Once again a lawsuit has been filed against the Church of Scientology and its leader, David Miscavige, and somehow Miscavige has managed to keep himself out of court by simply evading service of the case.
We’ve seen it again and again, and this time the Australian former Sea Org workers who filed a major new labor trafficking case in April have reached their limit.
This week attorney Neil Glazer, who represents the plaintiffs — Valeska Paris, and Gawain and Laura Baxter — asked the court for more time to serve Miscavige since it hasn’t been accomplished, and even though they’ve tried very hard.
Glazer included a description of what they’ve been going through to try and find Miscavige, and we thought we’d just quote it at length. We figured you’d find it fascinating.
Plaintiffs’ diligent efforts to serve Miscavige have been ongoing and persistent since the issuance of the Summons until the filing of this motion. Plaintiffs’ efforts include hiring three process servers across two states. Plaintiffs first personal service attempt was on May 31, just days after the Summons was issued. As of July 28, 2022, the process servers have made thirteen separate personal service attempts at multiple locations in Florida and California from May through July.
AdvertisementScientology security guards, however, prevented the process servers from entering any of the Florida addresses during every attempt at personal service. The guards refused to answer questions, provide information around Miscavige’s whereabouts, confirm whether he has an office or resides at the locations, or even whether a Corporate Defendant has offices at such locations. For example, Plaintiffs’ process server attempted to effect personal service at 118 N. Ft. Harrison Avenue, Clearwater, Florida, on July 26. RTC’s website lists the address as a “Religious Technology Center Flag Ship Service Organization Office.” Miscavige is RTC’s Chairman of the Board and Defendant FSO owns and/or manages the building. When Plaintiffs’ process server approached the location, a security guard immediately stopped him outside of the main entrance. The process server asked about the whereabouts of David Miscavige. The guard stated he did not know where Miscavige is currently living or where he works and refused to provide any information. The guard would not even confirm whether RTC was located in the “Religious Technology Center Flag Ship Service Organization Office” and just repeatedly kept stating, “I don’t know.”
Plaintiffs’ diligent efforts to serve Miscavige also include working with a private investigation company. Plaintiffs’ counsel began looking for an investigator in May and spoke with multiple investigators. Plaintiffs have employed the current investigators since June 26, 2022 and continue to employ them. The investigators have conducted comprehensive proprietary database and open-source intelligence research. The investigators also surveilled multiple locations and observed Plaintiffs’ process server attempt personal service at different locations, including at the “Flag Building” located at 215 S. Ft. Harrison Avenue, Clearwater, Florida where Plaintiffs’ investigation suggests Miscavige’s primary office is located, atop one of the building’s turrets, and 551 N. Saturn Ave, Clearwater, Florida, a guarded, gated compound which Plaintiffs’ investigation suggests is Miscavige’s current residence.
In addition to the thirteen personal service attempts and use of a private investigation company, Plaintiffs conducted public records database searches on Westlaw and Lexis that included details on residence, assets, driver’s license and voter registration records, and lawsuits regarding David Miscavige. Plaintiffs also investigated addresses and details mentioned in other litigation involving Miscavige, searched media and public sources to discern details on Miscavige’s location, searched social media platforms, called multiple phone numbers listed in public record databases as numbers likely associated with Miscavige, and reviewed RTC, CSI, IASA, FSO and FSSO corporate documents accessible through the California, Florida and Delaware Secretary of State’s business search functions. Plaintiffs also sent a total of four requests to waive service, each containing a complete set of the documents required in Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(d), via Federal Express and U.S. Postal Service Priority mail, to David Miscavige c/o Religious Technology Ctr., Inc. 1710 Ivar Avenue, Suite 1100, Los Angeles, California (which is Defendant RTC’s headquarters and is listed in public records databases as one of Miscavige’s residential addresses) and c/o Church of Scientology, 215 S. Ft. Harrison Avenue, Clearwater, Florida, which Scientology boasts is its spiritual headquarters, is listed on Defendant RTC’s website as one of its Clearwater office locations, and according to several knowledgeable sources in Plaintiffs’ investigation is where Miscavige’s primary office is located. All attempts to deliver were refused.
Plaintiffs’ efforts also include asking defense counsel for information regarding Miscavige’s whereabouts. But defense counsel, like the Scientology security guards, refuse to provide any information on Miscavige’s whereabouts or contact details. On May 17, 2022, Plaintiffs requested from RTC Counsel Christopher Oprison an address to serve a summons or deliver a waiver package to Miscavige, who is RTC’s Chairman of the Board. Mr. Oprison replied that his “firm represents RTC only, not Mr. Miscavige in his individual capacity. RTC would not be authorized to provide this information in any event. . . . I do not speak for Mr. Miscavige personally, only RTC, but submit that Plaintiffs should dismiss him from this lawsuit forthwith.” During a June 30, 2022, meet and confer, Plaintiffs’ counsel asked counsel representing the Corporate Defendants for an address for Miscavige, or for a business address, or a mailing address. Defense Counsel stated they do not have any of that information and that their clients would not be authorized to provide it.
In sum, Miscavige has, so far, frustrated Plaintiffs’ good faith and diligent efforts. However, Plaintiffs are not giving up and, as set forth below, respectfully submit that good cause exists to warrant extending their time to locate and serve Miscavige.
It sure seems like they’re looking in the right place, as far as we know. In a recent podcast with Marc Headley, we said that Dave is either living in Clearwater at his corner suite at the Flag Building (215 S. Ft. Harrison Avenue) or in an apartment complex known as “Hacienda Gardens” (551 N. Saturn Ave), where years ago a couple of the modest apartments had walls taken out to make a super big place for Dave.
Mike Rinder had told us he didn’t think Dave still lived at the Hacienda, but it seems to make sense for process servers to keep it in mind.
Plaintiffs are asking for an extension from July 28 to October 26, 2022 in order to find and serve Miscavige.
Got any suggestions for what might do the trick?
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Technology Cocktail
“The tendency of the physical universe is condensation and solidification. At least this is the effect produced on the thetan. Continued dwelling in it without rehabilitation causes the thetan to become less reaching (‘smaller’) and more solid. A thetan, being a static, may become convinced he cannot duplicate matter, energy, space, or time or certain intentions and so succumbs to the influence of this universe. This influence in itself would be negligible unless recorded by the thetan, stored and made reactive upon the thetan as a Time Track, and then maliciously used to trap the thetan. Recent researches I have done in the field of aesthetics tend to indicate that rhythm is the source of present time. The thetan is carried along both by his own desire to have, do or be and by having been overwhelmed in the distant past by a continuous minute rhythm. This is a possible explanation of a thetan’s continuous presence in Present Time. Present Time, then, can be defined as a response to the continuous rhythm of the physical universe, resulting in a hereness in nowness.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1963
Scientology Files, Part 6
Says our man in Hungary, Peter Bonyai: “In the last episode of Scientology Files, a special guest honors us with his presence. He is probably the only government official in the world, who was able to initiate effective administrative proceedings to restrict the activities of Scientology within the framework of the rule of law. We invited dr. Attila Péterfalvi, the President of the Hungarian National Authority for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, and we were honored that has accepted our request. In this episode, he will speak about the administrative proceedings regarding the data handling of Scientology and the outcome of these procedures. You will find out what Scientology wants to know about you and what sort of questions do they ask if they intend to put someone into an important position in the organization. You will also learn about the reactions of Scientologists when they are subject to an official enquiry.”
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Now available: Bonus for our supporters
Episode 6 of the Underground Bunker podcast has been sent out to paid subscribers, and it’s a conversation with Pete Griffiths about how he managed to run a Scientology mission after being declared SP. Meanwhile, we’ve made episodes 1 through 5 available to everyone, with Sunny Pereira dishing secrets of Scientology’s Hollywood Celebrity Centre, Bruce Hines on the crazy life in the Sea Org, Jeffrey Augustine on recent Scientology court cases, Claire Headley exposing Tom Cruise, and Marc Headley on what it must be like for David Miscavige living in Clearwater, Florida. Go here to get the episodes!
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“If you really know your E-Meters, go down to your local hometown detective bureau and ask to talk to the lie detector expert and talk to him for a few minutes and he starts giving you some wise, professional chitterchat. Why, you just tell him you’re a psychologist — he understands that, the man has a limited vocabulary, usually — and tell him you use these things all the time in your practice and so forth, and you’d just like to look over his setup. Well, these guys are all bugs and they will show you their setup with their blood pressure gauge and their respirators and the little meter with the cans, you know, except they don’t put them on properly and they don’t register quite right. Now, you can take the same rig and you can so baffle and astound this man, so he just practically blows his brains out. He says, ‘What have I been doing all this time!’ and so on. You can show him a murder reaction on every cop in the place. You don’t say, ‘Have you committed the murder?’ You say, ‘Have you ever killed anyone?’ And promptly, you get duhduh and the respirator goes bluh, the blood pressure indicator goes blah. You could be very cruel and simply say to the lie detector operator, ‘Obviously, your machine is out of order.’ That’s what he’ll think. He’ll have a letter off right away to the manufacturers.” — L. Ron Hubbard, July 31, 1958
“Well we found the Anchor! In 50 feet of water, the search has been long — 60 to 70 hours of diving on the bottom. The reason we lost it was the NON FUNCTIONING of the K&H radar range ring, awaiting a part for weeks and not expedited. This made an exact range to the place impossible. A crane barge will pick up the Anchor this morning and get it aboard. Put the shackle on right way to — open end facing aft as the Chain goes across the winch. Then we sail.” — The Commodore, July 31, 1970
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“His life consisted of only a few things. He did not work. He listened to these tapes. He solo audited himself endlessly on GPMs and line plots. A VERY bad idea. He drank heavily every night. He had bad hangovers almost every day and took tons of pain killers. What money he did have he spent on prostitutes and alcohol. He was sick, and his teeth were rotting in his mouth to the point where my PCs could not be in the same car with him because the stench was so bad. He was an apathy case that had been doing himself in for many years and he finally killed himself. A very sad story.”
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2000: The Sunday Times published an interview with Scientology celebrity Jenna Elfman. “Elfman has been quite open about her debt to that great Hollywood powerbroker, the Church of Scientology, the cult/religion/practice (delete as appropriate) that has never done anyone’s career any harm, no matter what they say about Battlefield Earth. Elfman has acted as a veritable one-woman, wisecracking ambassador. As becomes plain. ‘I’m making myself more sane, and pulling away the shit so that I can be present and be able and comfortable and willing to be in front of other people, to reach into their lives to help to communicate,’ she declares. ‘I mean, if you can’t even be present, then you can’t really help anybody. I mean, you’re as valuable as you can serve others. I mean, on the day that we can all trust each other, there will be peace on earth. L. Ron Hubbard says that. Start bringing people together. You know what I mean? If anyone is inspired by that and creates that, f***in’ great. What’s with sectioning off? Everyone has something in common. That is that they’re of mankind. Everyone has the same problems, they just have different content. So everybody needs to, like, you know, work on willing to be there for each other.'”
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“Hubbard should have just cut to the chase and told the clams that he had discovered that all money was infested with body thetans and that they needed to bring their filthy lucre in to Flag to be audited. He could have called it ‘The Wallet of Fire’.”
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Trial scheduled for October 11, pretrial conference August 17.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Last hearing was on January 18, referred to grand jury. Additional charges also referred to grand jury after January 5 assault while in jail.
— Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay sentenced to 9 years in prison. Jeff’s sentencing to be scheduled.
— Rizza Islam and other family members, Medi-Cal fraud: Readiness hearing scheduled for August 22 in Los Angeles
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud: Next pretrial conference set for September 19.
— Yanti Mike Greene, Scientology private eye accused of contempt of court: Found guilty of criminal and civil contempt.
Civil litigation:
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Complaint filed April 28 in Tampa federal court, Scientology moving to compel arbitration. Plaintiffs filing amended complaint on August 2.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ Selection of arbitrators underway. Next court hearing: February 2, 2023.
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Appellate court removes requirement of arbitration on January 19, case remanded back to Superior Court. Stay in place, next status hearing October 25. Scientology petitioning US Supreme Court over appellate ruling.
— Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Third amended complaint filed, trial set for December 6.
— Author Steve Cannane defamation trial: New trial ordered after appeals court overturned prior ruling.
— Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Lawsuit filed by the FTC and state of Georgia in August, now in discovery phase.
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THE PROSECUTION OF DANNY MASTERSON
We first broke the news of the LAPD’s investigation of Scientology celebrity Danny Masterson on rape allegations in 2017, and we’ve been covering the story every step of the way since then. At this page we’ve collected our most important links, including our four days in Los Angeles covering the preliminary hearing and its ruling, which has Danny facing trial and the potential sentence of 45 years to life in prison.
After the success of their double-Emmy-winning, three-season A&E series ‘Scientology and the Aftermath,’ Leah Remini and Mike Rinder continue the conversation on their podcast, ‘Scientology: Fair Game.’ We’ve created a landing page where you can hear all of the episodes so far.
LEAH REMINI: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE AFTERMATH
An episode-by-episode guide to Leah Remini’s three-season, double-Emmy winning series that changed everything for Scientology watching. Originally aired from 2016 to 2019 on the A&E network, and now on Netflix.
SCIENTOLOGY’S CELEBRITIES, from A to Z
Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!
Other links: SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS: Tom Cruise and dirty tricks. Scientology’s Ideal Orgs, from one end of the planet to the other. 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 a weekly series. How many have you read?
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Court file: Brian Statler was never asked to leave Scientology org before being shot
[TWO years ago] Scientology takes aim at Mike Rinder and Hana Whitfield in the Valerie Haney lawsuit
[THREE years ago] ‘Strange Angel’ goes there, teases Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard at season end
[FOUR years ago] Scientology spilling the secrets of the universe on an LA street!
[FIVE years ago] Phil and Willie Jones versus Scientology: The real story of how the billboard came to be
[SIX years ago] Harlem gets its Scientology ‘Ideal Org’ today, and David Miscavige doesn’t want you there
[SEVEN years ago] Fresh DOX: Police calls to the Narconon in Fort Collins, Colorado — unedited and unread!
[EIGHT years ago] Jon Atack: Did L. Ron Hubbard want to be considered a god?
[NINE years ago] Scientology Admits Connection to Slimy Anonymous Attack Sites — Again
[ELEVEN years ago] Scientology Spinout: Commenters of the Week!
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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 2,742 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,247 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 2,797 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 1,787 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 1,678 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 4,983 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 2,853 days.
Carol Nyburg has not seen her daughter Nancy in 3,627 days.
Doug Kramer has not seen his parents Linda and Norm in 1,958 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 4,431 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 3,747 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,313 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,232 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 4,400 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 3,980 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,242 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,278 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 2,993 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 2,518 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 873 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,048 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 6,599 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 3,748 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,068 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 8,923 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,042 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 2,398 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 6,701 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 2,807 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,205 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,081 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 2,664 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,159 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 3,413 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 14,522 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on July 31, 2022 at 07:00
E-mail tips to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We also post 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 new book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is now on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. Our book about Paulette, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.
The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2021 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2021), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Other links: BLOGGING DIANETICS: Reading Scientology’s founding text cover to cover | 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 | Shelly Miscavige, 15 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 | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ
Watch our short videos that explain Scientology’s controversies in three minutes or less…
Check your whale level at our dedicated page for status updates, or join us at the Underground Bunker’s Facebook discussion group for more frivolity.
Our non-Scientology stories: Robert Burnham Jr., the man who inscribed the universe | Notorious alt-right inspiration Kevin MacDonald and his theories about Jewish DNA | The selling of the “Phoenix Lights” | Astronomer Harlow Shapley‘s FBI file | Sex, spies, and local TV news | Battling Babe-Hounds: Ross Jeffries v. R. Don Steele
Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast
