Clearwater



The St. Petersburg Times reported on August 11th that Scientologist

investors plan to buy land from Calvary Baptist Church in downtown

Clearwater, Florida.



"An investor from Mexico has inked a deal to buy two Cleveland Street

buildings and a parking lot from Calvary Baptist Church, a move that would

consolidate nearly two city blocks and set the stage for sweeping

redevelopment downtown. Elias Jaffif will pay $1.59-million for .84-acres

in the 400 block of Cleveland Street, according to church officials. The

property includes a parking lot north of the buildings with access from

Laura Street.



"The investors, who noticed the properties while visiting Clearwater for

Church of Scientology services, have discussed developing some mixed uses

in a high-rise: perhaps condos and hotel rooms atop a parking garage and

street-level stores. There also has been talk of a movie theater.

'Obviously that's the crown jewel of downtown, and they're going to do the

best thing for downtown and the best thing for their investors,' said Tom

Wright. 'What that is, is absolutely not fixed.'



"Calvary Baptist is selling its downtown holdings in preparation for a

move across town to a new complex at McMullen-Booth Road and Drew Street.

The property under contract includes roughly 30,000 square feet of meeting

and storage space in buildings at 410, 418 and 420 Cleveland. The

buildings now house Calvary Baptist's Heartline and singles ministries."



Message-ID: 1060596934.921916@newshost01.voicenet.com





Denmark



The Copenhagen Post reported on August 8th on the case of a French girl

who hoped to move to Copenhagen to attend a Scientology school there.



"A French court ruling, banning a 14-year-old girl from traveling to

Denmark to enroll at the Copenhagen Scientology school, could turn into a

test case against France's hard line efforts to outlaw the controversial

sect. When a judge in Nantes imposed the travel-ban on 14-year-old Marion

Chauchreau in July, at the request of the girl's concerned aunt and

grandmother, the case turned into a 'cause celebre' in the French media

because the girl's mother has been a member of Scientology since 1979, her

brother is a teacher at a Scientology school and the girl herself has

grown up within the confines of the sect since birth.



"Local social authorities, backed by the court's ruling, have launched a

full-scale investigation into the young girl's social, psychological, and

psychiatric well-being, before making a final decision on the potential

danger of her joining the school in Copenhagen. French legal experts have

warned that if the investigation concludes that Marion hasn't been

manipulated by Scientology, it will be a severe blow to the French

authorities' consistent hard-line opposition to the sect. However, if

medical and mental evaluations find her to be brainwashed, the 'Marion

affairre' could become the legal catalyst desired by authorities to

implement a total ban on Scientology in France. The investigation is

expected to take at least six-months."



Message-ID: 9v59jv0jvn0vf8rgo9kvebb9vc0dr3ov1g@4ax.com





Dianetics



The Wichita Eagle reported on August 12th that Scientology is offering a

reward, seeking early writings by L. Ron Hubbard in Wichita, Kansas.



"Half a century ago, L. Ron Hubbard produced some of his earliest writings

on Dianetics in Wichita. Now the Church of Scientology, which Hubbard

founded, is seeking those papers. Church officials, who are offering a

$5,000 reward, hope they might be tucked away in a Wichita attic or

basement.



"Philip McComish, manager and partner of Watermark West-Rare Books, said

he wasn't surprised to see an ad in Monday's Wichita Eagle asking about

the papers. 'When I first opened the rare books shop in the 1980s, I'd get

a call about once a month wanting to know if I had any Scientology letters

or documents,' he said. McComish said he has never come across any. 'I

think these documents are probably gone,' he said. 'They were probably

piles of 8 1/2-by-11-inch papers sitting in boxes in someone's attic. The

house changed hands a couple of times and the boxes got landfilled.'



"The ad in Monday's paper said that Hubbard, the author of 'Dianetics: The

Modern Science of Mental Health,' lived at 910 N. Yale in 1951 and 1952.

While in Wichita, he gave more than 140 lectures at the Hubbard Dianetics

Foundation and wrote several books on Dianetics.



"An Eagle story in March 1995 indicated that by 1952, Hubbard was seeking

to leave Wichita. His second marriage had ended in divorce, and his

company had gone bankrupt. When he left in March 1952, Hubbard left

instructions with his housekeeper to ship his personal papers and

manuscripts to Phoenix. For some reason, those items never arrived."



Message-ID: 1060682828.628701@newshost01.voicenet.com





France



Agence France Presse reported on August 7th that a Scientologist has been

arrested for burning a student in an attempt to develop his healing

abilities.



"A 21 year-old was imprisoned Wednesday evening for 'torture and acts of

cruelty' by an examining magistrate for having burned a teenager in order

to transmit the capacity to him to cure. The young man, a follower of the

Church of Scientology, had involved the 16-year old girl and two friends,

also minors, in Vigneux-on-Seine.



"He inflicted serious burns with the girl, marking her on the arms and in

the back with burning cigarettes and on her calves with a heated knife

under the pretext of transmit the capacity to him to cure and influence

the course of its life. The father of the teenager described her as

fragile psychologically. The young man and his two friends were placed in

police custody."



Message-ID: 3f3279ff$0$6230$626a54ce@news.free.fr





Switzerland



Vendredi reported on August 8th that a Scientology school in Littau,

Switzerland has been denied permission to open.



"A school whose teaching principal is part of the Church of Scientology

does not have 'necessary credibility,' according to the district of

Lucerne.  It has refused to reopen the establishment in Littau.  The

establishment was closed at the end of July by cantonal authorities. The

director, a follower of Scientology, had resigned his post."



Message-ID: 3e471c14.0308071520.3d369983@posting.google.com





Lisa McPherson



The St. Petersburg Times reported on August 13th that the trial in the

breach of contract case against the estate of Lisa McPherson has begun in

Clearwater, Florida.



"For the first time in Pinellas County, a jury has been convened to

consider a case involving the Church of Scientology. The case is a complex

civil matter, with the church claiming it was the victim of a breach of

contract. As the trial began Tuesday, the church fielded a legal team of

nine lawyers and legal assistants. Boxes of their legal documents filled

most of the back row of the courtroom.



"On the other side was attorney Ken Dandar, represented by Luke Lirot,

longtime attorney for nude-dance club operator Joe Redner. The case is an

offshoot of the wrongful death lawsuit against the church by the estate of

Lisa McPherson, a Scientologist who died in 1995 after 17 days in the care

of the church, whose spiritual headquarters is in downtown Clearwater.



"Picking a jury proved difficult. Under questioning, some in the jury pool

referred to Scientology as a cult - 'No offense,' several told the

church's legal team. Others questioned whether it should be considered a

religion and admitted they doubted they could be impartial. Several

potential jurors said they overheard people in the jury pool making

disparaging comments about Scientology as they waited in the halls to be

interviewed. But after nearly two days, six jurors and an alternate were

culled from a pool of 50 people, and the jury was sworn in Tuesday

afternoon.



"In his opening statement, Scientology's lead attorney, Samuel Rosen,

argued the wrongful death case was being used as a springboard to attack

all of Scientology. Rosen contended Robert Minton, a wealthy hard-line

critic of Scientology, persuaded Dandar to use the lawsuit to 'nail the

cult's ass to the floor.' To that end, Rosen argues, Dandar added top

church officials, including the church's worldwide leader, David

Miscavige, as defendants in the wrongful death suit. In exchange, Rosen

said, Minton paid Dandar more than $2-million.



"A month after Dandar filed the motion to add the church leaders as

defendants, a judge denied it, ruling the motion directly violated a

written agreement Dandar made with church attorneys two years earlier. The

church sued Dandar, his law firm and the McPherson estate, seeking

attorneys' fees and punitive damages. Pinellas-Pasco Judge W. Douglas

Baird concluded the estate had breached the contract. At issue now is how

much the church is owed in damages.



"The church tapped significant legal resources, including four law firms,

and spent more than $50,000 to defeat Dandar's attempt to add church

leaders to the wrongful death suit. The church wants to be reimbursed that

$50,000 plus 'a significant amount' in punitive damages, Rosen said.



"Dandar's attorney, Lirot, argued Tuesday that Dandar intended to pursue

church leaders in the wrongful death lawsuit long before he ever met

Minton. He said there was no conspiracy to change the case to accommodate

Minton's aims. In his opening statement, Lirot argued the church is owed

no more than $2,500 in legal fees."



Message-ID: 1060769264.563300@newshost01.voicenet.com





Protest Summary



Wes Fager protested against Scientology at the Fort Harrison Hotel in

Clearwater, Florida on July 27th.



"Wesley Fager staged a one-man demonstration against Scientology's east

coast headquarters in occupied Clearwater, Florida. His hastily made

banner reads L. Ron Hubbard is a Liar! The protest started at the side

entrance, talking to a space cadet, asking her if he was at the Coast

Guard Academy or something because everyone was wearing naval uniforms.

She told him he was at the Church of Scientology and if he had some time

maybe she could arrange a tour.



"Wesley then positioned himself at the main entrance where his banner was

unfurled. Several cars passed and gave Wesley a thumbs up. Then he walked

to the end of the building and turned back onto the side street,

approached the side entrance and held his banner for those in the

courtyard to see. The clams in the beehive just stared.  A man appeared

and got in Wesley's face screaming at him to get off their property.

Wesley calmly stated that he was an American citizen exercising his

Constitutional right to free speech. At that the guard started walking

down the street, pointing and ordered Mr. Fager to follow him, at which

point Mr. Fager answered, 'I'm not following you anywhere.' At that point

the guard screamed that he was calling the police. As Wesley was walking

away to leave, a Clearwater police car passed him and his sign without

incident."



Message-ID: 1060164862.484202@newshost02.voicenet.com





John Travolta



ITV reported on August 15th that John Travolta may purchase a Scottish

castle, possibly as a new Scientology center.



"John Travolta's name has been linked with the purchase of a Scottish

castle. The American film star is rumoured to have viewed Lee Castle in

South Lanarkshire with a mind to buying it. There is speculation that he

wants to turn the historic building into a centre for Scientology.



"Lee Castle dates back to the 13th century and one of its Lairds was

honoured for his part in in returning Robert the Bruce's heart to

Scotland. The property boasts 14 bedrooms, a ballroom and a swimming pool.

It stands in extensive grounds with three themed gardens, including a

Japanese garden."



Message-ID: 1060942328.71430@newshost02.voicenet.com





Tom Cruise



The St. Petersburg Times reported on August 7th that Scientology celebrity

Tom Cruise lunched with Tampa, Florida politicians, possibly in connection

with Scientology's recent expansion in that city.



"Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio thought Tom Cruise, superstar and prominent

Scientologist, just wanted to hang with her and her husband last May.

Their dinner at a political consultant's house in Clearwater was just a

gathering among friends, Iorio said. 'What would Tom Cruise be lobbying me

about?' Iorio said.



"For starters, try the Church of Scientology's plans for expansion in

Tampa. Indeed, the church has hired a lobbyist to represent its interests

before city government. The church needs city approval to use its center

on Habana Avenue for some church purposes.



"Lobbyist Todd Pressman, who filled out a lobbyist registration form to

report a meeting with city officials on the project, said he doesn't

consider his work lobbying. 'That's not really lobbying,' Pressman said.

'Obviously, we have to have interaction with those officials for obvious

reasons.' He said city officials aren't treating the church differently

from any other property owner."



Message-ID: 3e471c14.0308071524.f06ef0c@posting.google.com