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 Laura DeCrescenzo In 2013, the Underground Bunker provided live coverage as Laura DeCrescenzo’s forced-abortion lawsuit survived a major challenge by the Church of Scientology. Laura sued the church in 2009 because she alleges that she was abused as a “Sea Org” worker who, for example, was made to work 90-hour weeks for pennies an hour — and that’s when she was 12 years old. When she turned 13, she was moved to an adult schedule of 112-hour weeks. At 17, while still technically a child, she says she was coerced into having an abortion — something other women have alleged was standard policy in the Sea Org, where having children was forbidden because it would prevent them from working so much. Continue reading With a trial looming in 6-year forced-abortion lawsuit, Scientology cries ‘but we’re a religion!’
 We had a lot of fun on Monday revisiting perhaps the high point in the careers of Scientology leader David Miscavige and his actor-lieutenant, Tom Cruise, when they opened a new church in Madrid in 2004. Since then, the two have been battered and bruised with years of brutal press accounts of how Miscavige physically abused his top executives, imprisoned them for years at a time, was the subject of an FBI investigation, and made his own wife disappear — all as Cruise has idly stood by, continuing to be the organization’s number one recruiting tool.
Continue reading Scenes from the increasingly desperate straits Scientology finds itself in
Once again, Jonny Jacobsen is our man on the scene in Europe, where news of Scientology’s infiltration of a Swiss national organization broke in the local press. Give us the details, Jonny… Continue reading Scientology’s front group that targets kids gets cover from a Swiss politician: News report
Thanks to former Scientologist Tiziano Lugli, we have a world exclusive for you today here at the Underground Bunker. It’s a previously unreleased video made by the Church of Scientology and intended only to be seen by members. It’s a short segment that’s part of a larger, hour-and-a-half grand opening celebration, and it captures Tom Cruise helping to open the new Madrid church in 2004, with the actor charming the locals by giving a 7-minute speech about what Scientology means to him — in Spanish! Continue reading EXCLUSIVE: Tom Cruise Scientology video shows the actor praising the church — in Spanish!
 Jeffrey Augustine is back with another delicious dive into Scientology’s own policies and documents. In this case, he’s looking at Scientology’s own statements about whether you should ever believe a word they say…
Continue reading Why no one should ever believe anything said by Scientology Sea Org or staff members
 We’re very happy to see a small publication like the Santa Clarita Express in Southern California expose a Scientology front group for what it is. Reporter Melissa Lampert revealed in her Thursday story that the local branch of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Office will be offering a class put on by the Foundation for a Drug-Free World for teens in September. We hope that kind of pressure makes the Sheriff’s Office think about whether it really wants to get into bed with Scientology.
Continue reading Why is the press so timid about outing Scientology’s many front groups?
 We’ve provided a lot of detailed, step-by-step coverage of numerous lawsuits involving the Church of Scientology in recent years. They tend to involve large dollar amounts (as in the case of the Garcias, who say they were defrauded of about $440,000), or years of abuse (as in the case of Laura DeCrescenzo), or major legal maneuvers from Scientology’s top officials and lawyers (as in the case of Monique Rathbun’s harassment suit in Texas).
But today we have something on the other end of the scale. A legal action involving a modest request for a refund that took place this week in a Phoenix small claims court, and which once again proved how Scientology has US courts tied up in knots because of the draconian nature of the contracts it makes members sign. Continue reading How Scientology sets up its members to find themselves helpless in court
 Jaden, Willow, Jada, and Will Smith, from a 2010 BBC appearance You may have run across a very confusing story about Scientology, Will and Jada Smith, and a “refund” that spun out across tabloid news websites yesterday. Like lemmings, many sites simply repeated what started with a RadarOnline story claiming that tax records showed Will and Jada had received a $1.2 million refund from a “church-affiliated” school which shut down in 2013. Continue reading Um, about that story claiming Will Smith got a ‘refund’ from his broke-ass shuttered school…
 Hey, we’re still recovering from last night’s wild time in London. Thankfully, Aaron Smith-Levin has sent over a couple of new videos interview Nick Lister in their series, “Growing Up In Scientology.” We’ll let Aaron introduce them…
Continue reading What really happens at a Scientology rehab? Nick Lister dishes on the Narconon experience
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