homicide and sentenced to 18 months in prison in the 1988 suicide of a
church member. Twelve other defendants facing lesser charges - theft,
complicity or abuse of confidence - were given suspended sentences of eight
to 15 months each. Charges were dropped against 10 others." The
Scientologists were charged in the death of Patrice Vic .
1996: France: Scientologists guilty of interfering with a witness. Three
Scientologists were given suspended prison sentences for interfering with an
expert witness in a Lyon trial. Charges of theft were proven.
1995: Canada: Scientology pays the largest libel award in Canadian history.
Scientology was found guilty of libelling Casey Hill, the prosecutor responsible
for bringing Scientology to justice for its egregious illegal acts in Canada.
1994: USA: Scientology fined for filing a frivolous lawsuit. Helena Kobrin,
representing RTC (a Scientology corporation), was fined $17,775 for filing a
frivolous lawsuit . (Using the law to harass critics is Scientology policy.)
1992: Canada: Scientology found guilty of breach of the public trust.
Scientology itself and three Scientology executives were found guilty of breach
of public trust in a case involving the theft of information from government
offices.
1989: USA: Scientology Found Guilty of Inflicting Emotional Distress. In 1986,
former Scientologist Larry Wollersheim sued Scientology for intentional
infliction of emotional distress. The jury awarded him $35,000,000, which was
reduced on appeal to $2,500,000. Scientology refuses to pay, and now owes
Larry more than twice that (with interest accruing).
The appeals court agreed that Larry had been badly hurt by Scientology: it
found that Scientology "coerced Wollersheim into continued participation,"
"seized Wollersheim and held him captive," and that "the Church's conduct
was manifestly outrageous." In October 1997, the court found that the Church
of Scientology International and Religious Technology Center are liable for
the debt
1984: USA: Clearwater Police Investigator Recommends RICO Charges. Lt.
Ray Emmons investigated Scientology as part of his duties. He found clear
evidence of fraud and other crimes and recommended that federal and state
authorities prosecute Scientology under anti-racketeering laws.
1980: USA: Top-ranking Scientologists guilty of burglary, forgery, infiltration,
and obstruction of justice. Eleven Scientology executives, including L. Ron
Hubbard's wife, pled guilty to a number of serious crimes. The stipulation of
evidence included the following statement: "At all times material to the
indictment, L. Ron Hubbard was, by virtue of his role as the founder and
leader or Scientology, overall supervisor of the Guardian's Office."
1979: USA: Julie Christofferson Titchbourne sues Scientology for fraud. Julie
Christofferson Titchbourne sued Scientology for fraud and outrageous
conduct. She won her original trial and the first appeal; Scientology appealed
a second time but settled with Julie before that appeal was heard.
1978: France: Fraud. Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard was convicted of
fraud in a trial held in absentia.
Current News
Trial pending: USA: Scientology faces felony charges in the death of Lisa
McPherson.
The state of Florida has filed felony charges of unauthorized practice of
medicine and abuse and/or neglect of a disabled adult in the case of Lisa
McPherson , who died in Scientology's custody on December 5, 1995. A civil
suit has been filed by her estate, alleging wrongful death, intentional infliction
of emotional distress, false imprisonment, fraud, battery, negligence, and
practicing medicine without a license.
Other people have also reported fraud , the unauthorized practice of
medicine, and false imprisonment.
Trial pending: Ireland: Brainwashing. Mary Johnston is suing Scientology,
saying she underwent a personality change and her health suffered while she
was undergoing Scientology processing. She recently won the right to see her
auditing folder (notes kept on her from Scientology processing sessions).
Trial pending: USA: Fraud, false imprisonment, assault, extortion,
kidnapping, defamation, invasion of privacy, infliction of emotional distress,
and racketeering. Michael Pattinson is suing Scientology for several counts of
fraud and a variety of other extremely serious charges. The suit garnered
some national press (including stories in the Guide and Fab! and at MSNBC )
because it names John Travolta, alleging that Scientology claimed they could
"cure" Pattinson's homosexuality and used Travolta as an example of a
homosexual whose orientation they had changed.
Trial pending: Spain: Scientology leaders charged. Scientology officials face
up to 30 years in prison on charges ranging from tax evasion to establishing
an illegal organization. Narconon is also charged with criminal acts.
Trial pending: Undue influence and deceit. David Cresswell is suing
Scientology for a refund of money he paid under "undue influence," relying
on "deceit and misrepresentations."
Trial pending: USA: Fraud. A trust established by L. Ron Hubbard is one of
several parties sued by attorneys seeking to recover funds; several of the
suits allege fraud.
Ongoing investigation: Russia: Secret service investigating Scientology. "The
Russian secret service has recently stepped up its surveillance of the Church
of Scientology amid suspicions that it is violating basic rights of members,
using violence if need be, and engaging in illicit financial business." Russian
police raided Scientology's offices in February 1999.
Desertphile gave this follow-up answer on 5/30/2000:
Scientology - Major Criminal Convictions
1997 Italy: Criminal Association. A Milan appeal court has sentenced 29
members of the Church of Scientology to between nine and 20 months' jail
for criminal association, the Corriere della Serra reported Saturday.
1996 France: Fraud and Manslaughter. A Lyon court convicted 14
Scientologists of fraud. The former head of the Lyon Scientology organization
was found guilty of manslaughter in the alleged suicide of Patrice Vic.
France: Interfering with a Witness. Three Scientologists were given suspended
prison sentences for interfering with an expert witness in a Lyon trial. Charges
of theft were proven.
1995 Canada: Libel. The Supreme Court orders Scientology to make the
largest libel payment in Canadian history for defaming lawyer Casey Hill.
1994 United States: Frivolous Lawsuit. RTC (a Scientology corporation) fined
$17,775 for filing a frivolous lawsuit. (Using the law to harass critics is
Scientology policy.)
1992 Canada: Espionage. "In 1992, the Toronto branch was fined $250,000
for its role in espionage operations in the 1970s against the Ontario
Attorney-General's Ministry, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal
Canadian Mounted Police. This criminal conviction of a church -- a rarity in
legal history -- was upheld [in 1996] by the Ontario Court of Appeal." - The
Globe and Mail
1988 Spain: Fraud. Scientology executive Heber Jentzsch arrested for fraud.
Scientology posts $1,000,000 bail to free him. Jentzsch's trial is slated to
begin in June 1999.
1980 United States: Breaking and Entering, Stealing Government Documents.
Mary Sue Hubbard and 11 other Scientologists convicted of breaking and
entering, and stealing US government documents. [source: Washington Post,
January 8, 1983]
1978 France: Fraud. L. Ron Hubbard found guilty of fraud, in absentia.
Desertphile gave this follow-up answer on 5/30/2000:
Judicial statements regarding the Nature of Scientology
"Scientology is evil; its techniques are evil; its practice is a serious threat to
the community, medically, morally, and socially; and its adherents are sadly
deluded and often mentally ill... (Scientology is) the world's largest
organization of unqualified persons engaged in the practice of dangerous
techniques which masquerade as mental therapy." --Justice Anderson,
Supreme Court of Victoria, Australia
"The government is satisfied that Scientology is socially harmful. It alienates
members of families from each other and attributes squalid and disgraceful
motives to all who oppose it; its authoritarian principles and practice are a
potential menace to the personality and well being of those so deluded as to
become followers; above all, its methods can be a serious danger to the
health of those who submit to them... There is no power under existing law to
prohibit the practice of Scientology; but the government has concluded that it
is so objectionable that it would be right to take all steps within its power to
curb its growth." --Kenneth Robinson, British Minister of Health
"The crime committed by these defendants is of a breadth and scope
previously unheard of. No building, office, desk, or file was safe from their
snooping and prying. No individual or organization was free from their
despicable conspiratorial minds. The tools of their trade were miniature
transmitters, lock picks, secret codes, forged credentials and any other device
they found necessary to carry out their conspiratorial schemes." --Federal
prosecutor's memorandum to the judge urging stiff jail sentences for 9 top
leaders of Scientology who had pleaded guilty to criminal charges
"Scientology is both immoral and socially obnoxious...It is corrupt sinister and
dangerous. It is corrupt because it is based on lies and deceit and has its real
objective money and power for Mr. Hubbard... It is sinister because it indulges
in infamous practices both to its adherents who do not toe the line
unquestionly and to those who criticize it or oppose it. It is dangerous
because it is out to capture people and to indoctrinate and brainwash them so
they become the unquestioning captives and tools of the cult, withdrawn from
ordinary thought, living, and relationships with others." --Justice Latey, ruling
in the High Court of London
"[The court record is] replete with evidence [that Scientology] is nothing in
reality but a vast enterprise to extract the maximum amount of money from
its adepts by pseudo scientific theories... and to exercise a kind of blackmail
against persons who do not wish to continue with their sect.... The
organization clearly is schizophrenic and paranoid, and this bizarre
combination seems to be a reflection of its founder, L.Ron Hubbard." --Judge
Breckenridge, Los Angeles Superior Court
"In addition to violating and abusing its own members' civil rights, the
organization over the years with its 'fair game' doctrine has harassed and
abused those persons not in the church whom it perceives as enemies." --Los
Angeles Superior Court Judge Paul Breckenridge, June 1984, in the Gerry
Armstrong case
"In January 1980, fearing a raid by law enforcement agencies, Hubbard's
representatives ordered the shredding of all documents showing that Hubbard
controlled Scientology organizations, finances, personnel, or the property at
Gilman Hot Springs. In a two week period, approximately one million pages
were shredded pursuant to this order." --California appellate court, 2nd.
district, 3rd. division, July 29, 1991, B025920 & B038975, Super. Ct. No. C
420153
"It is common knowledge among senior executives of the organization and it
is the policy of CSC that members of the Boards of Directors are mere
figureheads, without authority or control, not for internal corporate reasons,
but rather to vest control in Mr. Hubbard. I have personal knowledge that in
order to carry out this corporate fraud, organizational executives have
engaged in the various unethical practices including backdating phony Board
minutes and forging signatures." --Affidavit of Gerry Armstrong, former
member
"When a person is subjected to coercive persuasion [as in Scientology]
without his knowledge or consent ...[he may] develop serious and sometimes
irreversible physical and psychiatric disorders, up to and including
schizophrenia, self-mutilation, and suicide." --California Supreme Court,
United States v. Lee [455 U.S. 252,257,258 (1982)]
"Substantial evidence supports the conclusion Scientology leaders made the
deliberate decision to ruin Wollersheim economically and possible
psychologically....We do not mean to suggest Scientology's retributive
program... represented a full scale modern day 'inquisition.' Nevertheless
there are some parallels in purpose and effect. 'Fair game,' like the
'inquisition,' targeted heretics. "Other testimony established Scientology is a
hierarchal organization which exhibits near paranoid attitudes toward certain
institutions and individuals -- in particular the government, mental health
professions, disaffected members, and others who criticize the organization or
its leadership... During trial, Wollersheim's experts testified Scientology's
'auditing' and 'disconnect' practices constituted 'brainwashing' and 'thought
reform' akin to what the Chinese and North Koreans practiced on American
prisoners of war... "Using its position as religious leader, the church and its
agents coerced Wollersheim into continuing auditing even though his sanity
was repeatedly threatened by this practice... Thus there is adequate proof the
religious practice in this instance caused real harm to the individual and the
appellant's outrageous conduct caused that harm... Church practices
conducted in a coercive environment are not qualified to be voluntary
religious practices entitled to first amendment religious freedom
guarantees... "We hold that the state has a compelling interest in allowing its
citizens to recover for serious emotional injuries they suffer through religious
practices they are coerced into accepting. Such conduct is too outrageous to
be protected under the constitution and too unworthy to be privileged under
the law of torts." -California appellate court, 2nd district, 7th division,
Wollersheim v. Church of Scientology of California, Civ. No. B023193 Cal.
Super. (1986)
Further facts
about this criminal empire may be found at
Operation Clambake and FACTNet.
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Subject: clear evidence
Answered by: Desertphile
Asked By: Anonymous
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