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SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS, Ep 9: Director Paul Haggis responds to a lawsuit’s rape allegations

 
‘Accused,’ the ninth episode of ‘Scientology Black Ops,’ a special 7NEWS Australia investigation that was cancelled by the network in July, has been leaked to the Internet.

Ten episodes were scheduled to be published to the 7NEWS website on July 14 when the network changed its mind, cancelled the program, and also pulled down a trailer it had made for the series. On August 31, we found that the first episode in the series had been leaked, and we embedded it along with a transcript we prepared. We also did the same for the second episode, ‘Witness X,’ on Sept 4, the third episode, ‘Taken,’ on Sept 11, the fourth episode, ‘The Star,’ on Sept 14, the fifth episode, ‘Always Attack,’ on Sep 17, the sixth episode, ‘Dirty Tricks’ on Sept 21, the seventh episode, ‘Celebrity’ on Sept 27, and the eighth episode, ‘Betrayal’, on Sept 30.

We’ve done the same for the ninth episode, in which 7NEWS reporter Bryan Seymour puts it to director Paul Haggis directly: Did he rape Haleigh Breest?

Here’s the video, and then the transcript. (For those confused by the length of these short “episodes,” please keep in mind that this was a nightly news investigation and these segments were created to run during a news broadcast, not as longer shows on their own.)

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[UPDATE: After a request from attorneys representing Seven News, we have removed the embed links to the leaked ‘Scientology Black Ops’ episodes. See our reasons why in this story.]

 
Episode title: ACCUSED

Scientology Attack Video: Haleigh Breest came forward with explosive allegations against him, of assault and rape.

Bryan Seymour: Paul, did you rape Haleigh Breest?

Paul Haggis: Of course I didn’t. No.

Seymour: Why would she make that up?

Haggis: It’s a good question. I don’t know. You know, obviously, you get accused of doing something like that and you know you didn’t do it, I know where I was, I know it was a one-night stand. I know what happened.

Seymour: It was here.

 

 

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Haggis: It was right here, right here. It was five, six years ago now. I know it was. But…you know, am I proud of having a one night stand? No. I’ve had them a few times in my life and I’m not proud of that. Am I a perfect person in this way, not at all. But do I rape people? Did I rape her? No, of course, of course I did not. I don’t know why people make things up, why they say things that aren’t true, or convince themselves of things that happened that didn’t happen. I don’t know. I can’t tell you.

Seymour: Did Paul rape Haleigh Breest?

Deborah Rennard: No. Absolutely not. No question in my mind.

Seymour: And how can you be so certain?

Rennard: Because I know who Paul is. And I’ve seen, I’ve known him for 27 years. I’ve seen him in every situation you could be in. I mean, I was married to him. We lived together for six years and then we were married for another 13. He was, he has, like I said, he’s bent over backwards to help women in the business. What she’s saying happened is ridiculous. I mean just, everything she’s said, I went, I don’t buy it. I don’t buy it at all, on any level.

Seymour: In December 2017, a publicist named Haleigh Breest filed a civil action alleging Paul Haggis had raped her in 2013, when she was 26 years old. She claimed she met the director at a function, and he invited her to his New York apartment. He claims they had consensual sex. She claimed he forced himself on her. Ms. Breest claims you said to her, ‘You’re scared of me, aren’t you?’ As though you had some sort of misogynistic, violent, sexual approach to her. Did you say that?

Haggis: No, of course I didn’t. I have to be a little careful here because there’s a confidentiality order in place which I really wish wasn’t in place. But in order to have the trial proceed two years ago, we had to sign a confidentiality order. So, assuming that what you’ve learned you’ve learned in public, I can respond to it. But…I would so wish that they would just release the text messages, release the mails, release everything because it proves my innocence, absolutely proves my innocence.

Seymour: He claims sealed documents, including texts and emails sent by Ms. Breest in the days after their encounter prove it was consensual. But her lawyers are fighting to keep the documents under seal. They say they are typical of a victim in denial.

 

 
Priya Chaudhry My name is Priya Chaudhry, I’m the founding partner of Chaudhry Law, and I represent Paul Haggis.

Seymour: How confident are you those emails and texts will exonerate Paul and prove that Paul Haggis did not rape anyone?

Chaudhry: A hundred and ten percent.

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Seymour: Why are you so certain?

Chaudhry: There’s behavior of people who are the victims of crime that is consistent. And there are behaviors of people who are not the victims of crime that’s consistent. And the behavior and the evidence that her own lawyers are desperately trying to make sure nobody sees before trial is what we really want the world to see, both at trial and before trial. And once people see that, they will see with their own common experience that this did not happen the way Haleigh Breest says it happened. It happened the way Paul Haggis says it happened.

Seymour: Three more women, all anonymous and claiming to have no links to the Church of Scientology, also came forward, speaking through lawyers alleging they too were victims of sexually inappropriate conduct by Paul Haggis.

Haggis: The two women have alleged that I kissed them, and one from 26 years ago alleged that I’d raped her.

Seymour: Again, why would they come forward, albeit anonymously, and make these claims against such a high-profile person unless they were true.

Haggis: I have no idea. I honestly have no idea. All I know is they aren’t true. That’s what I know. Now, have I misread signals in my life? Absolutely. I’ve, have I tried to kiss somebody and had them turn their cheek? Have I misread a signal like that? Absolutely I’ve done that. I don’t know any man who hasn’t. I’m certainly guilty of that. Have I attacked somebody, have I forced something, tried to kiss someone, have I raped someone? No.

 

 
Seymour: Unlike other prominent #MeToo cases, none of Haggis’s accusers have made complaints to police. His case has been conducted in the court of public opinion, where he made his name and where it can be destroyed.

Chaudhry: So in New York State there’s two ways to have a rape charge. One is somebody goes to the police and then the prosecutor evaluates the case and decides whether or not to charge them in a criminal case of rape. That never happened here. The other way is a person can go to a civil court and file a case and sue someone. Anyone can sue anyone in this country, and you can sue them and say that they raped me. And you can ask the court then to give you money.

Seymour: Haggis claims Haleigh Breest initially asked him for $9 million to stay quiet. She’s not known to be a Scientologist. The other three accusers were recently removed from the case in a precedent-setting ruling that the alleged rape can be heard as a hate crime against women, the first under a new New York law. Ms. Breest and the other accusers are being represented by legal firm Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady. This law firm bills New York rates, and in the Paul Haggis case, that’s likely to be in the millions.

Chaudhry: If I had to estimate, from the time that they filed this lawsuit against him to now, I would say their legal fees, just doing some rough math on their hours would be in the millions, somewhere north of two million, south of five million?

Seymour: In a statement Ms. Breest’s lawyers told us, “In this case if Paul Haggis loses, he will be required to pay our attorney fees and costs. Firms like ours take on these cases when we believe in our client and the case, as we do here. You can read their full statement on our website. Scientology denies emphatically that it has anything to do with it. But the church has certainly reveled in the allegations, posting numerous commentaries and videos online.

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Scientology attack video: Rushing to Haggis’s defense was Leah Remini and co-host Mike Rinder.

Seymour: You both came out straightaway and said you believed Scientology is behind the allegations against Paul Haggis. Do you still believe that?

Leah Remini: Yep.

Mike Rinder: Absolutely. There is no question in my mind, Bryan.

Rennard: This is completely absurd, you know. I mean, you could accuse Paul of a lot of things, but being a rapist is not one of them.

Seymour: Deborah Rennard wrote a public letter supporting her ex-husband, arguing some of the claims made against him were factually wrong.

Haggis: When I read your letter…I don’t cry…

Rennard: I know you don’t. But Paul you deserve it. This is the thing. You, that’s why I wrote that letter, because you are always the champion for every underdog.

Rinder: And, you know, I told you, and I started telling you, this is what’s going to happen next, and here’s what’s going to happen next, and this is what’s going to occur. And that is exactly what happens. And why do I know that, it’s not because I’m a clairvoyant, it’s because I’ve studied the policies that these people are operating on.

 

 
Remini: You just gotta, you gotta get through this part. This is the part that Scientology banks on you not making it through this part.

Haggis: Well, they’re doing a pretty good job so far.

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Remini: No, but Paul, and this is what I was telling, what we were telling Bryan earlier, is the purpose of it is to take away all of your support, right? Financially. Eventually, you will recover.

Haggis: Yeah.

Seymour: What do you personally believe. Do you personally believe that Paul Haggis is innocent?

Chaudhry: A hundred percent. Yes.

Seymour: Can you say that about all of your clients?

Chaudhry: No.

 

 
Title card: NEXT

Haggis: There is compelling evidence that something is happening here that’s bigger.

Remini: You have to do something. You have to do something about it.

 
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In court today: Serving Miscavige by publication

At Los Angeles Superior Court this morning, Judge Steven Kleifield is scheduled to make a ruling on whether Danny Masterson’s rape accusers can serve Scientology leader David Miscavige their lawsuit by publication as a last resort. They first filed their lawsuit in August 2019 against Masterson, Miscavige, and the church, alleging that the defendants have subjected them to a campaign of harassment since 2016 when they came forward to the LAPD. Since that time they say that Miscavige has been evading service. Miscavige’s attorneys argue that the women just haven’t tried hard enough to catch him.

Tomorrow an even more important hearing is scheduled when Masterson’s demurrer will be heard, which is his attempt to get out of the lawsuit.

 
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Source Code

“The most serious barrier that an auditor has to overcome in Security Checking is not necessarily his own case, but a courage in asking . . to ask the questions. You know, that’s kind of a raw, mean, brassy sort of a thing to do. You sit down. Here’s this nice young girl. Everybody knows she’s a virgin. Everybody knows this. And you’re in very good ARC with her and everything is going to go along fine. And then you say to her, crassly and meanly, ‘Have you ever committed any carnal sins of any character or another? Have you ever been to bed in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong man?’ And put it mildly, this is a startling question. But since I’ve started security checking, I haven’t found any virgins.” — L. Ron Hubbard, October 5, 1961

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“You can’t measure time in years to another universe, it’s another universe outside the time reference of this universe. So basically incident zero occurs in this universe and that’s it. It’s out-ethics to evaluate incidents to run. The processes quite simply run a person into a network of implant stations which programs people into cycles of action operating across the entire tone scale.”

 
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Past is Prologue

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1995: An essay by Jon Atack, “Hubbard and the Occult” was posted this week. “Scientology seems to be a hybrid of science-fiction and magic. Hubbard’s reflection on philosophy seem to derive largely from Will Durant’s Story of Philosophy (13) and the works of Aleister Crowley. Aleister Crowley is surely the most famous black magician of the twentieth-century. It is impossible to arrive at an understanding of Scientology without taking into account its creator’s extensive involvement with magic. The trail has been so well obscured in the past that even such a scholar as Professor Gordon Melton has been deceived into the opinion that Hubbard was not a practitioner of ritual magic and that Scientology is not related to magical beliefs and practices. In the book A Piece of Blue Sky, I explored these connections in detail. The revelations surrounding Hubbard’s private papers in the 1984 Armstrong case in California makes any denial of the connections fatuous. The significance of these connections is of course open to discussion.”

 
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Random Howdy

“It will take a Snowball of Theta to save the planet from the Hairball of Entheta that is growing bigger in Basement Cat’s belly by the day.”

 
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker

Criminal prosecutions:
Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Demurrer filed by Masterson, arraignment delayed to October 19.
Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay’s sentencing is set for October 29 in White Plains, NY. Jeffrey’s is set for October 24.
Hanan and Rizza Islam and other family members, Medi-Cal fraud: Next pretrial conference set for Jan 12 in Los Angeles
Dennis Nobbe, Medicare fraud, PPP loan fraud: Charged July 29. Bond revoked Sep 14. Nobbe dead, Sep 14.

Civil litigation:
Luis and Rocio Garcia v. Scientology: Oral arguments were heard on July 30 at the Eleventh Circuit
Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ Petition for a writ of mandate filed with Cal 2nd Appellate District, Sept 10.
Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Oct 5 (Serving Miscavige by publication), Oct 6 (CSI/RTC demurrer against Riales, Masterson demurrer), Oct 26 (motions to compel arbitration)
Jane Doe v. Scientology (in Miami): Jane Doe dismissed the lawsuit on May 15 after the Clearwater Police dropped their criminal investigation of her allegations.
Matt and Kathy Feschbach tax debt: Eleventh Circuit ruled on Sept 9 that Feshbachs can’t discharge IRS debt in bankruptcy. Update required in federal lawsuit on Oct 19.
Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Second amended complaint filed, trial set for Nov 9, 2021.
Author Steve Cannane defamation trial: Trial concluded, awaiting verdict.

 
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Scientology’s celebrities, ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and more!

[Alanna Masterson, Terry Jastrow, and Marisol Nichols]

We’ve been building landing pages about David Miscavige’s favorite playthings, including celebrities and ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and we’re hoping you’ll join in and help us gather as much information as we can about them. Head on over and help us with links and photos and comments.

Scientology’s celebrities, from A to Z! Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!

Scientology’s ‘Ideal Orgs,’ from one end of the planet to the other! Help us build up pages about each these worldwide locations!

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 our weekly series. How many have you read?

 
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THE WHOLE TRACK

[ONE year ago] Fight Scientology, and you can end up paying the price for years and years
[TWO years ago] Buried in US archives, a stunning indictment of Scientology and prediction of the future
[THREE years ago] Never before seen: Video of a woman moments after achieving superhuman Scientology powers
[FOUR years ago] DRONE FLYOVER: Scientology’s secret saucer-looking underground vault in Northern California
[FIVE years ago] VIDEO LEAK: Scientology’s New Year’s Eve 2006, when Leah Remini was still a front-row celeb!
[SIX years ago] Sunday Funnies: Scientology wants your child, even if it’s not yet born!
[SEVEN years ago] Claire Headley Gets Us Prepped for Scientology’s OT Levels!
[EIGHT years ago] Oregon Dentist Ordered to Pay $348,000 After Pressuring an Employee to Attend Scientology Symposium: The FULL Order!
[NINE years ago] Johnny Depp and Vanity Fair: Confused About Scientology, Or Just Trolling?
[ELEVEN years ago] Google and Twitter Slow To Take Down Slanderous Impersonation of a Scientology Critic

 
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Scientology disconnection, a reminder

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 2,080 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 2,584 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 2,104 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 1,124 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 1,015 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 4,322 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 2,190 days.
Carol Nyburg has not seen her daughter Nancy in 2,964 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 3,768 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 3,084 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 11,650 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 7,569 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 3,737 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 3,318 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 3,579 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 2,617 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 2,330 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 1,855 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 1,385 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 5,945 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 3,085 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 3,405 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 8,260 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 3,379 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 1,735 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 6,038 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 2,144 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 2,546 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 2,418 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 2,001 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 2,496 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 2,750 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 13,859 days.

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Posted by Tony Ortega on October 5, 2020 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, 1995-2019 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2019), 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, 14 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

 

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