Scientology leader and Sea Org captain David Miscavige
We have yet another surprising turn in Monique Rathbun’s harassment lawsuit against the Church of Scientology and its leader, David Miscavige.
Yesterday, Monique filed for sanctions against Scientology for a “pattern of intentional abuse” during the discovery process of the lawsuit. Scientology has stonewalled the process, Monique charges, because it’s trying to perpetuate a falsehood — that Miscavige is a refined character who doesn’t concern himself with such things as retaliating against critics and has had no connection to the harassment going on in Texas, where the Rathbuns live.
In order to prove that Miscavige actually micromanages Scientology’s legendary retaliation campaigns, Monique yesterday filed stunning information — text messages sent in 2007 between Miscavige and two of his top former spokesmen, Tommy Davis and Mike Rinder. In those texts, Miscavige not only comes across as obsessed with tracking a BBC journalist, John Sweeney, but berates his underlings with foul language in a way that doesn’t fit his self-professed image as a detached, ecclesiastical leader.
Monique filed her lawsuit in August after what she says were four years of harassment caused by Scientology. She was never a church member herself, but her husband, Mark “Marty” Rathbun, was once the church’s second-highest-ranking official, working directly for Miscavige. Marty defected in 2004 and then began speaking critically about his former boss with a well-read blog in 2009. That brought extraordinary attention upon the Rathbuns in the form of private investigators chasing them around the Corpus Christi area, where they lived, culminating in a bizarre, 199-day siege of their home by a strange intimidation squad that called themselves “Squirrel Busters.”
Scientology has taken the surprising step of admitting to sending and financing the Squirrel Busters and also hiring the other private investigators who not only surveilled the Rathbuns in their Corpus Christi-area home but also in their new home outside San Antonio. Why is Scientology admitting to that bizarre behavior? Because Miscavige himself wants out of the lawsuit. He filed a “special appearance,” arguing that he has never done any business in Texas and should be let out of the suit on jurisdictional grounds. Since then, the Scientology entities that are defendants in the lawsuit have been working hard to take the blame for the spying and harassment on the Rathbuns while claiming that a religious leader like Miscavige would never concern himself with something as distasteful as a dispute with Scientology detractors.
For a couple of months, Monique’s legal team has been attempting to gather testimony and documents which would prove that Miscavige was untruthful when he made a sworn declaration about having no connection to Texas, and also to show that Miscavige is actually obsessed with former members and other critics of Scientology. But the church, Monique says, is unfairly keeping her from the information she’s asked for.
“She has been met with obstruction, evasion, possible spoliation of evidence, and outright perjury. The Defendants’ pattern of discovery abuse is intentional and merits sanctions to secure their compliance with the rules,” her motion says. Scientology has failed to produce even a single operational document from the years of harassment the Rathbuns have experienced — even though Scientology is a record-obsessed organization.
The motion quotes from several depositions that have been taken in the case — some of which we posted Thursday afternoon.
But the most striking new information in the new motion concerns a well-known set of events that happened in 2007. That year, BBC journalist John Sweeney came to the US to film a documentary about Scientology for the program Panorama.
Scientology took Sweeney’s project very seriously. At the time, Tommy Davis had become the church’s chief spokesman. The good-looking son of actress Anne Archer, he was in his mid-30s and competent, but excitable. Miscavige was concerned about whether Davis could handle Sweeney, so he pulled Mike Rinder out of “the Hole” — a bizarre, harsh office-prison in California where Miscavige kept several dozen executives who had fallen from favor. Rinder had long been a top executive who had run the Office of Special Affairs — Scientology’s intelligence operation, which also handled public relations. Coming straight from the prison — where he’d been living on “slop” for more than a year — Rinder appeared shockingly gaunt in Sweeney’s footage.
In a sworn statement filed with Monique’s motion, Rinder says he and Davis were given clear instructions — to “handle” Sweeney and sabotage his documentary while always making it look like Miscavige himself wasn’t involved.
“Tommy Davis and I were instructed to give the BBC the impression that Mr. Miscavige was far too important and busy to be concerned with the BBC. Yet, virtually every utterance we made to the BBC was dictated by Miscavige,” Rinder writes.
A year ago, Sweeney published a book about his experience making that documentary. The book, The Church of Fear: Inside the Weird World of Scientology, described Sweeney’s experiences being tailed and harassed by Rinder and Davis while he made his film. A highlight of the book was a series of electronic communications — text messages — between Rinder, Davis, and Miscavige, which Sweeney had obtained.
Now, Rinder is making public that he not only gave Sweeney those texts, but that he also supplied them to the FBI. After dealing with the Sweeney documentary, Rinder made his own escape from Scientology in London in June 2007. Some months later, in Denver, he discovered that he still had a Blackberry he used while handling the BBC project. He took out the memory card, and using a computer found on it some of the texts from that time.
In 2010 I was contacted by the FBI concerning an investigation they were conducting into the church of Scientology centered on human trafficking. At their request, I turned over everything I had concerning my communications with Miscavige. I kept a copy for myself. I subsequently made another copy and gave to John Sweeney at the BBC.
And now, he’s submitted them with his sworn declaration in Monique Rathbun’s lawsuit, and we have them below. They demonstrate quite clearly that Miscavige is far from a detached, ecclesiastical leader who doesn’t concern himself with Scientology’s well known harassment of journalists. In fact, he is seen directing every step of the operation against Sweeney at the same time that he berated and belittled his employees.
Always, however, his communications were sent under the name “Lou,” Rinder explains.
“Lou” refers to Laurisse Henley-Smith Stuckenbrock. Lou held the post of COB Communicator. Her job was to shadow Miscavige everywhere he went, filter all communications to and from him and to relay Miscavige’s instructions as if they were her own on matters where Miscavige did not want to leave a paper trail of his involvement….Laurisse attempted to keep the messages in her voice, so as to protect the record from direct Miscavige involvement. But, because of the tremendous velocity and volume and franticness with which the micro management was occurring, she sometimes slipped and referred to Miscavige in the first person…[Lou] commonly had 3 phones with her at all times. Her ‘Nextel’ for direct-connect walkie-talkie communications to anyone in the US with another ‘Nextel’ phone, her ‘Blackberry’ and Miscavige’s Blackberry. Miscavige used his Blackberry to speak to Tom Cruise and other ‘important people’ not in the Sea Org.
So here’s what transpired between Rinder, Davis, and Miscavige — for clarity, we’ve marked texts from “Lou” as “Lou/DM.”
In March 2007 Sweeney was in Clearwater, Florida interviewing a local critic who often picketed Scientology’s facilities there, a man named Shawn Lonsdale. He also interviewed a couple of ex-Scientologists. As they had been instructed, Mike Rinder and Tommy Davis were tracking Sweeney’s movements, and Tommy confronted him at his Clearwater hotel one night. Tommy then wrote up a lengthy description of that encounter. The next set of texts show Tommy and Rinder scrambling as Sweeney left Clearwater for California. The texts from “Lou” show that Miscavige kept a tight watch on every movement. (For clarity, we’ve removed subject headings and other header info, which is complete in the court filing itself. Otherwise the spelling is from the original texts. Explanatory notes in brackets are ours.)
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 18, 2007
Dear Sir I am now on Blackberry and saw the cc you sent. They are going to SFO [San Francisco] not LV [Las Vegas]. TD [Tommy Davis] is enroute now to SFO and I am going at 10pm and will know where they go. I am getting the debriefs put together and overall planning done in coordination with Bob and OSAI [Office of Special Affairs International]. ML [Much Love], Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 18, 2007
Why is Tommy going to SFO? Areb’t they going to say you are following them. Are you this fing nuts (beyond just sp [suppressive])? Please clarify. Please tell me he’s not on their plane!
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 18, 2007
Dear Sir He is definitely not on the same flight. He is going via Chicago to Oakland as the only available flight. There is no plan to do anything with them but to be available there in case (there may be internet chat on who they see) or they may try to go to one of the orgs there as we showed them SFO, SNC [Stevens Creek] and Gatos [Los Gatos]. If not, then it is easy to get down to LA. ML, Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 18, 2007
Thank you.
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 19, 2007
Well. Anything?
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 19, 2007
Dear Sir Nothing yet. My plane just landed in SFO. They arrive at 0130. TD arrives at 0900. Wont know anything other than where theyre staying until morning. ML, Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 19, 2007
What are you going to do? Act like you “guessed” they were there? Or, if you understand TD acronyms, BT?
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 19, 2007
Dear Sir. I am not planning to BT. Someone is speaking to them to find out their plans and whoever they plan on talking to is likely to say something on the internet thst wld become public knowledge. And of course if they show up at an org this willbe known. No plan to contact them untll we have overt data. Will have moe data when they arrive. ML, Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 19, 2007
Thank you. You realize this hasd gone totally out of control and you and Tommy have created the usual out of control sit [situation] — right down to Tommy wanting to ignore everything the boss said and just say “what’s happening” (the ballroom). The boss view is that he spent 20 years doing this so others could get tech and orgs show on the rails and they did zero. And you thought the battles were the game, giving it all to him. He’s not going to do it anymore as nobody will go free and there will be no orgs. Your contribution to LrHs [L. Ron Hubbard's] birthday (a5 tommys) was to enturbulate [cause upset]. Period. He had a month to work on videos and refused it. He is you.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 19, 2007
Dear Sir — I totally realize this and intend to deal with this so it doesnt create further enturbulation. I know we did nothing on March 13 [Hubbard's birthday] and that this is the continuing treason. The people arrived sfo and drove to Berkeley and are in on on hotel and say they plan to interview two people tomorrow but we dont know their names yet though suspect one is the woman who stirred uo the SFO Chronicle earlier about NN [Narconon] in thhe schools as she lives nearby and was on on student of Margaret Singer. We have the DAs ['Dead Agent' packs -- compromising information dug up by private investigators] on her and Singer. We will ensure the orgs are briefed on them possibly trying to come in. TD arrives at 11am and will then have the full plan in coordination with Bob who is moving forward in UK. ML, Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 19, 2007
Thanks. Still means nothing and I don’t know why TD [Tommy Davis] would take until 11 to get across country and why you are in sfo except if they try to ambush org (but org could have been briefed and told to chuck them) if they showed up. But that’s my dub in as you and TD just are dangerous environ and REFUSE to give specifics (like maybe there is a reason you are there?)
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 19, 2007
Dear Sir. THere were no other available flights and they had a 6hr wait In chicago. The original reason for going to sfo was to be there if we needed to confront them if needed. We did not know what their plans were. We now know they are planning to do two interviews today and catch a flight to la tomorrow morning. They have been meeting with bruce hines this morning. We are leaving people here to track their activities. The org DSAs have been briefed as well and are ready to handle them if they show up. we are going to la to prepare for them and get our complaint to the bbc prepared and coordinated with walsh and uk counsel as they are way out of line. We have a 2:45 flight. ML, Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 19, 2007
Tks. I hope they have all the dope on Hines. What’s so bad is none of these people know anything happening anywhere in PT in the church.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 19, 2007
Dear Sir, we have the da ['Dead Agent' pack] on hines and will get this to sweeney as he took him in front of sfo org to shoot shots of him so hines involvement is now overtly known. Clearly they are only interested in people who have allegations to make and no actual data and this is part of his gross bias. We are in LA and now going through the transcripts of the statements made by js [John Sweeney] when he was confronted by tommy at the plant city opening and when he was interviewing shawn lonsdale. I have never seen so many overtly bigoted and biased statements made by a reporter and this is going to be his undoing. He repeatedly says “people say you are a brainwashing cult” and on a number of occasions forgets the “people say”. He is very arrogant and tries to defend lonsdale with “what you do in the bedroom is your busines and how does that make you unqualified to comment on scn?” Omitting the fact he was never a scn and that his lewd and lascivious behavior was in a public bathroom with an undercover cop. There are many other examples. We are pulling every bigoted statement he has made and putting this into a letter to the bbc as it is totally outrageous. He has tried to turn everything on its head, like saying we want to prevent them from interviewing anyone because we tell them that the few people they have dug out of the woodwork are unreliable, so therefore we are trying to stop him from reporting anything. Meanwhile any effort we make to Provide him with data is just “pr” to get him to make a promotional video. He got rattled by tommy and especially when he said he was a bigot for calling scn a cult and accusing tommy of being brainwshed and saying anything tommy or scientologists say is unreliable and doesn’t stand up as we are all brainwashed. This is the button we are going to hit heavily with the boradcasting authorities as repect of religion is the most stringent standard they have to follow. We have video footage that will make clear how outrageous he is and bob has spoken to several ppl who have been screwed by js before (including the barclay brothers (int financiers who sued him for criminal libel and won and js joked abt this with lonsdale abt how they both hv crim records). We are going to lay out exactly how to further mess up his plans on wednesday as he expects us to refuse to show him anything. But we can force him to shoot our facilities. We can also line up interviews that he will likely refuse (on principal he is saying that anything we give him is just our propaganda) and we will use that against him. If he does interview them them they will da his lines — people like lee baca [Los Angeles County Sheriff], xavier becerra [US Congressman], bill hosten (who was in the mar 13 ol video). We are getting these lined up. We are also getting melanie lekas prepared (she is the sister of the ex-scngst JS interviewed named mike henderson who can speak for the 20 other members of the family who are winning scnists.) We are putting this together at osai [Office of Special Affairs International] and will send a complete report at the end of the nite as I know you hve only been getting bits and pieces on blackberry. This is ok ML Mike
…
After a stop in the Bay Area, Sweeney made his way to Southern California, where Scientology has several major facilities. Miscavige himself arrived in town, and asked if there were places to avoid so he wouldn’t run into Sweeney. Also, he wanted to know if Rinder and Davis had managed to compromise him yet. Rinder, trying to give Miscavige good news, says that Sweeney had been roughed up by celebrities the church had arranged for him to interview.
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder, Tommy Davis
Mar 21, 2007
We are in LA now, are there any areas we should avoid? And is this guy’s body now many new (torn worn to wall) assholes?
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 21, 2007
Dear Sir. They are staying in best western hotel on sunset at sunset plaza. They definitely have many new assholes and more to come tmro as just finished today and goiing to do juliette [Lewis], cchr, david root tmro. Kirstie [Alley], anne [Archer], leah [Remini], bobby wiggins, bob adams, michael duff, megan shields all went after him today. He was repeatedly exposed as a bigot and tabloid bottomfeeder. Anne and kirstie in particular went for the jugular on his b ias. He was demolished on NN [Narconon] and didnt know how to handle the facts when confronted with them as had been relying on assertion that heroin doesnt lodge in fatty tissues. We are right now briefing CCHR ppl for tmro. They headed west on sunset from their hotel. ML, Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder Cc: Tommy Davis
Mar 21, 2007
Thanks. The only specific you give is on Heroin in fatty tissue. Screw that. Not that it doesn’t, but people get off drugs!!!!!!!! I guess he doesn’t care about that???? Were these ass rippings on camera? What did he think when Anne [Archer] went after him for saying her son is brainwashed. Any other details you Generality infested CSMF? [cock-sucking motherfucker]
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM, Tommy Davis
Dear Sir. Every person said NN [Narconon] was saving lives and gave specific examples and made the point that this is what matters and screw his allegations. He cld not deal with this and moved onto sg else. He got flustered when anne [Archer] said he was a bigot and had accused her son [Tommy Davis] of being brainwashed. he even said that ‘some ppl say u (anne) r brainwashed’ (like allscnists are) as she was going after him and she laughed in his face and told him he had destroyed her opinion of the BBC by being a tabloid reporter and told him she knew he wld not include anything positive because he had a preplanned agenda and was a bigot. He was v upset and tried to argue with her that he isnt a bigot. Kirstie [Alley] derided him and told him he was attempting to use the same tactics as were used to spread lies and create fear in the middle of the last century abt the jews with wild and untrue allegations abt them and he was irresponsible and a bigot. He was upset by Kirstie making him look like an idiot with his qs as she overtly mocked his accent and mimicked him. He brought up OT data with them and they told him they had never heard any such thing he was talking about and that he was offensive and attempting to ridicule the relgion with stories he gets off the internet and mocked him abt his “research” and how he refuses to actually find out what scn is because he obviously doesnt want to know. Leah [Remini] disarmed him entirely as she was very polite, calling him “honey” and “darlin” and told him he shld find out what scn is bfr asking stupid qs and making himself look foolish. He asked several of them abt how much money they spent on scn and each answered in their own way that they support scn as much as they can due to forward our pgms that help ppl. He asked anne, kirstie and leah why we were afraid of critics in general and why wld david miscavige be afraid of being interviewed by the BBC. This was stuck up his ass that this was ridiculous and that cob fear’s nothing and is extremely busy and why wld he even waste his time being interviewed by a tabloid reporter and bigot like him. And that cob has better things to do and sweeney has a high opinion of himself that he wld even warrant an interview with cob [David Miscavige]. Tommy and i also both stuck up his ass that he snuck around at the opening in London and refused to be polite and you were right there and then spoketo the press and others afterwards and he blew it. That he had left ruth eckerd bythe time the event was done and you said you had 15 mins to see him. He also had the JT [John Travolta] interview stuck up his ass and then backpeddled and said he wld fly back to the US to interview him if he cld. Everything was recorded on 3 cameras of ours and he kept bringing this up as it clearly impinged on him. At one point his producer asked if we were shooting them to make our own pgm and we told him we were. That resulted in Sweeney, Sarah and the cameraman all going into the bathroom together to talk (which we have on. Video with tommy at the door asking why they are hiding in the bathroom together). Throughout the day we hammered him with the majority of the 120+ questions we had put together and he was on camera stuttering or attempting to answer them but stepping on his foot each time and was cornered into admitting that scientologists word doesnt count for anything because we are all brainwashed. Each of the guys he interviewed were eloquent and didnt back down at all and were quite dissmissive and appropriately abusive of him and pointed out his lack of objectivity and bias and bigotry. Anne told him that in all her years as a huiman rights activist fighting for the rights of freedom of thought and religion never in her life wld she have imagined that those rights would be being underminded by the bbc which is what he was doing. Tommy also nailed him for calling a sex perv like shawnm lonsdale his “friend” and joking that they both have criminal records in common and chauffering him around Cw [Clearwater, Florida] yet he sits down with anne, one of the most respected actresses in the world and academy award nominated and 20 year hman rights activist and proceeds to say the most vile and disgusting things to her and say she is brainwashed yet he befriends a sex perv criminal and treats him like a friend. He didnt know what to do with this and he had no answer for it nor did he even try to deny it. Kirstie, bobby and megan all also said that someone wld only criticize narconon or any drug rehab program if they themselves wanted people to be on drugs. Bobby got sweeney talking so much that he told bobby that he is an alcoholic and does himself abuse alcohol and that it is a problem for him. Bobby told him how narconon cld help him with that. Everyone was very rough with him but very rational and just tore up every one of his arguments and did not let him get away with anything. We hv CCHR ppl ready to rip on him and especially debunk brainwashing and jam it to him on who really does the brainwashing and how he better knock off being so cavalier in using the term because of what it actually is (torture and one of the most heinous evil things that can be done to another human being). Also juliette [Lewis] will go off on him about narconon and that she wld be dead if it wasnt for the program and how dare he criticize it. Tommy will keep up with the rest of the qs tmro and not let up on him at all. He got worn down and by the end of the day was being quite civil to michael duff, Bob Adams and Bobby Wiggins. We will be on full assault again tmro as we are getting a lot of footage to use to destroy him with as now he has articulate ppl telling him his allegations are lies and he is a bigot and giving tons of data on how scn has helped them and others and what it really is.
…
Sweeney got a tour of Scientology’s Los Angeles major complex in what was the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital (on “LRH Way”).
To: Lou/DM, Tommy Davis
From: Mike Rinder
Dear Sir. Tour of LRH Way went smoothly, packed with public. Walked thru and showed then crserooms, bookstore and bookstore system. They commented on how many ppl were there. This was opportunity to agaoin put on video that they had refused to tour flag. (Though they did say they definitely plan to go to NN Hastings) when it was stuck up their ass again abt not going to Arrowhead. David Root debunked BBC data on NN. JS v impressed by him as worked in royal airforce and commended by Queen and he says NN is best pgm he has ever seen and critics of it are pro drug. JS says he will have to go back and research his sources because he has conflicting info. Juliette [Lewis] told him he was ridiculous for alleging brainwashing and how independent she is and that NN is absolutely the solution to drugs and it handled her life. That LRH [L. Ron Hubbard] is a f…ing genius and she wants to let the world know ppl can make up their own minds. Sweeney was subdued with her. She talked abt how great Scn is. Fred Shaw told him he was a Christian minister that studies and uses Scn to help his community and how its made him saner and more able to communicate. He asked hiom whether he had met david miscavige and whether he believed the allegations that hre is a bully. Fred said he was “cool” and one of the nicest ppl he had ever met and had gone out of his way to help him. He asked him if he thought scnists are brainwashed and he said this is ridiculous and that he has studied scnand he isnt brainwashed. They saiod they have to leave and cld not interview Tommy todayand they cannot do it tmro but will do so on Sat morning and plan to leave Sat. They wld not tell us where they are going tmro and Tommy told them they cld save trouble as we cld set things up for them if they plan to going to anuy church facilities (now if they show up at Gold there will be no issue of not letting them in and will be able to say they didnt even ask for this, along with everything else. They asked 5 times when our documentary is going to be done which we no answered. They brought up again how David Miscavige has refused to be interviewed and ‘respond to allegations’ and that it must mean he is in fear. he was hammered hard on this and London and Ruth Eckerd were both stuck up his ass. He tried to argue that nothing was broadxast so it wasnt a real interview and if he had 15 mins then maybe he does now and they wld go anywhere to do it and wld the msg be relayed to hoim that thye were asking again. Tommy said he had ezplained yr schedule and other interview rqsts from thbe likes of larry king that precede sweeney’s and that cob is a man of his word and that he wld honor those requests in the order received. Tommy said he wld relay the request. Sweeney really pushed this and said he wanted to do interview and hv mr. Miscavige respond toallegations that he is a bully and has assaulted ppl and spit on them. Tommy got an inch from his face and told him if he ran this he wld suffer the consequences as these were total lies, libelous and salderous and he has known COB for 16 yrs and he is the most intelligent, kind, compassionate person and these are outright lies. Sweeney then said that then COB shld respond. I told hoim he was arrogant to think that just because he asked for an interview it wld be granted especially when he is wanting to ask abt outright and insulting lies. He tried to intimidate Tommy to call right then on camera and he laughed at him and told him to stop being childish and trying to paint a false picture when this has been explained to him many times. Tommy then exaplained in the detail yet a again exactly why cob was not available due to schedule and prior commitments and warned them that they had better not say they had been denied an interview and fail to explain exactly why. He repeated that he wanted his request passed on and I told him it wld be passed on along with our recommendations that he is an asshole. When he asks for the reponse we will tell him that we reiterate that you hv outstanding requests from other major us media and that we recommended that he be interviewed by objective journalists who are not bigots and there are plenty of them and that doesnt include Sweeney and that Tommy will be interviewed by him as a senior official of the church. The compaint ltr to the BBC is now cleared thru UK counsel. We are addng his psychotic outburst from today and sending this to UK tomorrow. We plan to demand a meeting with them and hv clips of the footage of Sweeney to show as they will not be able to ignore this. Meanwhile, Tommy will be drilled for interview so we can hit him on everything we have showed and told him and DA everything (we have a stack of docs to throw on his lap for different points tht we have not given him so he isnt prepared). This is ok. Ml. Mike
…
Sweeney heads up to the Santa Barbara area to talk to former Scientology official Jefferson Hawkins, and the church officials discuss the possibility that Sweeney might show up at the secretive international headquarters compound east of Los Angeles, near Hemet.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 22, 2007
Dear Sir. SG is confirmed in the Bay area not STB [Santa Barbara] ml Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
Who were they seeing at STB then?
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 23, 2007
Dear sir Jeff Hawkins. Their pattern has been to see person and then fo interview the next day. They headed towards STB and then turned off and went to Van Nuys airport and goot chopper and just circled Gold [Scientology's International Base east of Los Angeles near Hemet, also known as Gold Base]. Tommy and i are enroute to gold in case they try to land out there somewhere our camera crew is ready if they show up bfr we get there with instructions to tell them to call Tommy. . They left their van at Van Nuys so hv to go back there and its enroute to STB. This morning we had ltr delivered to bosses at BBC laying out outrageous and bigoted actions of sweeney and attaching dvd clip of his psychotic break at cchr yesterday. UK counsel saw clip and its “extraordinary” and he has never seen anything like it and it alone will embarrass BBC enough that they cld abort the show just on this. We havent even told them abt his quote that BBC higher ups are overpaid morons. Uk counsel also suggested others write ltrs abt abuses so will get thgese put together. They hv lgl ltr ready to go but holding onto it until we get response to tommy,s ltr as that will cut off anyone higher up in BBC dealing with us. Ml Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder, Cc: Tommy Davis
Mar 23, 2007
Thank you. As gone over, you need to determine how you handle it if he shows up at Gold. If you and Tommy catch him in Hemet, he may then say “let’s go to Gold”. It may be better for them to try to go to booth and do a surprise and Gold Secuirity to ask who they’ve been dealing with and when they say you, have a call put in where you and Tommy then speak to Sweeny (recorded of course, with his consent (although by now a video team woulkd be on them) toasting him for doing a “surprise” visit to yet another major Church facility after having been offered a tour a month ago. This is only what I heard him say to you. The point is to not get traoped into them saying “well, now that you are here, we’ll do a tour” and you having to say “its too late” and them then reporting yoiu “refused tlo show them and it was all a ruse”. Right now you have a record of showing them through CC, Pac, CCHR and the places they refused to go being Flag and Gold (while making demands to interview the pope). You two are to solve this. As for the documentary, you can also solve that as a documentary needs writing, editing and you name it and as for who is available, the answer is nobody as everybody doing the work does so because you, Tommy and all else won’t. You’re the ones with all the footage. Do you have it being transcribed by OSA yet? How did Bob get omitted from this cycle. Plus, you have your pals like your “friends” you have been hanging with/supporting. Solve it as he’s expecting your documentary this week — edited and ready for mising and post-prod.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 23, 2007
Dear sir. Tku and this is exactly how it is set up. Hv booth ready to tell them to contact Tommy and then record them when we stick it up their butt abt offering tours and then declining. Will not give them a chance to get us “declining to give tour” and they do not know we are here. The transcripts are done to pt and we hv been going thru to select what we want. We will put the documentary together this week and know we have “pals” who can work on this who likewise hv been doing nothing else and cld do something constructive. Ml Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder, Tommy Davis
And? Did they show up? As for documentary, it was senseless to explain to you how obnoxious your comm was. Who do you think puts together documentaries in the real world? An Avid Operator (like Dos) or a PR who knows his business. Even since the days of H&K with Tax videos you have known this. Your question on not knowing who was available means you’ve learned nothing and still don’t get how your force him to do everything as you have always refused to do anything except put him on the firing line or you stir up trouble (to put him on the firing line). He’s already written cO gold informing her of your comm and lack of lines to routinely produce these sort of items which obvious gets done in gold facilities, but is hardly over to a phillip or tony or whoever to write. Do you know how to do anything? Answer first q above immediately.
…
As they continue to track Sweeney, Miscavige berates them for their incompetence.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 23, 2007
Sir. They are back at van nuys airport so looks like they drove. We are enroute b ack to la , composing e mail to go to him while enroute. Ml Mike
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
You blew it. And the phone call was a total waste of time. Just waiting for more orders, like you alwys dO. Tommy (APU) instant Treason all over again. No handling–just… “I couldn’t possibly handle it … ” And you have yet to provide any handling.
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder, Tommy Davis
Again, no answer. What I meant by Tommy (and you) is the Greg Wilhere stunt (also gold seal pass by you) of not handling a cycle and then “admitting” you aren’t competent and can’t handle something (so you do it). You know, the usual “your right — I just can’t do it”. Or more correctly stated — EXACTLY the opposite of what lrh [L. Ron Hubbard] SAYS and SO [Sea Org] member is. I basically wanted to vomit on that call as it reminded me of every cycle you’ve sucked him into for the past 20 years where the next thing I know, he’s having to give all the direction which will be destructively misimplemented to cause trouble. I believe this is exactly what you confessed to and is exactly what you are still doing having gained a new ally in Tommy of the people who “agree” it can’t be done and his standards just can’t be met. Terrific. And that’s the answer to the act of treason yesterday of throwing him up as a target by agreeing hed get contacted all because of tommy having a self important button that he’s a big shot. He like you have now lost any personal contact priveleges because they are used to suck him into your job. This one is incredible as you know his schedule having abandoned any responsibility for any job and working him to collapse. Now answer my comm you CICS! [counter-intentioned cocksucker]
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 23, 2007
Dear Sir. I apoplogize for not answering right away. I have drafted an email to go to him that docuiments his latest criminal act of showing up at gold and aslkin g a securityguard for an interview while we were sitting in la. And were there to faciltate him. That he is only trying to create a false story and that this whole thing is a farce of us trying to facilitate him and him refusing as it messes up his planned slam. That we were even willing to contiue to try and work with him even after his abusing the ppl we arranged for him to interview and his bizarre activities at cchr and his refusal to tour flag and arrowhead. But today went beyond the beyond and we have written to the bbc. That he can put his qs in writing. And that we wiill not waste any more time tryinng to accommodate him due to his behavior. It puts it entirely on his shoulders meanwhile I also sent a msg to get filmed interview requests done at westminster abbey and bbc hq by bob and he is lining this up. Aso getting other ltrs to bbc from those interviewed. And will cc email to sweeney to his snrs we will send email at end of nite so he has no time to try and line up someone else tmro. I know we have to hndle this and not be cics. They are now back at their hotel. Sweeney flew and sarah drove. this is ok. ml mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
Thsank you. Devt. E-mail not included and sounds like a brush off. He told you that you could make this the final nail in his coffin. It appears you only plan on asserting it is (the final nauil in his coffin) as opposed to drafting a spectacular written e-mail that is escape proof. Just giving your typical “beyond the beyond” doesn’t cut it and nevr has. Its like the unoriginal OSA mantra of “nothing could be further from the truth”. It needs to be an e-mail that has him and BBC puckered as being in an untennable position. It doesn’t appear you’ve spent any time doing that. Not one specific either on how you plan on handling the treason on tommy caving in as regards the boss. And finally you have just brushed off the cycle on BBC and didn’t sway you’d even worked out the questions for BBC if they let you in. The Qs would have to be on point and even phrased like the abusive questions are by sweeny. We have no idea what he’s been asking and the “do you still beat your wife” was an example of how the questions should be phrased and not what the question would be. What question could be posed toi BBC that would be framed like Sweenys but as regards BBCs handling of this show. You just brush off everything and should instead be working out brilliants handlings that are full homework abd handle the hell out of, just like he does everytime. In essence this isw your usual wilco without a single specific. Saying you wrote an email is like saying you “handled it”. That’s why he hung up. He was the only one giving any specific linbes and ideas and you 2 were just axk axk ack and he had no ides if what je was saying was accurate as he hasn’t been there. You were more than willing for him to go on and on as long as you didn’t have to originate anything. YS! [you suck] And have him hat you on the L button as you keep taking hin off as an info. Do you realize everyone of my mssgs are longer than yours. You really are just sp [suppressive person] aren’t you? I wqaited to get this crap? I can’t even believe it. You just can’t work or do can you? YS YS YS YS YS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! [you suck you suck you suck you suck you suck]
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM
Mar 23, 2007
Dear sir. I apologize. I am inept w blackberry and v slow typing and I do see year msgs are longer than mine. I am hatted on the l button. I drafted an email in the car and am now back and making it so it totally boxes him and the BBC in and is the final nail in the coffin. I will forward you a copy when finalized. One other significant datum included is that he lied as tommy called him and ssked him if he was in the chopper over gold and he said he was not and wld not say where he was. He is a liar and deceitful and this alone is justification enough to not cooperate any further and insist on written qs as he is dishonest. I told bob I wld put together qs tonite and send to him and he is also putting them together at his end as he has all transcripts and is familiar with the BBC. between us will have a list of qs that cannot be answered and are totally abusive just like sweeney’s. To begin with its why are they deliberately violating their own standards by assigning a bigot to a religion story? And when he says he isn’t a bigot list out the ppl he interrviewed that called him a bigot right to his face. We are getting this put together now so this sinks the bastard once and for all. Tommy knows the fuck up and is not dramatizing sit 5 and we are flat out competently hndlng this. This is OK ML Mike
To: Mike Rinder, Tommy Davis
From: Lou/DM
Whatever. These are just tidbits. Of course his lies are criminal. Once caught, there’s no reason to lie and he just shouldn’t be near us. The fact that he had you in LA while he went to your home (could have asked and had a tour) is a real nail. He’s now refused the tour of our spiritual HQ and Management/dissemination HQ while pulling stunts on the order of a tabloid on asking guards for interviews. He wasn’t asking tommy to contact the boss, he was just setting a record and got tommy to agree on video so he could use it. No handlings has yet appeared on that and cob knows he’s on his own and can expect nobody in the church to defend him at all and may get his own attorney to write bbc and clarify for them that neither of you two speak for him in any way shape or form. You have so far brushed this off as “we know we have to handle” and in 24 hours haven’t given a single specific. You were supposed to have bob and bill involved in this cycle and dropped both as no doubt you couldn’t care and now you are behind the a8 ball non stop at midnight east coast time. You don’t even say where he is right now getting drunk and basically did nothing all day. Maybe you have plans on how to handle but they arebkt listed here.
…
Miscavige has a side-conversation with Tommy Davis about Rinder’s shortcomings.
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder Cc: Tommy Davis
Mar 23, 2007
DID YOU GET MY MESSAGE AND ARE YOU ANSWERING???
From: Tommy Davis
To: Lou/DM, Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
Yes sir. We got it and nmike is answering. I’m driving right now.
From: Lou/DM
To: Tommy Davis, Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
You are answering and driving? Okay — you just gained a notch on him. He’s he passenger and you have more hands to answer. Make sure he knows what the acronym CICS [counter-intentioned cocksucker] means as that’s exactly what he’s proving by event REFUSING to answer a comm!
From: Tommy Davis
To: Lou/DM, Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
Yes sir. He knows what cics means and he is getting this answer to you immediately.
From: Lou/DM
To: Tommy Davis, Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
A) he’s gtng the message to me when he wants after 10 MFing nudges. B) CICS [counter-intentioned cocksucker] — the term was originated when the first DNA of a slug was scene by the first sloth.
From: Tommy Davis
To: Lou/DM Cc: Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
Sir, totally got this 100%. He has now sent the answer and also saw the derivation of cics. Tommy
From: Lou/DM
To: Tommy Davis Cc: Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
His answer was worthless. Not a single specific. A generality as if he’s trusted. Just “I wrote an e-mail”. Not n ounce of origination and that he has written something that boxes the guy in with no escape — not just saying to him that he’s boxed himself in. These comm cycles are just sick as are the constant false reports and no handlings except crqap acks on bbs. Glag he has the derivation of cics do you enjoy being his adopted son?
From: Tommy Davis
To: Lou/DM, Mike Rinder
Mar 23, 2007
Sir, sorry for the crap answer. We are back at osa and making sure this email totally boxes them in and has them utterly smoked and with no choice but to put sweeney out to pasture and shelf this piece. Mike is answering your last comm right now so we can remedy or crap ass answers and no origination. As far as being his adopted son. Sir, I know where I sit now as a being and I got myself here and failure to take full responsibility will only keep me here. So I’m focused on getting the job done and not having it be a flap and fixing my treasonous caving in and my total betrayal of setting up cob yesterday. I caused it so I have to fix it. I have no right to criticize mike or bitch about being where I am with him. Its up to me to be responsible for both of us and not only handle myself but M ike as well. Ml, Tommy
To: Tommy Davis
From: Lou/DM
Blah, blah, blah. See my response to mike. It is another day and nothibg habdled.
…
Miscavige continues to deride Rinder and Davis about their inability to “handle” Sweeney.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM Cc: Tommy Davis
Mar 24, 2007
Dear Sir. Sweeney responded to email this morning saying we hv to agree to disagree and that they reiterate request for interview of COB. Hv written a response and sent to counsel that I will forward to u for info as soon as I hea back. Sweeney was on phone intensively this morning and just drove to complex where they are driving around buildings shooting from their car. They had told us they wanted to take some exterior shots. We will keep tabs on their actions. Ml mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder, Tommy Davis
(See Qs at bottom as for what part of this needs answer. Thr rest is data it is assumed you have used) This is just a no handlling. I have no idea how Sweeny can say we agree to disagree when there is nothing to disagree with. He DID go to both the Mecca and Gold [Scientology HQs in Clearwater, Florida and Hemet, California] — both unannounced and both to do lord knows what except that there is no possoble “agree to disagree” he once again has been dishonest and now bscene, going to your home while you were in LA and he refused to even tell you. That is insane. If you haven’t handled the COB aspect, then you are just screwing up. COB isn’t doing the interview and he guaranteed it by his actions. There is no agree to disagree. He was afforded every fcourtesy from the outset, including a preliminary briefing. His response has been nasty from that time. The total amount of time the briefing took was the amount he wasted since he last saw you (travelling to Gold unannounced). Yet in the time we “took” we went through a variety of humanitarian campaigns, church expansion, our international event and virtually every social betterment activity we support and are dedicated to. At that point you said, let’s work out an agenda and he’s been full time abusive since — beginning with his “surprise” arrival at our March 13th event, which he just makes nothing of even though it is the night we celebrate our Founder. He missed the JT [John Travolta] interview insisting instead of interviewing a nut. And it just continues. We told you COB wasn’t doing the interview and that if what you wanted was anything to do with Scn you would have approached him in UK where he was in plain view and greeting people as they entered the Church. COBs role is not to handle public relations and does interviews rarely, if at all. We have repeatedly reiterated that he has already promised shows to other networks as a priority and those are his committments. Since you have been on this program, you have made it clear that your intentions are not objective in the slightest and we would never recommend. COB be interviewed, let alone meet you — an opportunity you already had in both England and CW and which you did not take up. Considering the falsehoods BBC preseneted 20 years ago, considering the OBJECTIVE proof of their falsehood since (church winning case, church gaining exempt status after the most thorough invest in IRS history caused by liars their show previously presented, massive church expansion on every front and so forth) combined with his absolute refusal to even acknowledge the relevancy of these matters indicates his pure bias. He has tried to position this as “cob refuses to do bbc” when the reality is that he was provided and open door access to the church by senior church officials and has refused that access. He has known before he ever left the uk that cob would not be interviewed and that nor would tc. He was informed that short of those two rediculosu requests, he pretty much had a “panorama” of things he could do from tour Flag, Gold, Narconon HQ, APS and you name it. He refused even though all of it was access NEVER provided a network program. By way of example of the absurdity of his requests, we don’t even allow local media access to our annual FH anniversary. Yet he wanted BBC in our Founders event? He has seen our events and knows they are elaborate TV productions and any other cameras would have done nothing but distract, quite in addition to the obscene thought of John Sweeny assaulting our parishioners with his bigotted questions. The point is this: He is only pressing these requests as some sort of a tabloid “caper” he knows will be refused. The list of things he has refused are so long (and yet so big in terms of open access) its stunning.
–How come you haven’t nade it clear to him that you refuse to forward his request as Sweenys behavior is so bigotted, his conduct so irrational that you sonsider him unstable?
–Are you actually hiding out and letting him screw aroundoutside our properties such as the complex as your handling?
–Do you mean you didn’t work out a plan including any more on camera questions to drive the nail in the coffin, including his refusal to tell you where he was going to find out he helicoptered over your home, then showd up at gate (while you were in LA) all instead of doing the tour he was offered?
–He’s seen Cob in events and in person (at london) and knows exactly what he’s like when he has no thought the media is watching. If he has some allegation to make, he can tell you where it will be promptly disproven as was Panorama 20 years ago. Having that history of falsehoods from disaffecteds, the due dilligence he must take as a journalist is far higher as he now knows they lie. Cob has been accused of all manner of crap including through use of forged docs. They are well aware they’d best not believe falsehoods from bigots. I assume all these points were made?
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM, Cc: Tommy Davis
Mar 24, 2007
Dear sir. Yes, all these points hv been made repeatedly and on camera. We are enroute to PAC [Scientology's complex in Los Angeles] as they got out of their car and started filming in front of Complex. Sweeny called Tommy and sstarted leveling accusations abt ppl being held aginst their will in a dungeon in the bldng and how he wants to go in. Tommy told v forcefully that this was utter lies and total fabrication and he has no evidence and is just spreading more lies and he is not going into any of our buildings as he is a bigot and is acting insane. That we had taken him thru the building and he now trying to ppretend that didn’t happen and we are dealing with higher ups in BBC as he is a bigot and has psychotic breaks. Tommy said that there is no way he is taking him inside one of our buidlings after he had his psychotic break on wednesday. A break so outrageous two of the female presenmt ran to get help as they were sure john wld get violent. Tommy also said that sweeney is trying to manufacture a story and is a tabloid journalist. (This was all recorded on tape by Tommy as sweeney said he was recording it on camera and we had our camera fillming them too) This ws v forceful and he then said we had tried to brainwash him! He also repeated request for interview w COB and Tommy told him he had not forwarded the request and wld nvr ever forward such a request in amillion yrs and wld do everything in his power to make sure sweeney never gets anywhere near cob as he is a bigot and abusive and we hv ansrd every false allegation and will answer to any others. Sweeney ended up hanging up and then geting back into his van and driving off as I am typing this and now heading up Virgil. There is no doubt there is nothing to “agree to disagree” abt. He is creating a record that is going to sink him as he is a psychotic bigot. We do hv qs to nail him further with and if they head to any othr bldngs will be there to nail him on his behavior especially his refusal to inform us abt Gold and his continuing efforts to manufacture story llike a tabloid. Keenan is in the loop and is getting the email thru UK counsel and Walsh is working over email and am keeping him updated as this is most outrageous behavior he has ever seen and we need to create record for BBC as Sweeney isn’t going to change, but BBC higher ups need to know wjat he is doing and the liability they hv. Ml Mike
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder, Tommy Davis
Thanks. You’d better make sure security is in at those buildings. Obviously somebody is spreading more bs about the rpf [Rehabilitation Project Force, the Sea Org's prison detail] but you neeed to double ensure secuirty is tight in those buildings as they could try to send somebody in with a hidden camera which is the last thing you need. Yes, his behavior sounds insane. Are you saying he LITERALLY said you guys brainwashed him (SWEENY)? And that this statement is on camera? If so, this guy should practically be under a restraining order. He’s obviously losing it as he’s had every opportunity to do a real story and considering his expenses (we would have given him aerial footage of Gold!), his seniors are going to go balistic when they realize a trip to Flag omitted any tour inside AND THAT HE WAS OFFERED IT and his helicopter to Gold omitted any tour inside all 500 acres AND THAT HE WAS OFFERED IT! Don’t know what these on camera Qs are, but this repeated showing up unannounced is also sickening. Yes, reporters can get their reports but have you ever heard of them doing it unannounced after they’ve been given a terminal to talk to who has the keys and let’s them inside? This dungeon bit is desperation and the same crap we’ve disproven a billion times. He’s been exposed as the bigot and dishonest journalist he is.
From: Mike Rinder
To: Lou/DM, Tommy Davis
Dear Sir. Security is on red alert at PAC and CC. They are now in Griffith Pk with Tori Christman Bezzazian another total nutcase who had a restraining order against her. They film every car that goes by as Sweeney accuses us of following and spying on him which at this pt is more of his paranoia. He literally said we had tried yo brainwash him (explaining his psycho break). This was on the phone and was recorded,but as he was outisde Complex our crew was filming him so we are getting this footage to verify we have him on camera saying it. This was one of the things we were going to ask him on camera face to face, to get him to repeat his brainwashing rant as an excuse for his psychotic break as it destroys him utterly. He accuses us of brainwashing by challenging him and asking him q’s on camera that “put him under pressure” and that is exactly what he does for living! We are putting togther “greatest hits” clips for BBC execs and compiling everything we have shown, offered and made available and how they hv spent money getting crap and the same disproven crap they had in 87 and it is proven to be so. He is definitely desperate and now we hv to get this put together and have BBC shitcan him as well as our get our own documentary done. Thay hv checked out of hotel and hv flight at 945 tonite. ML Mike
…
Now “Lou” speaks generally to Rinder about his failings as a Scientologist representing Miscavige to the world. Notice when “Lou” slips and Miscavige refers to himself in the first person…
From: Lou/DM
To: Mike Rinder Cc: Tommy Davis
Mar 24, 2007
Your problem on COB is you didn’t fill the vacuum but just “da’s”. That’s due to your overts. Specifically hat dump. When you say he’s the “hardest working man you know” it sounds like a generality and slop. The fact is, and you both know it, he routinely works ardiund the clock, 36 hours at a stint, day after day. The church has been engaged in massive programs, especially since 911, and all of this has been part of a program to dramatically expand the Church and it’s effectiveness by establishing it’s programs virtually everywhere to provide as much help as possible. All churchs, and social programs they’ve seen sre since that time. More recently it has been a massive program to see to the full restoration and availability of all Mr Hubbards works (lectures and books) in all languages and due to the nature of the program (churfch scripture), it has required his undivided and intensive supervision. Similarly, to make Scn more accessible and less misunderstood and not mysterious (the very things sweeny is trying to foster), it has included the massive outreach and production of av presentations on virtually all aspects of the church and its programs – well in excess of 100 films so far and all of themtranslated in 15 languages. These things apparantly are things sweeny objects to as the church can respond to his falsehoods intended to confuse and cause prejudice by providing the accurate information. As for the stupid allegation of being “aftraid” to see Sweeny, anybody who actually knows COB knows what a joke it is (and the people they’ve interviewed don’t know COB which you idiots already know! Even Jeff H — when has he ever seen me on the front lines?). COB works on church matters and where necessary reserves his public appointments where it counts — personally opening scores of churches, meeting government officials and others in high positions where his time is more valuable. Afraid? He’s met individuals from 10 Downing not to mention the home office. And in spain, some of the highest officials in their government. And in the US, with the IRS. And on and on and on — not to mention the public events I have held as in LA attended by virtually a who’s who in politics (leading congress women), law enforcement (sheriff of la), entertainment (all studio heads) and business (multi-billion dollar congolmerates). You’ve just gone PTS and not filled the vacuum as the fact is he barely sleeps AND YOU KNOW IT and doing this BBC thing because he’s trying to blackmail with threats of what lies he’ll spread is as obscene as it gets and a virtual guarantee it wouldn’t happen. He’s an antagonist of the church and considering where the church is today and the virtual access to any news program who actually want to present what scn is – he put himself in the persona non grata category and intentionally so. What the hell happened to the fill the vacuum however? You’ve got the usual treason and perfect excuse to do nothing because all of a sudden Tommys on the firing line and is worried he’ll choke a question when you idiots already knew if there was something he tommy didn’t know it would be the proof of what slime this idiot is trying to dig up unfortunateky, but a fact, tommy has been more around cob than anybody and he’s gone so pts he’s worried about allegations from people he’s never heard of. Great. Cob will finish all the materials, all the courses, all the buildings and their contruction, singl hand every event, keep the show on the road, then do TV (which he’s tried to get to for a year but god forbid you 2 do anything to ease his lines) and THEN defend himself because you have every excuse not to.
From: Tommy Davis
To: Lou/DM, Mike Rinder
Mar 24, 2007
Sir, we are not giving you the full picture with these bit and piece blackberries. I have absolutely been filling the vaccum on cob since day one. I tal