Mary Johnson

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Court Documents are Here

Dublin woman sues Scientology church
December 3, 2002

A Dublin woman who claims she was controlled by a cult has begun a High Court legal action for damages.

40-year-old sports shop owner Mary Johnson from Westwood, Foxrock, was a member of the Church of Scientology for two years between 1992 and 1994.

She is now suing the organisation because of the experiences and pressures she claims she suffered while a member and the threats and intimidation when she tried to leave

....It is claimed she suffered psychiatric and psychological injuries and post traumatic stress disorder.

She was introduced of Scientology in 1992 when she was upset after a relationship break-up.

In court Sean Ryan described the language of the organisation as psycho-religious-mythical expressions that have no meaning other than that defined by scientology.

Woman was 'psychologically injured'
The Irish Examiner 04 Dec 2002
By Vivion Kilfeather

A woman who claims she was brainwashed by the Church of Scientology is suing for damages. Dundalk-born Mary Johnson, 40, who has a sports equipment shop at Westwood, Foxrock, is also suing three members of the church: John Keane, Tom Cunningham and Gerard Ryan.

...Efforts were made to prevent her leaving the organisation, to silence her and to devalue her. The court was also told efforts had been made to intimidate her and to prevent her suing.

...Ms Johnson had suffered psychological, psychiatric injuries, panic attacks and post traumatic stress disorder, together with loss of short term memory and that condition had been exacerbated by the subsequent illegitimate conduct of the defendants.

...She knew one of the defendants, Tom Cunningham, a member of the Church of Scientology, who introduced her to "dianetic auditing" of form of amateur psychoanalysis.

Mr Cunningham continually suggested Ms Johnson should go to the church's Dublin mission in Middle Abbey Street and have a personality test so that she could become involved in Scientology.

The tests involved money and Ms Johnson was not well off. Under pressure she signed up for a "purification run down" an introduction to the church at a cost of Ł1,200.

Ms Johnson was required to do a medical examination and was sent to a scientolgist described as a doctor. She spent long periods in saunas and was told this was purification. People such as this were described as "raw meat" by L Ron Hubbard, the church's founder. In March 1994, she started a "Hubbard Dianetic Auditing" course in Dublin and continued at Saint Hill Foundation in Britain.

In December, a team of recruiters from Saint Hill came to Dublin and she was asked how she was going to further her studies. She said she could not afford further payments and was told she should go to her friends or sell her business.

She gave another Ł100 deposit for a course on a ship in the Caribbean and subsequently signed a contract for one billion years to work for Scientology.

When Ms Johnson got back to Dublin she was subjected to ever more intimidation...

Scientology case woman tells of abortion confession
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2002-12-05

A woman who is suing the Church of Scientology told the High Court yesterday she became very distressed during a church "auditing session" in 1992 and had recounted an event that nobody else knew about her, that she had been pregnant and had had an abortion.

...Yesterday Ms Johnston (40) said she had had a number of auditing sessions with Mr Cunningham from late 1991. At one session in January 1992 she was unable to recall anything.

Mr Cunningham had told her there "must be something". She ultimately remembered the one thing in the world that nobody knew about her and said she wanted to stop the session.

She was so distressed that she was not going to be made happy by recounting anything.

The session was stopped by Mr Cunningham, and he brought her for a coffee.

He said the founder of the Scientology movement, L Ron Hubbard, had said that, if one could not confront something, it impinged on one's ability to "get past it".

She said Mr Cunningham kept urging her to go back into session until she capitulated. They went back, and she recounted the first time she discovered she was pregnant.

Mr Cunningham wanted her to contact the initial point of trauma. She went over it again and again.

She was distressed during the session. She had never told anybody of that incident, apart from the person involved in it.

What really disturbed her was that, far from feeling relieved at the end of the session, she actually felt anxious and concerned.

Mr Cunningham was a reasonably close friend but "not that close".

When the abortion referendum was on, she could not get the word "abortion" out her head. On the inside she was "cracking up".

She had had two abortions, in 1985 and 1987. She regretted what she had done, but at the end of the day she had put them behind her and got on with her life.

These matters had not come into her head on a regular basis but, after the auditing, were in her thoughts all the time.

It was as if she had "opened a Pandora's box and I could not shut it".

Ms Johnston said she used go into the Scientology centre in Middle Abbey Street, Dublin, where she met many of the people who worked there. She knew she was "on their turf" but they were so intrusive.

She referred to a Standard Oxford Capacity Analysis test, comprising 200 questions. She thought it had something to do with Oxford University.

After the test, Mr John Keane sat opposite her and went though it with her.

Mr Keane basically told her she was in pretty poor shape, and the inference was that she was irresponsible. He said she needed to get some professional Dianetic auditing and told her there would have to be a price.

She had no money but had taken out a loan to set up her business.

She said Mr Keane said he would not accept that. He became extremely aggressive and intimidating.

When she repeated that she did not have the money, he kept insisting. He then became angry. Subsequently she told Tom Cuningham she was never going in there again.

Mr Cunningham had arranged for her to meet Gerard Ryan in August 1993. She was taken into a partitioned room.

One of two main questions asked was whether there was anything in her past "which you do not mind owning". She did not know what Mr Ryan meant and he did not explain. ...

Church pressed woman to sell shop, court told
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2002-12-06

A woman who is suing the Church of Scientology has told the High Court she had been encouraged to sell her business to pay for courses which would advance her within the organisation and which would cost about (pounds) 9,200 sterling.

Ms Mary Johnston (40), who has a sports equipment shop in Foxrock, Dublin, said that in November 1993 members of a mission from the organisation came to give a course. She met two of them and was told that she was obviously extremely intelligent and should train to go "up the bridge" on the processing side of the Church of Scientology.

She was told there would be a cost involved, and it was suggested to her that she could borrow from her family or her boyfriend if she did not have the money.

...She was told she was completely wasted as a retailer and should involve herself with the most ethical group on the planet. They put pressure on her.

"By the time they had finished with me after five hours had elapsed, I had agreed I was going to sell my business. I was elated," she said. She tried to borrow from her boyfriend at the time, who turned down her request.

As a result of her involvement with the church, she became withdrawn from her family and friends. She tried to recruit people into scientology but was unsuccessful in most cases. She had many rows with her boyfriend in which she "screamed, shouted, ranted and raved". Her short-term memory started to be affected.

...Earlier, Ms Johnston said she was told she could not read an article in the Evening Herald which was critical of scientology. She had heard the article had made reference to a person who had left Scientology in California. The article also made reference to Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman having been visitors to that place.

She asked Mr Keane at the Dublin mission if he had a copy of it. He said she could not read it. He said she would need "class-12 auditing" to "repair" her because of what was contained in the article. Class-12 auditing would require "an arm and a leg", added Ms Johnston. She did not see the article.

On another occasion at the end of 1993, she said, she was taken to a downstairs room in the organisation's Dublin premises. There was an ashtray on a chair in front of her and she was told by a man to command it as loudly as she could to get it to stand up. She ended up screaming at the ashtray to stand.

She had to lift it up, acknowledging that it had stood up and say "Thank you" to it. She then screamed at the ashtray to "get down". Then she put it down and said "Thank you." She found what happened extremely confusing. She did not know why she was screaming at an inanimate object.

Ms Johnston said that just before Christmas 1993, a friend died from a massive heart attack, but she did not go to the funeral because sympathy was "low tone" in the Church of Scientology. At the higher end of the scale it was 40 for the higher tone while sympathy was down at 0.5 per cent. ...

Woman suing Scientologists feared private life would be made public
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2002-12-07

A woman who is suing the Church of Scientology was photographed by a man while she was on a licensed premises early last year, the High Court was told yesterday. Ms Mary Johnston said that incident occurred in January/February 2001.

Ms Johnston (40), who operates a sports equipment centre at Westwood, Foxrock, Dublin, also said a friend had told her in her shop earlier that a man had been on the premises and had made derogatory remarks about her.

Her attention was later drawn by a work colleague to a man in the bar area of the Westwood centre. The man was queuing up to buy something and then sat by the window and photographed her.

...After leaving the Church, Ms Johnston said she had nightmares, sleeplessness and anxiety attacks, which she had not experienced before. Asked by Mr Michael Cush SC, one of her legal team, whether, in the two years after leaving the Church, she had ever felt free of it or scientologists, she said she did not.

From May 1994, having left Scientology, Ms Johnston said she lived in dread and fear because she knew what she had told the movement in confidence "risked being breached". She believed her private life in some way was going to become public.

Towards October, she began to have very bad and prolonged headaches and was dizzy. She went to a doctor. She linked the headaches to Scientology....

Church of Scientology 'coercive'
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2002-12-12

A woman who is suing the Church of Scientology for damages told the High Court yesterday she was distressed to recall that a man became unconscious while she was giving him an "auditing" session. She described the church as "coercive" and "destructive".

Ms Mary Johnston (40), who operates a sports equipment business in Foxrock, Dublin, said she was giving the auditing session in question in Britain in 1994. "I am distressed when I think back to how that poor man went unconscious on me and I was able to click him back. It has bothered me that I may have caused him harm."

...Ms Johnston said she felt she had carried out things on a human being without having had the medical background to do so. She had done this through following the commands given by Ron L. Hubbard, the founder of the church.

Asked about carrying placards outside a Church of Scientology meeting, Ms Johnston said she believed the church was coercive and destructive and altered people's perception of reality.

"I defend people's rights to believe what they like, but if people carry out acts which harm people by taking them away from their families, then I have a problem with that and have a duty to speak."

Ms Johnston agreed she had told people he church was evil.

She had changed her mind about the Church of Scientology after a meeting with her family in Edenderry, Co Offaly. She said the church diminished God as the supreme being....

Woman critical of church's 'manipulative' techniques
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2002-12-13

A woman who is suing the Church of Scientology told the High Court yesterday she did not criticise Scientologists in general but took issue with the techniques devised by the church's founder and used in the pursuit of its activities. Ms Mary Johnston said the church was engaged in a personal and vindictive campaign against her.

...Ms Johnston said her criticism of Scientologists was based on things that had happened to her and was levelled against the individual Scientologists who perpetrated what she claimed. She did not criticise Scientologists in general.

Her issue was with the coercive and manipulative techniques devised by the founder of the church, L Ron Hubbard, and used in pursuit of its activities. Ms Johnston said Hubbard had written that anyone who was antagonistic to Scientology could be tricked, sued, lied to, cheated or destroyed. He had also written: "You are safe as long as you don't attack them."

Asked if she believed Scientologists were entitled to respond to her criticisms of them, Ms Johnston said they were. She believed people were entitled to express their views but did not believe they were entitled to use information she gave them that was private and "then go digging around for dirt on me".

It was a personal, vindictive campaign against her, rather than saying: "Well, this is not true what she says about L Ron Hubbard. This is not true what she says about auditing. Here are the facts." ...

Cult 'caused member's loss of memory'
Irish Independent (Ireland), Dec. 14, 2002

...Under cross-examination yesterday by Michael Collins SC, for the defence, Ms Johnston said that despite being a member of Mensa, her short term memory had been affected through involvement with the church.

Mr Collins pointed out only people who were highly intelligent were in Mensa and asked Ms Johnston to explain why she was claiming damages. She replied that since 1993 she had suffered short term memory loss and because of her involvement with Scientology would just go blank.

Case against Scientologists partly due to woman's Christian duty
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-01-15

A woman agreed at the High Court yesterday that she was pursuing a legal action for damages against the Church of Scientology partly because she felt it was her Christian duty.

She would have taken the case even if she was a Muslim, Ms Mary Johnston added...

In continuing cross-examination of Ms Johnston yesterday, Mr Michael Collins SC, for the defendants, suggested to the plaintiff that she considered it part of her Christian duty to pursue proceedings against the Church of Scientology.

Ms Johnston replied: "I suppose I do ultimately."

...However, her main reason for taking the action was because the things perpetrated against her had damaged her. She would have done so even if she was a Muslim and not because she was a Christian.

Hypnosis sessions 'upset' plaintiff
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-01-16

A former member of the Church of Scientology claimed in the High Court yesterday that she had been subjected by the church to hypnosis techniques without her permission and had been upset by the procedures.

Ms Mary Johnston (40) said that the procedures involved a countdown and prolonged staring for hours to induce a trance.

... Yesterday Ms Johnston agreed with her counsel, Mr Michael Cush SC, that she was given no warning that aspects of mind control would be involved arising from her participation in the church.

Earlier, cross-examined by Mr Michael Collins SC, for the church, Ms Johnston denied that she had a close connection with a trust which attempted to persuade people to leave Scientology. She said: "I don't work against Scientology. I simply say what happened to me. When people come to ask for help, I help them when I can."

She objected to being described by Mr Collins as a "deprogrammer" and said she was not in a conspiracy with anybody to do anything. Because of the length of the litigation and the stress involved in the court action, she said, she hated to see families coming near her.

The court was told that in May 1994 the plaintiff was persuaded by her family to leave Scientology. She described this as a major turning point and "a fantastic time in her life".

... Two witnesses gave evidence yesterday of a man so far unidentified by name who spoke to them about Ms Johnston.

Ms Mary McKeown, a legal secretary, said that Ms Johnston lived in the same house as her mother-in-law. A man had called to the house on the morning of February 2nd, 2001, looking for the plaintiff, and she had told him that Ms Johnston was probably at work. In the witness-box she was shown photographs which she believed were of the same individual although, she said, he looked younger in one of them.

Ms Ann Sexton, a personal trainer at Westwood Gym, also described a man unidentified by name who spoke to her in the restaurant area of Westwood in January 2001. He had asked her about "Ms Obnoxious Johnston", remarking that he had seen her sitting with the plaintiff.

The man had claimed that Ms Johnston had "diddled" a friend of his out of money. Ms Sexton said she had told him that he should discuss the matter with Ms Johnston if he had a problem.

Woman's free will 'was compromised'
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-01-25

A woman former member of the Church of Scientology had her free will compromised because of dependency, intrusion and pressure, a Canadian professor who claims to be an expert on the practices of the church told the High Court yesterday.

Prof Stephen Alan Kent said he was concerned about the nature of dependency which grew from the process of dianetics which, he said, would focus on negative events in a person's life.

He said Ms Mary Johnston had developed a dependency relationship because, it seemed, a member of the church, Mr Tom Cunningham, had used these techniques, and she was under constant pressure to join Scientology...

Woman says her sister was 'changed' by Scientology
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-01-30

A woman told the High Court yesterday that she had become aware of a change in her sister at about the time the latter became associated with the Church of Scientology.

Ms Margaret O'Kelly, from Edenderry, said she had always been very close to her sister, Ms Mary Johnston, but became aware of a change in her, through "a lot of little things", in the early 1990s. Ms Johnston was involved at that time in dianetics with Mr Tom Cunningham, a member of the church's mission in Dublin.

Up to then, her children loved to see Ms Johnston coming to visit, but over a period of time they would say: "Oh no, not Auntie Mary." She felt that her children did not want Ms Johnston around.

Ms O'Kelly said that her sister had talked a lot about dianetics and had said that it involved auditing. She [Ms O'Kelly] said that she thought it was about self-improvement.

Her sister had talked a lot about dianetics and wanted to use it to do away with Ms O'Kelly's 10-year- old daughter's grumpiness. Ms O'Kelly said she felt this was an imposition and she was worried about it.

Ms O'Kelly said that Ms Johnston had acted totally out of character. She would insist that she was right and Scientology would always be brought into it.

In August 1993, her husband's cousin had died suddenly and, despite the fact that Ms Johnston was close to him, she was apathetic about what had happened.

Ms O'Kelly said she was appalled that her sister did not go to the funeral but rather talked about reincarnation. She showed no empathy with anybody and this was "totally out of character".

Ms O'Kelly said her sister would telephone her mother four times a day. She would also contact other members of the family regularly, but then stopped coming to Edenderry, saying that she was busy. "I didn't know at the time she was going into the [Church of Scientology] mission," she said.

...Earlier, a psychologist at University College Dublin, Dr Declan Fitzgerald, said he believed that what was called the Oxford Capacity Analysis, carried out by the church in its auditing process, impinged on people's self-esteem and was highly manipulative.

He said he was embarrassed that his profession had not got this message across to the public more clearly.

Family give evidence in Scientology case
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-01-31

While she was with the Church of Scientology, Ms Mary Johnston was "like somebody playing a role in a pantomine", the High Court was told yesterday. Mr Paul O'Kelly, brother-in-law of Ms Johnston, said he found Ms Johnston was dealing with him in a planned and structured way and there was no genuine effort to engage.

...Yesterday, Ms Margaret O'Kelly, sister of Ms Johnston and wife of Paul O'Kelly, said she and other members of her family made efforts in early 1994 to get her sister to meet them to view material, newspaper cuttings and videos about Scientology. Before she invited her sister to the meeting, members of the family needed time to research Scientology and to gather as much information as they could, Ms O'Kelly said. They contacted Ms Johnston and arranged to meet in Edenderry on May 2nd, 1994. Initially, Ms Johnston wanted to know why and rang every day for two weeks to find out the name of a book they had about Scientology and where they had got the information.

...Ms O'Kelly said her sister was not relaxed and was very tense, with a continuous grin on her face. She was under stress. She refused to read any of the material they had. By 8 p.m., their mother was getting upset because Ms Johnston could not bring herself to read the material.

Ms O'Kelly said she had asked her mother to leave and she did. After that, Ms O'Kelly said, she herself broke down and told Ms Johnston they loved her and did not want her to disconnect from the family. Ms Johnston then said she would read the material. They talked about family matters and the tension was gone. The next morning, Ms Johnston said there was a lot of questions to which she wanted answers.

Ms O'Kelly said her sister told her she was very frightened. Ms Johnston had said there were things that Ms O'Kelly did not know about her but which the Scientologists knew and that she was afraid they might reveal them.

Mr Paul O'Kelly said he found that, over a time, Ms Johnston was dealing with him in a very planned and structured way. He got the feeling that every time she walked into a room, the conversation and the nature of the discussions she was going to have was already prepared. There was family concern about her.

Church case told of phone calls to clients
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-02-01

A company director and brother-in-law of a woman who is suing the Church of Scientology for damages told the High Court yesterday he was informed that between 25 and 40 phone calls were made by a person with an American accent to his clients and to private individuals.

Mr Paul O'Kelly, Edenderry, Co Offaly, was continuing his evidence in the action by his sister-in-law, Ms Mary Johnston (40), against the Church of Scientology in Dublin and three of its members for alleged conspiracy, misrepresentation and breach of her constitutional rights.

Before Mr O'Kelly resumed his evidence, another witness, Mr Michael Cleary, a director of Rotofab, a plastic moulding company, said Mr O'Kelly's company, O'Kelly Sutton, marketing consultants, did some work for Rotofab when the latter began business. Later, Mr O'Kelly became a shareholder and member of Rotofab.

In 2002 , he received a phone call from a Tom Bishop, who had an American accent and who said he was doing a due diligence report on O'Kelly Sutton for an American company.

--- The caller asked what Mr Cleary knew about Mr O'Kelly's other interests. Some weeks later he received a faxed document from Tom Bishop which outlined a series of situations in relation to O'Kelly Sutton but mainly in relation to Mr O'Kelly. The document was headed TR World Corporate Services, Zurich. He knew nothing about this company. He thought the phone call he had received had been from America.

Mr Sen Ryan SC, for Ms Johnston, said the document claimed to be conducting a due diligence and background for the benefit of a large corporation and named O'Kelly Sutton, Paul O'Kelly and Patrick Sutton.

--- When he read the document, he was surprised and a little worried about some of the stuff in it, Mr Cleary said. His business partner was quite upset. Having spoken to Mr O'Kelly, Mr Cleary said he had told his business partner there was nothing to worry about.

--- Mr O'Kelly, in his evidence, said Mr Cleary had contacted him about the faxed document and had been distressed and concerned. He had been delighted to be told about the phone call received by Mr Cleary as it was only one of between 30 and 40 calls received by the O'Kelly Sutton company's clients.

About 25 to 30 clients and private individuals had told him they had received inquiries - all with American accents - and all the calls gave different "purposes".

Cross-examined by Mr Trainor, Mr O'Kelly said the first he heard about Ms Johnston's involvement in scientology was when she told him "it was great".

Mr O'Kelly said he formed the view that scientology was "hogwash". He had visited the church's Dublin mission. Asked what he was doing there, Mr O'Kelly said, because of his concern, he had gone in and did the personality test to which he gave random answers.

Church case hears of man making "noisy investigation" of plaintiff
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-02-05

A man photographed while making a "noisy investigation" of a woman who has sued the Church of Scientology was similar to a man in another photograph taken outside a meeting of Families Under Scientology Stress (FUSS), the High Court heard yesterday.

Mr Richard Woods was giving evidence in the continuing action by Ms Mary Johnston against the church and three members of its Dublin Mission - Mr John Keane, Mr Tom Cunningham and Mr Gerard Ryan. Ms Johnston, who operates a sports equipment centre at Westwood, Foxrock, Dublin, is suing for damages. She was involved with the church from 1990 to 1994.

Mr Woods told the court he and his wife were involved in a UK organisation, Escape, which was concerned since 1992 with helping people involved in scientology. They had helped abut 700 parents.

In 1994/95 he was attending a meeting of FUSS in London when he saw a man standing outside the door of the building with a clipboard and pen in his hand. He looked like a member of the Church of Scientology because of the way he dressed.

Because of litigation with the church lasting seven years, Mr Woods's solicitor had advised him to carry a camera and he had taken a photograph of the man, Mr Woods said. The man had said he was collecting names and addresses.

Mr Woods said the man in this photograph was obviously similar to the picture of a man who had been making a "noisy investigation" of Ms Johnston and was photographed at Westwood, Dublin, in February 2001.

When Mr Woods had suggested that the man was a member of the Church of Scientology, the man had asked: "What has my religion got to do with anything?"

Cross-examined by Mr Michael Collins SC, for the church, Mr Woods agreed that the fact the photograph had turned up in his home while Ms Johnston was visiting was like the work of a magician.

It had been in a shoe box but had been put into a drawer at his home, he said. His wife had got the photograph out after she had heard Ms Johnston talking about the man concerned and when the photograph was put on the table, Ms Johnston had said, "that is the man", according to Mr Woods.

Mr Woods also agreed with Mr Collins that he was engaged in a spiritual war against the forces of Satan which, he said, included the scientology religion.

Earlier, Mr Paul O'Kelly, a brother in-law of Ms Johnston, said he believed she had become almost fixated by scientology while she was involved with it. In continuing cross- examination, Mr O'Kelly, said that, in an ordinary situation with family or friends, she would have great difficulties.

In a family situation, with four or five people at dinner, Ms Johnston would suddenly become very belligerent about a neutral issue. Mr O'Kelly's wife and others present would feel very uncomfortable. She was increasingly ineffectual interacting with people.

Ms Johnston had subsequently agreed not to contact her former scientology associates but, having done so, she spoke of some distress about the nature of calls she was receiving.

Mr O'Kelly said one of the defendants, Mr Gerard Ryan, had contacted him by phone. Mr O'Kelly said he told Mr Ryan he had no business with him and asked Mr Ryan to leave his sister-in-law alone.

Mr O'Kelly said he had the impression Ms Johnston was behaving like somebody who was brainwashed...

Church's purification course unsafe - expert
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-02-06

A "purification rundown" course operated by the Church of Scientology was neither medically safe nor scientifically verified, the High Court was told yesterday.

Prof Michael Ryan, head of the pharmacology department at UCD, said he could not find any evidence to support the claims in the church's documents about the course.

To suggest it could get rid of radiation and toxic compounds was not supported by scientific facts, he said.

... Yesterday the court was told Ms Johnston had experienced a burning sensation as a result of participating in the purification rundown course and had been told this was a clearance of old sunburn.

Prof Ryan said there was no scientific evidence to support that contention.

Mr Michael Cush SC, for Ms Johnston, submitted that the claims made by the church in its documents concerning the purification course were false and the risks involved many and varied.

Prof Ryan said the claims made in the church's documentation were not scientifically verified, and the programme was not medically safe. ...

Church science 'basically rubbish', says doctor
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-02-07

The science behind the Church of Scientology was "basically rubbish", a doctor told the High Court yesterday.

Dr John Fleetwood, a general practitioner in the Blackrock/ Monkstown area of Dublin, told the court Ms Mary Johnnston, who operates a sports equipment shop at Westwood, Foxrock, Dublin, had attended him on October 29th, 1994. She was anxious and distressed.

Giving evidence in the continuing action by Ms Johnston (40), against the church and three members of its Dublin Mission, Dr Fleetwood said Ms Johnston was generally quite healthy but complained of a lot of headaches.

She was an ex-member of the Church of Scientology and he came to the conclusion that most of her problems were caused by membership of the church. There was nothing to indicate anything else. She was agitated and stressed in general.

He saw Ms Johnston again on November 15th 1994 and gave her some mild headache tablets. He held the same conclusion that day as to the cause of her headaches.

Cross-examined by Mr Michael Collins SC, for the church, he said Ms Johnston told him she was trying to leave the church and was under considerable pressure. She had also told him she was engaged in protests outside the church and was contemplating suing it.

Dr Fleetwood said he believed some of the church's programmes were a "sham" and he had no doubt her involvement in the church was instrumental in causing her stress and anxiety. He said the church did not let its adherents go without a fight. Ms Johnston's main problem was major headaches.

When it was suggested under further cross-examination that the founder of the church, Mr Ron Hubbard, claimed to be the son of God, Dr Fleetwood objected. He said the dianetics programme had been shown time and time again to be a sham.

Scientology case settled out of court
March 13, 2003

(17:03) A High Court action for damages by a Dublin sports shop owner against the Church of Scientology has ended after out of court talks.

The case taken by Mary Johnston was expected to last until May. However, Mr Justice Peart was told at lunchtime today that the case appeared to be settled.

No details of the settlement were disclosed but costs in the action are estimated to be around €2 million.

...The court heard 31 days of evidence and submissions before today's surprise settlement.

Psychologist says church appeared to use hypnosis
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-03-13

A woman who is suing the Church of Scientology appeared to have been hypnotised while undergoing an auditing session by a member of the church, a psychologist told the High Court yesterday. Ms Mary Johnston appeared to have been subjected to "very curious" and "not very good" therapy.

Dr Peter Naish, a chartered psychologist who has written extensively on hypnosis, said it was his view Ms Johnston was very susceptible to hypnosis.

... Earlier yesterday, Mr Michael Collins SC, for the church, concluded lengthy submissions to the effect that the court should not hear the evidence of Dr Naish. Mr Justice Peart held the evidence was admissible. To exclude it would potentially render an injustice to Ms Johnston which outweighed any possible prejudice to the defence, he said.

Beginning his evidence, Dr Naish told Mr Michael Cush SC, for Ms Johnston, of his qualifications, including a doctorate in experimental psychology from Oxford University. He was now engaged in research work for the British Ministry of Defence, lecturing in cognitive psychology for the Open University and providing therapy at Reading Clinic.

He had a particular interest in hypnosis and was one of the few psychologists in England with extensive experience in that area.

Dr Naish said he had no contact with Scientology prior to the case. He had heard most of Ms Johnston's testimony and read the transcripts of the case and Scientology books and documents.

Asked about hypnosis, he said there was nothing intrinsically harmful in the practice per se. However, when it was used as a vehicle for some kind of therapy, the person using it must be able to deal with the subject's reactions. There was a concern that if a subject became distressed, the hypnotist might retraumatise them. Not all people were susceptible to hypnosis. In his view, Ms Johnston was highly susceptible.

Mr Cush read extracts from Dianetics - The Modern Science of Mental Health, by the founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, and also outlined extracts from Ms Johnston's evidence to the court.

He said the extracts from Dianetics indicated that what was involved in auditing was hypnosis. It appeared hypnosis was being used as a vehicle and that material was being developed in an emotional context.

Scientology case settled out of court
Source: Irish Times
Publication date: 2003-03-14

The long-running action for damages by a woman against the Church of Scientology and three of its members came to a dramatic end at the High Court yesterday when the judge was told the case "appears to be settled". The costs of the action could amount to E2 million.
The surprise development came on the 31st day of the case taken by Dundalk-born Ms Mary Johnston, who was involved with the church from 1992 to 1994.

A chartered psychologist, Dr Peter Naish, was about to resume his evidence, which had criticised the nature of auditing sessions which Ms Johnston underwent with one of the defendants, Mr Tom Cunningham, when Mr Michael Cush SC, for Ms Johnston, asked Mr Justice Peart for time. Talks then got under way between the sides and at 1.20 p.m., Mr Cush told the judge that he and Mr Michael Collins SC, for the church, "are delighted to tell you the case appears to be settled".

... No settlement details were disclosed to the court and neither party would comment afterwards. Ms Johnston, who attended every day of the case, said she could not comment and similar statements were made by church representatives. It is believed the settlement involves a strict confidentiality clause.

The proceedings were taken by Ms Johnston (40), who operates a sports equipment centre at Westwood, Foxrock, Dublin, and is a former interprovincial squash player for Leinster, against the church and Mr John Keane, described as a "mission holder", Mr Tom Cunningham and Mr Gerard Ryan. She alleged conspiracy, misrepresentation and breach of constitutional rights. She also alleged deliberate infliction of emotional harm. The defendants denied the claims.

... Opening the case for Ms Johnston, Mr Sen Ryan SC claimed she suffered a personality change after she was "sucked into the grasp" of the church and subjected to mind-control techniques. He claimed she reluctantly signed up for a number of courses, including a "purification run-down" course. The starting point for her entry into the church was a personality test which, he argued, was not a proper psychological test.

He also claimed Ms Johnston was trained to resist her family and, when she tried to leave, there were efforts to silence and intimidate her and members of her family. It was alleged Ms Johnston suffered psychological and psychiatric injuries.

... During her evidence, Ms Johnston said she began auditing sessions with Mr Cunnigham in late 1991 and these continued into 1992. She became very distressed during one session in January 1992 and had recounted an event that no one else knew about - that she had been pregnant and had had an abortion. After the auditing, issues regarding abortion were in her head all the time. It was as if she had "opened a Pandora's box and I could not shut it".

She said that after she underwent a Standard Oxford Capacity Analysis Test, comprised of 200 questions, Mr Keane went through it with her and basically told her she was in pretty poor shape and needed some professional Dianetic auditing. She said Mr Keane told her there would be a price. She resigned from the church in May 1994.

In cross-examination, Ms Johnston said her criticism of scientologists was based on things that had happened to her and was levelled against the individual scientologists who did what she claimed they did. She did not criticise scientologists in general.

Her issue was with the coercive and manipulative techniques devised by the founder, L. Ron Hubbard, and used in pursuit of the church's activities, she said. Mr Hubbard had written that anyone who was antagonistic to Scientology may be tricked, sued, lied to, cheated or destroyed.

The case entered a different phase earlier this month with evidence from Prof Stephen Alan Kent, a sociologist, and, this week, from Dr Naish. Mr Michael Collins SC, for the church, objected to the admissibility of evidence from those professionals.

... In his evidence, Dr Naish said material from the book Dianetics - The Modern Science of Mental Health, by L. Ron Hubbard, and Ms Johnston's account of her auditing experience indicated that, in Ms Johnston's first auditing session, hypnosis was being used as a therapy. In written submissions, the church denied any use of hypnosis, trance techniques or drugs during auditing and said it disapproved of hypnosis.