Scientology attacks Leah Remini’s ‘Fair Game’ lawsuit in new appeal briefs

 
TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Scientology’s attorneys filed two lengthy briefs in Leah Remini’s lawsuit this week, and today we have the longer of the two in its entirety. Once again the church is arguing that it says such terrible things about Leah online because, well, she started it first. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]

 
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Technology Cocktail

“A cycle of action is a parallel to a cycle of understanding or a cycle of communication. The cycle of action is the physical universe expression of a cycle of communication. The cycle of communication occurs in the physical universe! A misunderstood interrupts not only the cycle of communication or understanding, but also interrupts the motion or action. That is the discovery. A person is trying to get the product of a finished house. He doesn’t understand the word “plumbing.” He may tell you that it is because of the price of materials, that nobody can dig in that kind of ground, that certain types of pipes aren’t available, that he is having trouble with his wife — and his supervisors and bosses will tell you that he is just plain lazy, that he has been bribed not to, that he is a secret drinker maybe, and even less printable Whys. But when you get right down to it and use the Tech you find that he has a Crashing Mis-U on the word ‘plumbing.’ He thinks it is defined as ‘drilling holes.'” — 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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Source Code

“The condemnation of science is long overdue and, what do you know, has already occurred on the European continent and has occurred even in a more advanced state in England. Today the word science is so bad that when I started calling what we’re doing Scientology I got in to a minor revolution. It wasn’t anything but the fact that the English people today believe that science has let them down but thoroughly. And anything with science connected with it is something they rather smile sarcastically about. It’s not that they’re interested in humanity. They just know science doesn’t work. And what do you know, they’re drawing right back out of science. They are not following scientific method worth a nickel.” — L. Ron Hubbard, October 28, 1953

 
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Avast, Ye Mateys

“AOLA: It is reported very quiet there — still peaceful. People very polite. No hum. No body traffic. Way below confusion. My guess is when our CO Mission hits it will go up into total confusion, find a major stable datum, began to cool off, find the new CO and begin to be an org again. A Former CO of AOLA is flabbergasted at the number of 41 staff members to run an AO. AOs run on high volume with half that many. We are putting in a big stable datum. The terminal of a ‘backed up CO.’ The two orgs we’ve sent ‘backed up COs’ to are zooming! Here goes the third.” — The Commodore, October 28, 1969

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“The Rehabilitation Project Force (RPF) is in accordance to the fundametals of LRH ethics tech. It handles PTSes and SPs and that is the main points of ethics in society or groups or the Sea Org and in composite cases. And remember, the Sea Org is not a Shan-gri-la paradise for diletantes.”

Past is Prologue

1996: An article was posted from American Atheist News, describing Scientology’s efforts to establish a memorial to L. Ron Hubbard in his birthplace, Tilden, Nebraska. “A proposal to erect a picnic complex at a public park in honor of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard and post signs along a hiking trail listing his 21 ‘Way to Happiness’ precepts has many folks in the small town of Tilden, Nebraska worried and angry. A local citizens group is threatening to file a lawsuit, and there is a slate of city council candidates explicitly opposing the plan. Critics say that the signs and picnic pavilion clearly violate the First Amendment separation of church and state. Two years ago, a group known as the Friends of the Park Foundation began raising money for a new city park and trail which would connect with Cowboy Trail, a popular hiking and cycling route. Enter the Friends of L. Ron Hubbard Foundation; the group donated $50,000 to supplement locally-raised money for the park projects, and match a $228,000 federal grant. The Foundation has pledged another $250,000 for the construction of a ‘picnic pavilion’ which would be included in the new park to be officially named the L. Ron Hubbard Park and Recreation Center. Plans have also been proposed to include signs listing the Hubbard-authored ‘Ways to Happiness.’ They include such homespun advice as ‘Fulfill Your Obligations,’ ‘Don’t Do Anything Illegal,’ and ‘Take Care Of Yourself.’ Depending on who you talk to, these are important moral lessons, painful elaborations of common sense, or messages designed to promote Hubbard and the Scientology religion. Members of the Concerned Citizens group insist that the park project involves an attempt to promote the Scientology religion, and that the ‘Ways to Happiness’ qualify as religious statements which have no place on public property. One member told the World-Herald that the proposal was Scientology’s attempt to ‘come in and recruit new members.’ In addition Concerned Citizens ‘narrowly missed’ putting a measure on the Nov. 5 ballot which would have banned acceptance of money from the Hubbard Foundation; but three anti-Hubbard candidates are now running for City Council. The local City Attorney is reportedly concerned about the church-state separation dimension of the park flap. Michael Brogan has advised city officials to avoid the potential for lawsuit and reject at least the suggestion to erect the 21 precept signs, and notes that ‘The more it looks like the city is approving of a particular kind of religion, the more it would violate the notion in the Constitution that requires a separation of church and state.'”

 
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Random Howdy

“Being an old school punk/junkie I wish I had a buck for every bad thing I’ve ever heard said, written or depicted about people of my ‘ilk.’ Never mind all the verbal and physical assaults me and my friends had to endure back in the day from the supposedly ‘normal’ people. It goes with the territory called ‘freak.’ Get use to it. Wear it as a badge of experience.”

 
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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:

 
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SCIENTOLOGY: FAIR GAME

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] Tom Cruise once again shows up for Scientology gala in the UK
[TWO years ago] PODCAST: Big protest planned for Scientology in England, and Alex fills us in
[THREE years ago] Danny Masterson shatters suppression, Scientology style, as his trial heats up
[FOUR years ago] Israel’s Ministry of Justice threatens to ‘dismantle’ Scientology’s Tel Aviv Ideal Org
[FIVE years ago] Scientology chiro pleaded guilty to fraud, but we may get to see a sort of trial anyway
[SIX years ago] Thetan-tastic: Alan Arkin and Michael Douglas skewer Scientology on ‘The Kominsky Method’
[SEVEN years ago] Scientology so desperate for Narconon patients, new offer drops all pretense of separation
[EIGHT years ago] Ray Emmons, 1942-2017: Clearwater’s cop who sniffed out Scientology’s secrets
[NINE years ago] Talking with Tiponi Grey, who quit her Scientology job and announced it on YouTube
[TEN years ago] Troublemakers: The women who won’t keep quiet about Scientology
[ELEVEN years ago] Finally, Scientology has an answer for last year’s Super Bowl power outage
[TWELVE years ago] Scientology’s Trust Issues: A Possible Garcia Legal Strategy?
[THIRTEEN years ago] Sunday Funnies: Scientology Price Increase!

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on October 28, 2025 at 07:00

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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, 1995-2024 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2024), 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, 20 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

 

Tony Ortega at Rolling Stone