“Fred Haseney has entered into a settlement agreement, and he will be continuing his First Amendment activity around Big Blue,” says attorney Graham Berry, explaining why there will not be a court hearing today over a Scientology lawyer’s request for a restraining order against Haseney that accused him of stalking a Scientology employee.
For months, Haseney has been documenting Scientology activities with his camera, particularly Scientology’s attempts to “body route” new people into its L.A. facilities. A former Scientologist himself, Haseney told us that he had decided to leave the church after reading pages from this website. And his activities were not popular with the church. In May, Scientology vice president Janet Weiland visited the transitional home where Haseney lived (he’s been out of a permanent job since 2009), and tried to get the Baptist pastor who runs it to convince Haseney to stop his photography sessions. The pastor refused.
On June 24, Scientology lawyer Kendrick Moxon filed for a temporary restraining order against Haseney on behalf of Beatriz Castro Macias, claiming that Haseney had been following her to her apartment with his camera. Haseney denied that, and said he didn’t know who Castro was. A hearing was scheduled for July 15, today.
But earlier this week, Moxon indicated that the church was willing to settle the matter. One of our sources tells us that happened once Fred’s side let Moxon know they planned to call Karen de la Carriere and other witnesses at the hearing to talk about Scientology’s own history of stalking and photography.
Graham Berry would only say that a settlement had been reached, and that the terms were confidential. He was hired by Haseney after Fred raised money through the Internet.
“I was more than happy to assist,” Berry says.
But all is not good news for Haseney. At the same time that he was learning his legal problems were going away, he was getting kicked out of the transitional home, Hope Again, where he had lived for the past four years. We asked him why that had happened, and he said that right around the time that Weiland made her visit to the home to talk to the pastor, a new resident also showed up who took an instant dislike to Haseney.
Over several weeks, Haseney says, that developed in odd ways until he found himself being screamed at in the house in what he perceived as a clearly targeted campaign. Under the house rules at Hope Again, when a conflict develops between two tenants, both of them are asked to leave. So, on Tuesday afternoon, Haseney found himself having to trash a large portion of his possessions so he could move out. He’s now staying in a cheap motel and paying for it from savings he managed to eke out from temporary jobs he’s had over the last four years.
Still, he plans on being at Scientology’s Big Blue complex on L. Ron Hubbard Way tomorrow afternoon with his camera to cover the final Maiden Voyage event, and he is hoping that several people can join him.
“I really want to thank everyone who donated for the legal fund. I don’t have much access time to a computer now that I’ve left Hope Again, but I did get a chance to send an email to Paulette Cooper, thanking her for her donation. I’m hoping to get time to thank everyone else,” he said.
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Bonus items from our tipsters
Speaking of the fourth and final weekend of Maiden Voyage events, here’s the rundown from South Texas…
Hey, girl. I have survived the Survival Rundown here in Odessa!
Pascal Chukwuebuka Nwoga of Nigeria was nice enough to post online images of the letters he received from Youth for Human Rights International president Mary Shuttleworth inviting him for a YHRI event in New York next month, all expenses paid, and requesting a B-2 tourist visa. Thanks, Legoland!
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Posted by Tony Ortega on July 15, 2016 at 07:00
E-mail tips and story ideas to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We post behind-the-scenes updates at our Facebook author page. After every new story we send out an alert to our e-mail list and our FB page.
Our book, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information about the book, and our 2015 book tour, can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.
Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…
BLOGGING DIANETICS: We read Scientology’s founding text cover to cover with the help of L.A. attorney and former church member Vance Woodward
UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists
GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice
SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts
Other links: Shelly Miscavige, ten years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | Scientology’s Private Dancer | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | Scientology boasts about assistance from Google | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ
Our Guide to Alex Gibney’s film ‘Going Clear,’ and our pages about its principal figures…
Jason Beghe | Tom DeVocht | Sara Goldberg | Paul Haggis | Mark “Marty” Rathbun | Mike Rinder | Spanky Taylor | Hana Whitfield
