On October 12, we told you that Scientology had done a curious thing, making an attack on a three-year-old legal filing when they knew that a superseding document would make that filing obsolete. And now, they’ve amped up that attack even more by adding anti-SLAPP motions in their assault on the Bixler lawsuit.
We know, that’s a lot to take in. Let’s break it down because we know there are a lot of different lawsuits going on right now (and we do have a small update in another one as well).
The Bixler lawsuit is the one that was filed by Danny Masterson’s victims in 2019 when they were still waiting for him to be charged criminally. It has five plaintiffs: The three Jane Doe victims from the criminal trials, the husband of one of them, and another woman, Bobette Riales, who was in a relationship with Masterson and also claims that he assaulted her.
The lawsuit is not about the assaults, however. They’re suing over what they say has been a campaign of harassment by Masterson and the Church of Scientology since they came forward to the LAPD in 2016. They allege that they’ve been stalked and hacked by agents of Scientology, and even that their pets have been poisoned. (Riales says her house in Indiana was set on fire, too.)
The lawsuit was initially derailed when Judge Steven Kleifield agreed with Scientology that because the three Jane Does had signed contracts with the church while they were members, they were obliged not to sue but had to submit to Scientology’s “religious arbitration” instead. But then an appeals court ruled that because the alleged harm — the stalking, etc. — was occurring after they had left Scientology, the contracts should not apply. The lawsuit was restored, but then it was put on hold while Masterson’s criminal trials were going on.
Now that Masterson was sentenced on September 7 to 30 years to life in prison, the lawsuit got going again. But then Scientology earlier this month filed a motion to strike in regards to the first amended complaint in the case, which was filed back in February 2020. Suddenly, after three years, Scientology objected to the lawsuit describing Scientology’s policy of “Fair Game” (which the church claims no longer exists) and otherwise describing things about Scientology’s internal policies that the church says shouldn’t be the subject of a civil lawsuit.
What made the move even more unusual to us, besides that it was attacking a three-year-old court complaint, was that Scientology itself had complained to Judge Upinder Kalra (who replaced Kleifield) that the plaintiffs are about to file a new amended complaint that would essentially start the lawsuit over again. We’re still waiting to see that amended complaint.
Now, Scientology has bolstered their attack on the 2020 complaint with declarations from the usual Scientology minions (Warren McShane, Lynn Farny, etc.), and they’ve added anti-SLAPP motions in order to seek attorneys’ fees.
It’s an escalation that has some interesting details as the church attacks specific allegations in the Bixler lawsuit about the harassment that the women say they’ve had to endure.
What Scientology is doing is picking out specific allegations and denying that the person harassing the women had any connection to the the church.
Rather than try to describe these attacks on the lawsuit, we figured we’d show you the language in some of the filings made by Scientology’s attorneys in the last couple of days.
Alleged Statements by Third Parties
(a) Alleged Statements by Jenni Weinman
The Bixlers allege that Bixler wrote letters to Masterson and others regarding Masterson’s actions, and later she was “contacted by Masterson’s publicist Jenni Weinman.” Weinman allegedly said she was contacting Bixler because “it’s about to get bad for you and your family” and also “stated to Plaintiff Bixler that what she was claiming happened . . . could not constitute rape because she and Masterson were in a relationship at the time.” Weinman also allegedly forwarded a letter from Masterson to Bixler.Plaintiffs do not allege that Weinman was an agent of the Church Defendants. Weinman is not — and has never been — an agent of CSI, CC, or RTC. Weinman has never been employed by, under contract with, under the direction or control of, or asked to do anything by CSI, CC, or RTC. There is no basis to impose liability on the Church Defendants for her statements.
(b) Alleged “Threats” by Kathy Gold
The Bixlers allege that around September 2018, “Defendants’ agent Kathy Gold” began making numerous serious threats against plaintiffs.First, Gold is not and has never been an agent of, been employed by, under contract with, under the direction or control of, or asked to do anything by CSI, CC, or RTC. Any statements she allegedly made cannot create liability for the Church Defendants. While Gold has identified herself as a Scientologist, she never purported to speak on behalf of Scientology or any Scientology entity, including CSI, CC, and RTC. To the contrary, in an initial communication with Bixler on September 2, 2018, Gold claimed that she had been held hostage by Scientologists, and told Bixler “I hope you and the others [sic] women win your case/cases.” Gold has disavowed any agency relationship between her and CSI, CC, and RTC. Gold posted online that she learned of the agency allegations in the complaint. She stated that Plaintiffs are lying about her acting as an agent for Defendants, that she despises Defendants, and that she intends to sue both Plaintiffs and Defendants.
Second, a review of Gold’s actual communications demonstrates that the FAC’s characterization of Gold’s “threats” against Bixler is false. Gold’s Twitter communications reveal that in September 2018, Gold contributed to an online dispute following the publication of certain Plaintiffs’ accusations against Masterson. Gold’s dispute was only with Bixler, and did not involve any communications with other Plaintiffs.
AdvertisementDuring the dispute, Bixler began threatening Gold over Twitter, suggesting that Gold needed an involuntary psychiatric hold, and asserting “I’m about to sue TF out of this a**hole”. Bixler’s threats grew more intense on September 4, stating “Ever speak of my children again and you’ll be back in that psych ward you f***ing b**ch. You’ll be hearing from our attorneys.” Bixler made a fourth threat on September 4, telling Gold, “Lapd should be paying you a visit soon. Regret coming for a mother and her children? You will. . . . Last thing I’ll say to you… BIG MISTAKE. HUGE.” Only after this onslaught did Gold write a blog post entitled, “If Chrissie Or Any of Her Accomplices Come Near Me Offline,” in which she stated “I will kill them to defend myself.” Far from threatening any Plaintiff with “murder,” Gold made clear that she would act only in self-defense. In sum, a review of the actual communications involving Kathy Gold belies the Bixlers’ allegations. Gold’s own statements demonstrate that Gold did not speak on behalf of the Church Defendants, or any other Scientology entity. The actual communications show that any “threats” Gold made were simply statements that she would act in self-defense as necessary, after Bixler threatened Gold.
(c) Alleged Statements by Heather Seidler and Virginia MacGregor
Similarly, Bixler alleges that in August 2018 “Defendants’ agents Heather Seidler and Virginia MacGregor published posts to their Facebook accounts inciting fellow Scientologists to assist in harassing Plaintiff Bixler. In one post, MacGregor stated that Plaintiff Bixler was ‘reminiscing about all the anal sex [Plaintiff Bixler] obviously miss[es].’” Other than this statement, Plaintiff provides no content of the “published posts” on Facebook. But like Gold, Seidler and MacGregor are not and have never been agents of CSI, CC, or RTC. Seidler and MacGregor have never been employed by, under contract with, under the direction or control of, or asked to do anything by CSI, CC, or RTC. The Church Defendants cannot be liable for Seidler’s or MacGregor’s statements.
You can see that Scientology’s strategy is to gut the lawsuit by asking for substantial portions of it to be thrown out, either because it infringes on Scientology’s religious rights, or because the victims are pointing the finger at people who the church says has no connection to them.
But again, it’s odd to us that Scientology is making these targeted attacks on the 2020 first amended complaint when they said themselves that they became aware that the plaintiffs are about to file a new amended complaint, making the previous one obsolete.
Well, they’ll get their first chance to begin arguing this attack before the judge on November 17.
Meanwhile, another update in Jane Doe 1’s forced-marriage lawsuit: We’ve been telling you that in this lawsuit and in Leah Remini’s lawsuit, efforts to serve David Miscavige have been submitted to court, arguing that their process servers have done enough to declare the Scientology leader a defendant based on “substitute service” (throwing copies of the lawsuits at the feet of employees at Scientology headquarter sites in Hollywood, for example).
Now, Jane Doe 1’s attorneys have added to those reports a request to the court to be allowed to serve Miscavige by publication, by posting notices in local newspapers, for example.
This morning in Los Angeles, meanwhile, there’s a hearing in Jane Doe 1’s case, as Scientology’s argument will be considered that asks to put the lawsuit on hold until May when its motion for arbitration can be heard.
Whew. That’s a lot. We hope to have someone in the courtroom to give us a report on how it goes.
——————–
Technology Cocktail
“The Rockslam and Rocket Read are brothers. A pc will Rockslam and yet not Rocket Read because the Rocket Read is the frailer brother. A pc going down hill toward no RR or RS first loses
——————–
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.
——————–
THE PODCAST: How many have you heard?
[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
— The first Danny Masterson trial and beyond
[18] Trial special with Chris Shelton [19] Trial week one [20] Marc Headley on the spy in the hallway [21] Trial week two [22] Trial week three [23] Trial week four [24] Leah Remini on LAPD Corruption [25] Mike Rinder 2022 Thanksgiving Special [26] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part One [27] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part Two [28] Claire Headley on the trial [29] Tory Christman [30] Bruce Hines on spying [31] Karen de la Carriere [32] Ron Miscavige on Shelly Miscavige [33] Karen de la Carriere on the L’s [34] Mark Bunker on Miscavige hiding [35] Mark Plummer [36] Mark Ebner [37] Karen Pressley [38] Steve Cannane [39] Fredrick Brennan [40] Clarissa Adams [41] Louise Shekter [42] John Sweeney [43] Tory Christman [44] Kate Bornstein [45] Christian Stolte [46] Mark Bunker [47] Jon Atack [48] Luke Y. Thompson [49] Mark Ebner [50] Bruce Hines [51] Spanky Taylor and Karen Pressley [51] Geoff and Robbie Levin [52] Sands Hall [53] Jonny Jacobsen [54] Sandy Holeman
——————–
“Now, the MEST universe is all very well but it’s all illusion. Well, one doesn’t want an illusion, so he can’t have an illusion. And when he was very young, why, Christ was all right, he was very friendly, as a matter of fact, and so on. But that’s mostly — people, you know, they have to believe in that sort of thing. And they did once, but it requires nothing but faith and, of course, they can’t have any faith anymore and they did have hopes on that once in a while, but actually religion doesn’t lead anybody anyplace in the final analysis because you never get your wish anyway so, of course, one can’t survive on the basis of spirits and religion, and so forth.” — L. Ron Hubbard, October 27, 1951
——————–
“Deutchland Uber Alles was Germany’s WWI slogan and song — Germany over the Allies. An East German (Commie) ship not only dropped their anchor over ours and fouled it but also had its lines over ours when we went to move the ship. The anchor was unfouled by Karl Rosenkranz our master diver and the operation was competently supervised by Captain Robertson. Condition I is congratulated on a smooth move. As it is shallow here, we can only leave at high tide to avoid ticking a propeller on the bottom.” — The Commodore, October 27, 1970
——————–
“Eternity is not infinite. This is a lie. Infinity and eternity are perceptions, postulates utilised to fixate people in the idea that their only option is the Eternal Life Cycle and Eternal Life. We simply vanish our participation in eternity and in doing so restore our ability to choose, decide and act in accordance with our own innate capability for truth. Eternity is a finite cycle of action which audits out. Eternity is Now. Reality is Here. We are Present. We are present, here and now, in this time, space, illusion and form, at this precise location and moment, in the present. It all audits out in PT.”
——————–
1999: The Orange County Weekly included Scientology’s CCHR director on a list of the scariest people in the area. “One of the many mysterious arms of the Church of Scientology, the Citizen’s Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) takes out ads in the Pennysaver, rents a room on the bottom floor of Garden Grove Medical Center, and periodically breaks loose with a slide presentation extolling the evils of the corrupt and conspiratorial psychiatry industry. It’s a well-rehearsed show, complete with violent and disturbing slides and complicated overhead transparencies direct from L. Ron Hubbard’s Los Angeles office. According to Jackie Panzik, organizer of the OC chapter, the show offers abundant evidence that psychiatrists everywhere are playing backgammon with our brains–almost always with perilous results. But that ain’t the scary part. What makes Panzik scary is the fact that after shocking the audience into slack-jawedness, she and her group slyly offer what they believe is an escape from our destined shrink-induced stupor: Scientology. All books and brochures on display at the meeting are published by the church’s own publishing house, Bridge Publications Inc. And there are always a few strangely well-informed attendees seated among first timers to share shock and outrage and then help them make sense of the group’s ideas.”
——————–
“Maybe you mocked up another version of yourself in a blackout and forgot about it. Ask Marty, it probably has something to do with Quantum Buddhism(c).”
——————–
Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Found guilty on two counts on May 31, remanded to custody. Sentenced to 30 years to life on Sep 7.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Next pretrial hearing October 30.
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud.
Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Complaint filed August 2, Scientology submitting anti-SLAPP response Oct 26.
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to arbitration. Plaintiffs allowed interlocutory appeal to Eleventh Circuit.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Discovery phase.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration.
— Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Ordered to mediation.
——————–
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?
——————–
THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Canada gained 3.5 million people between 2011 and 2021 — and lost 365 Scientologists
[TWO years ago] Scientology holds its ‘Writers of the Future’ awards out of season, but same lavish display
[THREE years ago] Masterson accusers cite Marsy’s Law to head off ‘arbitration,’ and Scientology pounces
[FOUR years ago] A Scientology front group that duped celebrities for Narconon: It’s baaaack!
[FIVE years ago] Russell Miller’s 1987 biography of Scientology’s founder is still astonishingly good
[SIX years ago] KID CORPS: Scientology wanted to turn children into little machines of Sea Org efficiency
[SEVEN years ago] Surprised Tom Cruise called Scientology a ‘beautiful religion’? You shouldn’t be.
[EIGHT years ago] THE LEAH REMINI FILES: AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT THE ‘KRs’ THAT INFORM HER MEMOIR
[NINE years ago] Gay Ribisi, our friend Mark Ebner has your Scientology plaques — want ’em back?
[TEN years ago] Sunday Funnies: Scientology Is In Your Capital, Working Your Jenna Elfman
[ELEVEN years ago] The Scientology-Nation of Islam Alliance: Sideshow or Armageddon?
——————–
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 3,195 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,710 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,260 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,250 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,131 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,435 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,306 days.
Doug Kramer has not seen his parents Linda and Norm in 2,411 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 4,858 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,200 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,766 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,685 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 4,852 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,434 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,695 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,731 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,447 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,011 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,326 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,501 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,052 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,183 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,521 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,376 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,495 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 2,851 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,154 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,260 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,658 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,534 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,099 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,612 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 3,866 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 14,975 days.
——————–
Posted by Tony Ortega on October 27, 2023 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, 1995-2022 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2022), 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
