Yesterday, we brought you the first interview with a juror from the Danny Masterson trial. Today, we have the first interview with a Jane Doe witness since the case ended in a mistrial on November 30.
Masterson, a Scientology celebrity, is accused of raping three women who were Scientologists themselves at the time. They are known as Jane Does 1, 2, and 3. The DA’s office also considered the allegations of two additional women, Jane Doe 4 and Jane Doe 5, neither of whom were ever Scientologists.
Jane Doe 3 and Jane Doe 5 both appeared in the final episode of Leah Remini’s A&E series, Scientology and the Aftermath in 2019. None of the five women has given an interview since then.
Although Masterson wasn’t facing charges on her allegations, Jane Doe 4 testified in the trial as a “past bad acts witness,” and she allowed us to identify her as the actress Tricia Vessey.
On the witness stand over two separate days, she provided some of the most compelling testimony in the trial. She also, like the others, went through the harrowing experience of being cross-examined by defense attorney Philip Cohen.
We wondered what that experience was like for her, and she agreed to tell us about it in an Underground Bunker Podcast exclusive.
Here’s what we said about Tricia when she first took the witness stand on November 9:
Jane Doe 4 is taking the witness stand. She is being referred to as “Tricia V.” in court.
We are identifying her by her full name, because she gave the Underground Bunker permission to do so.
She is Tricia Vessey, a highly respected actor of independent films who appeared in movies from the late 1990s to the early 2000s.
She co-starred in the cannibal/vampire film Trouble Every Day (2001), co-starring Victor Gallo and directed by Claire Denis. She was directed by Jim Jarmusch in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999). And she co-starred with Warren Beatty and Diane Keaton in Town & Country (2001). She even appeared with Rowan Atkinson in Bean (1997).
In 2001, she co-starred with Cillian Murphy in On the Edge, an Irish film about patients in an institution dealing with suicidal thoughts. The image above is taken from the film.
Besides being known for her serious acting roles, Vessey is also a writer and director.
And she alleges that in 1996, she was sexually assaulted by Danny Masterson just a few weeks before he began a new relationship with Jane Doe 3.
She’s a fascinating person who has just come through a daunting experience. Today, we’re posting part one of our two-part conversation, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts about it.
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Technology Cocktail
“‘Wearing Heads’ is the second phase of Opposite Pole. One has the preclear, or himself, make a list of early allies, pets, enemies, current associates, the wife or husband and objects and then, one after another, put on the head (mocked up over his own head or around him if exteriorized) of the other person or thing. One does this rapidly. The preclear gets some insight into the 3rd Universe.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1953
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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 as Danny faces a potential sentence of 45 years to life in prison. NOW WITH TRIAL INDEX.
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THE PODCAST: How many have you heard?
— The Underground Bunker Podcast
[1] Marc Headley [2] Claire Headley [3] Jeffrey Augustine [4] Bruce Hines [5] Sunny Pereira [6] Pete Griffiths [7] Geoff Levin [8] Patty Moher [9] Marc Headley [10] Jefferson Hawkins [11] Michelle ‘Emma’ Ryan [12] Paulette Cooper [13] Jesse Prince [14] Mark Bunker [15] Jon Atack [16] Mirriam Francis [17] Bruce Hines on MSH
— SPECIAL: The best TV show on Scientology you never got to see
[1] Phil Jones [2] Derek Bloch [3] Carol Nyburg [4] Katrina Reyes [5] Jamie DeWolf
— SPECIAL: Your Proprietor’s updates on the Danny Masterson trial
[1] Sep 21 [2] Sep 28 [3] Oct 4 [4] Oct 10 [5] Oct 11: Day One [6] Oct 12: Day Two [7] Oct 13: Day Three [8] Oct 17: Day Four [9] Oct 18: Day Five [10] Oct 19: Day Six [11] Special interview with Chris Shelton, Oct 19 [12] Oct 20: Day Seven [13] Oct 21: Day Eight [14] First week in review, with Jeffrey Augustine [15] Oct 24: Day Nine [16] Oct 25: Day Ten [17] Oct 27: Day Eleven [18] Oct 28: Day Twelve [19] Second week in review, with Jeffrey Augustine [20] Halloween special [21] Nov 2: Day Thirteen [22] Nov 3: Day Fourteen [23] Nov 4: Day Fifteen [24] Third week in review [25] Nov 5, Saturday special [26] Nov 6, Sunday special [27] Nov 7, Day Sixteen [28] Lisa Marie Presley breaking news [29] Nov 8, Day Seventeen [30] Nov 9, Day Eighteen [31] Nov 10, Day Nineteen
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“These things called ‘universes’ are games. And really the most valuable thing that a thetan possesses is his spirit of play. His spirit of play is sensation of play, and is not just energy. It’s a tremendous sensation. A guy has practically lost it if he’s here on Earth at all. Spirit of Play. It’s tremendous: he’s depending on all sorts of the soggiest, low tone scale emotions imaginable in order to get any sensation. In substitute for what? Spirit of Play. For instance, sex is, boy, that’s about eighth-rate as an emotion. It is just dull, incalculably dull compared to the rapidity, randomity and actual sensation of the Spirit of Play. It’s way up there. And you couldn’t possibly think that anybody could be serious and win through this universe. The more serious they get — 1.5 is real serious — why, of course, the more serious they get the more they have to do things by flows, and the acre they have to agree and the more they have to follow the rules, and the more broken the piece becomes.” — L. Ron Hubbard, December 9, 1952
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“In answer to Income Clerk’s query, the following points apply with No exceptions: 1. Persons leaving SEA ORG get billed for all their courses they may have incurred at full price. 2. A Course whether finished or just started is always charged for at full price. 3. Reviews are paid for by the hour and at full price — includes the leaving Review. 4. If the person has worked at an Advanced Org prior to coming to Sea Org any courses they may have incurred whilst there are also billed for at full price. We are not in the business of free services and arrangements must be made prior to the person leaving regarding meeting weekly payments for the debt he has incurred with the Sea Org.” — Lt. Robin Roos, CS-3, December 9, 1968
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“When and if corporate Scientology will implode, and the even bigger unknown, how? In my craziest ‘conspiracy theory’ mind, I can see a path where they will not actually fold up. I can fairly easily envision a marry-up of Black Dianetics, Psychiatry, and the oligarchy which currently rules my country, the USA. In fact I can already see progression in that direction. Doesn’t have to go that way, but that would be my proposal for Conditional Target #1. Even if most Conditional Targets are wrong, it’s better than the current program which is mostly, ‘Wait and See.’”
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1998: Stacy Young posted a report on Scientology’s alleged poisonings at the cat sanctuary she runs in Seattle, Washington. “I won’t know conclusively why Allison died until the autopsy results come back, which will be in a few days. The two kittens, Rio and Otis, who died several days before Allison, also became acutely ill very suddenly, as Allison did. My assistant found them lying on the floor, very lethargic. By the time she raced them to the vet they were nearly dead. To keep them from suffering the vet put them to sleep. They were cremated without having autopsies done so I will never know for sure why they died. With regard to the security of the sanctuary, Bob is having a six foot fence built around the entire property, with two feet of ‘cat fencing’ on top, to make sure the cats will be safe. Cat fencing is three-quarter-inch wire mesh built at an angle with a lip which makes it impossible for a cat to jump out. It will have an alarm system so that anyone trying to get in will trip an alarm in the house. There will be video cameras at intervals which will be motion-activated. There will also be motion-activated flood lights.”
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“Miscavige has billions at his disposal and he has thousands of lackeys and soldiers to order around. He’s the Teflon Pope.”
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Mistrial declared November 30. Status conference scheduled January 10, retrial scheduled March 27.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Plea deadline scheduled for December 16.
— Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay sentenced to 9 years in prison. Jeff scheduled to time served with three years supervised release, restitution of $9.7 million.
— Rizza Islam, Medi-Cal fraud: Trial scheduled for March 1 in Los Angeles
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud: Next pretrial hearing December 9.
— 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 filed amended complaint on August 2. Hearing November 17 to argue the arbitration motions, awaiting ruling.
— 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 at least through February 7.
— Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Case settled ahead of scheduled Dec 6 trial.
— 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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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] Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard in WW2: Notes from a prohibited war diary
[TWO years ago] Date night at the Scientology Sunday service: How one teenager was lured into Hubbardism
[THREE years ago] Jingle Bell Crock: LAPD cozies up to Scientology at its faux-Christmas shindig
[FOUR years ago] David Miscavige will be in Africa on New Year’s Day to mark an actual Scientology expansion
[FIVE years ago] DID BOB BLOW? Evidence that Scientology may have lost its biggest donor of all time
[SIX years ago] Disconnection, neglect, and suicide: Scientology, it’s even worse than you think
[SEVEN years ago] Document leak: When the FBI investigated Scientology’s bizarre New Mexico vault
[EIGHT years ago] Scientology ambush! Another crazy encounter, this time with Marc Headley at Int Base
[NINE years ago] Scientology asks for psychiatric examination of Laura DeCrescenzo in forced-abortion lawsuit
[TEN years ago] Sunday Funnies: Scientology Needs Your Cash!
[ELEVEN years ago] SMERSH, Scientology Breakthroughs, and a Funeral: Sailing on the Apollo, Dec 4 – 10
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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 2,873 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,378 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 2,928 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 1,918 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 1,809 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,114 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 2,984 days.
Doug Kramer has not seen his parents Linda and Norm in 2,089 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 4,562 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 3,878 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,444 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,363 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 4,531 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,111 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,373 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,409 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,124 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 2,689 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,004 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,179 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 6,730 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 3,861 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,199 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,054 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,173 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 2,529 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 6,832 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 2,938 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,336 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,212 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 2,795 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,290 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 3,544 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 14,653 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on December 9, 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
