There is very little Scientologists hate more than mockery and bad publicity. The organization seems to be losing its mojo. This once-secretive organization has been able to hide behind the protection of religious status for so long, it has forgotten how the real world works. Amusing leaks of Scientology internal videos are always fun, and another one hit the fan last week.
They can't plug the leaks, they can't run the court system, they can't hide their crimes any more. This is in great part due to the over 1000 ex-Scientologists, some of whom are working with Anonymous and Project Chanology to expose Scientology crimes and abuse.
June 2011 has been a very tough month for the cult of Scientology!
First, Senior Scientologist Jan Wendy Eastgate Meyer, aka Jan Eastgate, aka Wendy Meyer, was arrestedfor covering up the ongoing molestation of a young girl. Bail was set at $10,000, and she was allowed to flee back to Los Angeles from Australia. Odds are, she'll be sent on some "missionary assignment" and be unavailable for court.
Following quickly on the heels of this news came the release of an unedited version of a Scientology promotional video, containing deleted scenes of top Scientology executives singing a motivational song. Still shots of the group reveal the majority of these execs have either left Scientology, or are being held at their secret base in Riverside County in a place called, 'The Hole.'
There was much hilarity at cult leader David Miscavige singing "We Stand Tall" while being the shortest little fellah in the whole pack. The fact that he is wearing an exceptionally ugly Hermes jacket is just added sauce for the dish.
Next came the release of a Scientology "enemies list;" people who are not to be invited to any Scientology parties. Since they throw crummy parties, nobody on the list is whining about it.
And finally, the transcript of a recently resolved case involving Scientology vs. a protester in Washington DC was released yesterday. It is a fascinating glimpse into Scientology's court tactics and shenanigans. There was perjury, backpedalling and obfuscation from cult witnesses.
The Executive Director of the Washington DC org, Kim Belotte, accused ex-Scientologist and protester Brian Madigo, aka AnonSparrow, with stalking. He was arrested. In court, Ms. Belotte accused Sparrow of trespassing onto Scientology property to block her from getting in her car. She said he had an erection as he approached. Strangely, she neglected to mention either situation to the police at the scene. She sent a lengthy email to a detective the next day, and still "forgot" about these alleged incidents.
Mr. Keys, a lawyer representing Sparrow, proceeded to shred Ms. Belotte's testimony in court. He shredded the testimony of one of her witnesses, who had been coached by cult attorney Kendrick Moxon.
Here, the woman gave an "eyewitness account" of Sparrow intercepting Ms. Belotte in the parking lot, preventing her from getting into her car. But then, Sparrow's lawyer strikes! See, Ms. Belotte testified more than once that Sparrow never left the sidewalk, and never trespassed on Scientology property. Awkwarrrrd!
The key here was video. Nineteen videos of the 180 Sparrow has shot and put online at Youtube feature footage of Ms. Belotte. Rather than act terrified, she goes out of her way several times to interact with him; calling him names, leading a gaggle of giggling culties past where he's standing to bump him around, or parading around in front of him while cult cameras are rolling. Other footage shows her husband harassing another protester, Radio Paul, with "the Brian Treatment."
Being confronted with a stalker with an erection, you'd think a woman would take some precautions. She never did. She never asked to see the video from security cameras. She never asked to see the footage taken by other Scientologists. She never asked for an escort to her car. She never asked to borrow a video camera to capture this alleged harassment.
She never did anything one might think a terrorized woman who is being stalked might do. Ultimately, Sparrow won his case, sending Moxon back to LA once again covered in fail.
But the best, and most telling part of Ms. Belotte's testimony came when Nation of Islam member Tony "Bang-Bang" Muhammad is seen speaking with her and laughing before approaching Sparrow and grabbing his camera. The Nation of Islam has chosen, for some mysterious reason, to join Scientology. Members are directed to take Dianetics courses, and NOI people are often seen coming and going from the DC org.
Of them, Ms. Belotte, the Executive Director of the Washington DC Scientology org says, "These people come and go. They're not necessarily at my church regularly."
"These people," Kim? REALLY?
The judge agreed with the defense that all Sparrow did was lawfully protest, as is his right. The prosecution tried to assert that his showing up at her place of work was an indication of stalking. The judge disagreed, saying that, had Sparrow appeared at her home, her gym, anywhere but the org, that would be stalking. But, he pointed out, if you're protesting Scientology, the best place to do it is outside of their business establishment.
In this case, justice was well and truly served. There have been many cases in the past, Keith Henson's being one, that allowed Scientology to run roughshod over the justice system in ways that still astonish attorneys to this day. But, there's a sea change coming. Scientology's tactics are becoming known to those in legal circles. Mr. Key listened to his client and made good use of the information provided him.
If there's anything we can take away from this case, it is, "Always have a camera rolling." Ms. Belotte was caught several times by contradictions between her testimony and video footage. Threats and assaults on the defendant were also recorded. They were helpful during the testimony of police officers called to the site, as Sparrow didn't quit rolling when the police were investigating.
This is what Anonymous calls, "Doin it rite." With video rolling.