TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: In April we brought you Scientology’s appeal brief in the civil lawsuit filed by Danny Masterson’s victims. Now we have the calm and very readable reply by those victims’ attorneys. And wow, it sure looks to us like a shellacking. We have the entire thing for you to dig into. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“I have found a major cause of blows from classes, orgs and Scientology. Overts are of course a primary cause but many have overts and don’t blow, so why do such people blow? A case audited past exterior, particularly if it is not acked, tends to get stuck on exteriorizing. This can (but doesn’t always by any means) cause the person to take himself away! Three recent “blows” all fell in this category. One who was trying to blow, when
audited on interiorization, changed his mind. An amazing number of pcs go exterior on modern auditing. Modern processes, Dianetics and Scientology are very fast. Some haven’t even realized it, didn’t know what it was.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1979
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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?
[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 [55] Mark Bunker [56] Trish and Liz Conley [57] Trish Conley [58] Alex Barnes-Ross [59] Alex Barnes-Ross [60] Alex Barnes-Ross [61] Alex Barnes-Ross [62] Alex Barnes-Ross [63] Alex Barnes-Ross [64] Tory Christman [65] Tammy Synovec [66] Dennis Erlich [67] Alex Barnes-Ross [68] Valerie Ross [69] Kat in Austin [70] Mark Bunker [71] Phil Jones
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“There was Scientology One, that’s for the public. That’s your PE-level Scientology. And we’re putting out a plea to one and all to please contribute any data they think is vital and necessary to be in this. And then there’s Scientology Two, which is healing, which we haven’t had too much to do with. That’s care of the body, and so forth. And HPA/HCA levels probably get quite a bit of Scientology Two. And then there’s Scientology Three, and that’s advanced auditing, advanced Academy courses, that sort of thing, leading up to the area of Clear, such phenomena as we’ve had in the past. Now, it doesn’t happen to be a well wrapped up area, because we jumped off of that area to go into Scientology Four. And this occasioned even some of you quite a few headaches, because there was a necessary speed-up in research, and the place to research toward, of course, was OT. Now, that’s Scientology Four. And the material which you’re learning right now is Scientology Four. And then there is Scientology Five. And Scientology Five is the social, political, organizational levels of Scientology. This is a takeoff from the level of OT. And that isn’t just Scientology applied to political problems. That would be a misnomer although it would read like that in a textbook, and so forth. That isn’t that at all. It’s actually what does an OT do about it? That makes quite a different subject, doesn’t it?” — L. Ron Hubbard, August 8, 1963
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“HALF RATIONS: As soon as the new proper system for serving food is fully functioning the order re half rations will be cancelled.” — The Commodore, August 8, 1969
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“In the past few months, I took a group of participants to view meteor craters where we encountered long-dormant spirits. In subsequent events, we visited Stonehenge and later some sacred sites around the world. I terminated these visits after discovering that many of the participants were getting restimulated in two ways by participating in these events. The first mode of restimulation was from observing the site and having one’s spiritual companions getting triggered by the visit. The second mode of restimulation was from picking up spirits from the site. This unexpected restimulation can be mitigated in part during the remote viewing part by directly addressing the problem and making sure that all participants are back in present time at the end of the session. However, there is no easy way to determine if we have picked up spirits from the site without running processes designed to flush out new arrivals, and this is not practical with a large online group. I am currently running repair sessions on participants who picked up hitchhikers from visiting sacred sites, as I notice a drop in tone level of all those who participated.”
1999: Scientology poured the foundation for the new Super Power building in downtown Clearwater this week. “The Church of Scientology and its contractor, Beers Construction Co. of Tampa, have coordinated an 18-hour task that will involve more than 500 construction workers, 130 mixing trucks, 1,200 truckloads of high-strength concrete from six area plants, and 24 off-duty police officers to handle the traffic. Although the church staged a glitzy groundbreaking in November and workers have been excavating the site since, the foundation is the largest and most tangible evidence that the long-planned building is under way. The project has gone through several design changes over the years, and brochures mailed recently to Scientology members indicate the church is still raising money to pay for the $45-million structure.”
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“According to Hubbard the average Black South African thought Apartheid was too lenient.”
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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, 2023. DA’s response to appeal brief due August 13.
— ‘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 December 1.
Civil litigation:
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to arbitration.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson. Judge Upindra Kalra’s ruling denying Scientology’s motion to strike is on appeal. Jane Does’ response to Scientology’s appeal brief was due July 3, extension granted.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration, gets ruling to depose Jane Doe 1. Trial has been set for January 10, 2028.
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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] When Scientology’s founder, aboard his flagship, reported on his trip into time-travel
[TWO years ago] When will governments get that Scientology has been breaking bad for 70 years?
[THREE years ago] Hey, Dublin: Want to see some Scientology child abuse?
[FOUR years ago] Tom Cruise’s Scientology superpowers, No. 14: Helping at the scene of a car accident
[FIVE years ago] The Top 25 People Enabling Scientology, No. 25: DirecTV and filmmakers buffing Dave’s channel
[SIX years ago] ‘Aftermath’ supporters put Scientology on notice in its own ‘spiritual mecca’
[SEVEN years ago] Fake medals and kiddie diddlers: Scientology’s cruise ship scandal gets even worse
[EIGHT years ago] Stephen Colbert: Do you believe Scientology is a religion at all? Leah Remini: No
[NINE years ago] Whale watching update: Your 2016 mid-year guide to who’s propping up Scientology
[TEN years ago] Why is the press so timid about outing Scientology’s many front groups?
[ELEVEN years ago] DOX: Here’s Monique Rathbun’s response to Scientology’s appeal of its anti-SLAPP defeat
[TWELVE years ago] LEAH REMINI FILES MISSING-PERSON REPORT ON SCIENTOLOGY LEADER’S WIFE
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Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Joe Reaiche (1958-2024) did not see his daughter Alanna Masterson in his final 6,999 days.
Mike Rinder (1955-2025) did not see his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in his final 7,589 days.
Tammy Synovec has not seen her daughter Julia in 3,349 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,853 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,359 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,909 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,899 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,285 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,780 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 6,084 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,953 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,507 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,848 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,419 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,335 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,502 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 5,084 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,343 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,380 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 4,096 days.
Marie Poulin has not seen her mother June in 3,660 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,975 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 3,150 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,832 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 5,169 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 10,023 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 5,138 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,500 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,909 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,299 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 4,183 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,748 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,259 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,519 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,623 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on August 8, 2025 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, 1995-2023 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2023), 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
