Back in December 2018, we posted a federal complaint filed by a woman in Wyoming named Julie L. Rohrbacher, who was suing her former employer, Teton Therapy, for trying to force her into Scientology courses.
As we noted then, this was not an unusual situation. Every several months we seem to hear about a chiropractor or dentist or veterinarian forcing L. Ron Hubbard material on their employees. And that’s no accident — Scientology targets those professions in a front group it calls WISE, for World Institute of Scientology Enterprises.
In this case, Rohrbacher was hired in 2011 to be a receptionist for Teton Therapy, but then was told she had to complete something called “Breaking the Code,” which was based on material from L. Ron Hubbard, and she was encouraged to go to Scientology’s spiritual mecca, the Flag Land Base in Clearwater, Florida, for additional training if she wanted to be considered for management. When she refused, she was fired.
Today, Rohrbacher’s attorney Steven Murray announced that Teton Therapy settled on January 2 to avoid a January 6 trial.
Like with Laura DeCrescenzo in her lawsuit against Scientology itself, Rohrbacher’s case had survived an attempt by Teton Therapy to have the lawsuit dismissed with a motion for summary judgment, but after an early December hearing, that motion was dismissed and trial loomed.
“To win summary judgment was significant in that venue,” Murray told us today in a telephone call. He says that Teton Therapy was a well known name, a firm active in a community that was very small. It took a lot of courage for Rohrbacher to take them on.
Murray says he’d read about similar cases here at the Underground Bunker. “As you well know, this issue of the employer utilizing Scientology practices has been litigated in other federal cases,” he says.
He also gave us some specifics about the case that weren’t in the complaint. At one point, he says, Rohrbacher was subjected to an exercise where she had to stare at her supervisor.
Yes, that’s Scientology all right, we told him.
“The other one was bullbaiting, where one employee yells derogatory terms at the others participating in the meeting,” Murray says.
We pointed out to Murray that a number of employees around the country have succeeded in these claims. We wondered why more didn’t sue.
“I think some people are a little embarrassed,” Murray says. “Ms. Rohrbacher was a in a very small town. You don’t want to just destroy yourself. And in this case, Teton Therapy was very active in its town.”
Well, we hope the people in Rohrbacher’s town now have second thoughts about patronizing a business that bullbaits its employees.
Congratulations, Ms. Rohrbacher and Steven Murray.
UPDATE: We just looked up the counsel for Teton Therapy and found something interesting. Its attorney for this case was Tara Nethercott, who is a Wyoming State Senator. And, we read, is on the short list of Republicans to run for Congress this year to replace Liz Cheney, who might run for the US Senate and open up the US House seat, the only one the state has.
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“In August I wrote Kennedy; he was offered by me at that time help in the space race, speeding up the IQ, straightening out pilots. And this, the White House has already asked us twice for presentations of Scientology and we’ve granted them, and they have done weird things like fire the fellow who asked for them and that sort of thing….And anyway, in August, thinking that it would be a good gesture I wrote him a letter concerning this, at the White House, and time rolled along and the FDA suddenly became very interested and the organization was sniffing around the corners. And suddenly the US government — let’s not compartment this thing down, see, it’s just the government — issued a smear campaign in the Washington press, calling us all sorts of hard names, organized this thing completely, down to the last detail and actually the papers were on the streets before anybody appeared at the organization. Interesting, isn’t it? Hours later somebody appeared at the organization. Anyway, they raided a church and seized philosophical and religious texts for burning and meters. Armed raid on a church. Stop and think about it for a moment. How could they get away with this? How’d they do this?” — L. Ron Hubbard, January 8, 1963
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“There is a recognition point that occurs when a person blows the current cycle of existence and rehabilitates spiritual reality where the person understands they have multiple eternities running concurrently, each with its own timeline, or as LRH puts it, theta line, and that they can choose to view that timeline at any moment. So they come up with multiple selves and timelines in independent universes….I am aware of beings in parallel universes who are able to peer into this one. However, to date these appear to be techno based civilisations whose basic intent is some form of manipulation or programming at the level of elsewhereness, albeit the elsewhereness consists of a parallel universe and alternative theta line.”
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“It really doesn’t matter if the people still in the Church of Scientology are happy or not because the organization itself is a criminal conspiracy that needs to be brought down. Are we suppose to go easy on organized crime because its members might be, generally speaking, having a good time?”
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Start making your plans…
Head over to the convention website and meet us in St. Louis!
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Scientology’s celebrities, ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and more!
We’ve been building landing pages about David Miscavige’s favorite playthings, including celebrities and ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and we’re hoping you’ll join in and help us gather as much information as we can about them. Head on over and help us with links and photos and comments.
Scientology’s celebrities, from A to Z! Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!
Scientology’s ‘Ideal Orgs,’ from one end of the planet to the other! Help us build up pages about each these worldwide locations!
Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society!
Scientology Lit: Books reviewed or excerpted in our weekly series. How many have you read?
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] A Scientologist on trial for double murder: A story the church is very nervous about
[TWO years ago] When two political longshots spar over Joy Villa and Scientology, everyone wins
[THREE years ago] Phil and Willie Jones launch a new effort for billboard about Scientology disconnection
[FOUR years ago] AUDIO: Hear Scientology boast about the $5.7 million it got from Google in free ads
[FIVE years ago] The new Scientology ad running on TV — and maybe for the Super Bowl
[SIX years ago] See Scientology’s new TV ad before it’s released — and more IAS gala video!
[SEVEN years ago] John Sweeney Talks The Church of Fear, Which Comes Out Today
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Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 1,810 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 2,314 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 1,834 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 854 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 745 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 4,052 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 1,920 days.
Carol Nyburg has not seen her daughter Nancy in 2,694 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 3,468 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 2,814 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 11,380 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 7,299 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 3,467 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 3,048 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 3,309 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 2,347 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 2,060 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 1,585 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 1,112 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 5,675 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 2,815 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 3,135 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 7,991 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 3,110 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 1,465 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 5,768 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 1,874 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 2,276 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 2,148 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 1,731 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 2,226 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 2,480 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 13,589 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on January 7, 2020 at 15:07
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