TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Patty Moher is a great addition to our Group Therapy podcast, and we’ve dived into her history as a Scientology spy. But she also was lured into the church’s promises of spiritual power, and she’s distilled it into this narrative to help us understand the trap she walked into. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“If you’ve found a service fac the needle will be looser and the TA in reasonable range. And it will run on the right/wrong, etc. brackets and the pc will get off automaticities. When you’ve finally found several and walked it all the way through to the service fac it’s as if all the other service facs you’ve been peeling off are like the bands of trees and sod that lie up against the mountain peak. So you take the service facsimiles and run them as you find them. You unburden the cliffs before you pull the mountain out by the roots. As you’re running out the first service facs you’re reversing the dwindling spiral, you’re restoring the individual’s ability to handle his environment because he’s now seeing it, he’s now beginning to confront it.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1978
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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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“I remember one time I was arrested by mistake. They do that in the United States every once in a while. Somebody wanted me as a witness. They wanted me as a witness in a bankruptcy case of some kind, and I was just a witness, innocent bystander – factually an innocent bystander, but I must have had something about that particular area in some past life because the next thing I knew why the cops rushed in you know and practically shot everybody down and grabbed me and took me off and held me very carefully so that they would have this witness for this case. And I said to ‘em, ‘Don’t you think this is sort of unfair?’ And they didn’t pay any attention to that. So I got kind of mean, in my own inimical mean way. And when I finally appeared on the witness stand, I had the prosecuting attorney and the attorney for defense arguing with the judge that I shouldn’t be required to be held more than the next 15 or 20 minutes anyway because they wanted to help me. The judge helped me too. That was the end. I sat down and gave some testimony. I said, ‘Well I don’t know anything about it. I was hardly there.’ And that was it. Boom.” — L. Ron Hubbard, July 7, 1960
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“MARY SUE HUBBARD is assigned Power as a student, 2nd week running, with 441 points. She also got 100 percent on her Exam. DIANA HUBBARD having gotten 100 points is upgraded to Emergency as a student. KEN URQUHART, with only 10 points, is assigned Non Existence as a student. The Class in general is doing well on Dianetics, will soon complete, and be ready to audit. When so qualified they go onto VI or VIII as eligible.” — The Commodore, July 7, 1969
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“Scientology does not make ‘good people.’ No, it really does not. We make Clears and OTs. We make Auditors, we make Administrators and Executives. This is something completely different. Honestly, I don’t want to be ‘good.’ People who do what they are told or when they have to be told what to do are considered as good: ‘I was just doing my job.’ So a civil servant, a policeman, a soldier. Finally, it’s someone who doesn’t want to, can’t, or shouldn’t take responsibility. Someone who does not want to, cannot or should not think.”
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1995: Martin Poulter, maintainer of the U.K. Scientology critic’s WWW page, has had his account suspended due to threats from the church. “The complaint is specifically about my posting copyrighted material to alt.religion.scientology. I believe that what I was doing was within my rights, but I will now have to stop doing so in order to protect my system operators. I have told the university that I will do anything necessary to save them from further harassment. This will include taking copyrighted material off my Web page as well as toning down my posts to a.r.s. I have taken care in my postings to make sure that Scientology do not have a leg to stand on legally, but the University does not want any involvement in legal action and I do not want to put the Web service at risk.”
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“Hubbard said that Mohammed was a hustler and a ‘small town booster’ and that the ‘Black Stone’ was a piece of the R6 implant.”
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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 July 14.
— ‘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 July 7.
Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Some defamation claims were removed by Judge Hammock. Judge Hammock’s ruling is on appeal. Leah’s appeal brief was filed June 3. Oral arguments are probably next.
— 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 is due July 3.
— 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] Scientology pulls out its secret weapon in Boston: An ideal crustacean!
[TWO years ago] Scientology whines that its arbitration process is misunderstood, asks court for hug
[THREE years ago] Scientology will try to derail new labor trafficking lawsuit with ‘arbitration’ strategy
[FOUR years ago] News from Texas reminds us of a legendary fight against Scientology’s goon squad
[FIVE years ago] PPP small-business coronavirus bailout loans went to Scientology and Narconon centers
[SIX years ago] How Scientology treats a member in real need strains the notion of the word ‘church’
[SEVEN years ago] Scientology’s messiah? ‘Hubbard believed he was as great as Jesus, Buddha, & Mohammed’
[EIGHT years ago] The Scientology lecture in which L. Ron Hubbard revealed the true name of our Earth society
[NINE years ago] The Church of Intimidation: Scientology stalks another ex-member on the taxpayer dime
[TEN years ago] Monique Rathbun: Hey, Texas court, here’s something to chew on
[ELEVEN years ago] Scientology tries to psych out Florida — and Chill EB is back!
[TWELVE years ago] Alanna Masterson’s Dad Calls Connor Cruise “Worst Person in the World” for Her to Date
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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 3,318 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,822 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,328 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,878 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,868 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,254 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,749 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 6,053 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,922 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,476 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,817 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,384 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,303 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,471 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 5,053 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,312 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,349 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 4,065 days.
Marie Poulin has not seen her mother June in 3,629 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,944 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 3,119 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,801 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 5,138 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,992 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 5,107 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,469 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,878 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,268 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 4,152 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,717 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,228 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,488 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,592 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on July 7, 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
