Scientology opponents bristle at protest limits in Riverside County

Opponents of the Church of Scientology say their 1st Amendment rights are being quashed by Riverside County after the Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance requiring protesters to stay 50 feet from the property line of a massive Scientology campus near Hemet.

The ordinance approved Tuesday was fast-tracked, meaning it did not receive the customary second hearing, and was sponsored by Supervisor Jeff Stone, who said protesters had crossed onto private property and were infringing on the quality of life at the church’s Golden Era Productions compound on Gilman  Springs Road.

Three protesters showed up Thursday outside the gates and within minutes were swarmed by Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies in four squad cars. They were told they could not shout at specific individuals inside and could not block the entrance. Deputies also demanded the driver’s license of a reporter covering the protest and tried to interrogate him. A sheriff’s official later said that was inappropriate.

Church officials say they have received numerous bomb and death threats in the last month alone as protesters the world over have ramped up demonstrations against Scientology.

“It is my job to keep our people out of harm’s way,” said Catherine Fraser, director of public affairs for Golden Era Productions, which disseminates tapes and video for the church and has 500 employees. “We want to balance free speech with the right of privacy.”

Opponents claim the church simply wants to silence protesters and keep demonstrators out of sight.

--David Kelly

Comments

[Heart Swells]

This stinks in comparison to the hate crowds outside Mormon churches in response to the election results of Prop 8.
What exactly IS free speech as applied to church properties and opponents of any position held by that church? I certainly don't know anymore with the passage of this odd legislation in Riverside Co....but I want to stay far away from Riverside if the Cult of Scientolobotomy has this much influence on the local governments.
As long as the protesters are not ON church property, who gives a hoot? If the 50 ft zone includes any portion of public property or if that neighboring property owner gives permission to the protesters - then the county should stay the hell out of the issue.

[JohnRJ08]

I find it astounding that a failed science fiction writer wearing a yachtsman's cap could have fooled so many people for so long. It just doesn't make any sense. No matter how you dress up Scientology, at the end of the day it's just a cult. A rich cult, but still a cult. It's built upon secrecy, breaking down family bonds with non-members, monopolization of members' time, and a few beneficial services like career counseling. Some say it has helped a few people, but the question is what wouldn't have helped them? The one thing that CoS (Church of Scientology) does that should be looked at by law enforcement is its own intimidation tactics against people who have either left the church or just spoken out about its practices.

[Xenubarb]

It is my job to keep our people out of harm’s way,” said Catherine Fraser, director of public affairs for Golden Era Productions, which disseminates tapes and video for the church and has 500 employees.

Well, then Catherine Fraser, perhaps you'd like to explain how placing razor wire on the horizontal supports of the fence around Gold Base keeps your people out of harm's way! Considering that these nasty spikes are on the INSIDE of the fence, one might think you would not care if they hurt themselves while trying to get away.

[Kudu]

Supervisor Stone's personal agenda is to keep protesters away from Scientology; however, the mistake is that the ordinance is trampling over the First Amendment of all over Riverside County residents.

[celtcwrtr]

let the supervisors know how you feel (or ask how much they were paid):

http://www.countyofriverside.us/portal/page/portal/cornew/Government/BoardofSupervisors

[anonymous]

"Church officials say they have received numerous bomb and death threats in the last month alone"

scientology always claims they are getting bomb threats, always. they never have, and crate fake threats on themselves

[Anonymous]

Anonymous would like its opinion known on this issue as well. Why do scientologists manage to get interviewed and their lies taken as truths, and no one checks the other side of the coin?

There are always two sides to stories about the "church": The real truth and Scientology's truth.

[Ronin]

As an outsider of religion, I don't see much difference between Scientology and Catholicism or any other religion.

[g f]

The church of scientology is an evil organization. Preying on the weak using such services as "synanon" and 'Improve your child's reading" programs to recruit people.

The Germans are right trying to bar them from government jobs etc... The Scientologists are in the same boat as the Krishnas, The Children of God and others who destroy people in the name of religion. They even convinced a celebrity to try to heal his ill son with hocus pocus and you know how "that" turned out.

I feel that a religion based on removing Thetans from your soul and to do that you better have a few hundred thousand dollars in your bank account should be viewed with the same skepticism as any product promoted by Billy Maze! and if the politicians in Riverside had any money given to them by the Scientologists, they should refrain from voting and re-vote on this measure with a public hearing.

[bruce]

don't think of jett travolta as dead. think of him as having finally banished his body thetans and flown away to join the loyal officers against xenu. i wish all the other scientologists in hollywood could join this heroic young fellow.

back here on battlefield earth, where we nonbelievers are all pickled in engrams and alcohol, i bemoan the fact that large sums of money can corrupt county officials. i think they should all be forcibly audited. that would be audited in the accounting sense, not the scientology sense.

[Anonymous]

"Deputies also demanded the driver’s license of a reporter covering the protest and tried to interrogate him. A sheriff’s official later said that was inappropriate."

Damn right that is inappropriate. First they're intimidating protesters, now they're trying to intimidate the press? Who else will these bush league cops try to Bubba out of town?

[DanR]

Scientologists ate my baby! Oh, wait... that was dingoes. Never mind.

[Susan Robillard]

Thanks for covering this. Since the "Anonymous" movement's peaceful protests against Scientology began nearly one year ago, the cult has repeatedly screamed about all the death threats and bomb threats and anthrax threats they allegedly have received. The Anonymous movement is 100% peaceful, and is explicitly and firmly committed to peaceful means. Scientology's claims are complete fabrications. Indeed, Scientology has manufactured bomb threats against itself in the past (just Google "Operation Freakout" and you'll see). Despite what Scientology claims, Anonymous is NOT racist, sexist, homophobic etc. -- those are just Scientology lies. Tens of thousands of Anonymous members, from countries all over the world, from teenagers to senior citizens, from every walk of life, are people like you, me, and your next-door neighbor. You can learn more about why we protest the Scientology cult/criminal racket at this site: http://www.youfoundthecard.com

Thanks again for covering this story.

[sparky]

Scientology seems to have a lot of influence with certain city officials. Wonder how much money Davey had to fork over for this?

Freedom of speech just took another hit from "the most ethical people on the planet" and some corrupt politicians.

[Lesley]

Everybody has a right of a private life! Anonymous "protesters" in scary masks screaming in front of the homes of Scientology families are disgusting and uncalled for, no matter how "justified" the protest reason is. This has as much to do with Free Speech as someone beating another over the head as a "means of expression".

These three people who say they are protester would do good to read the US Constitution before they talk about everybody's right. It seems to me that they only see their own rights but not those of other people.

[Scientology.org]

It's not "Golden Era Productions" they are picketing, it is the HOMES of close to 500 Scientology members! I wonder how they would react if those 500 would show up in front of their living room window shouting strong insults!

[Brian Davis]

"Supervisor Jeff Stone ...said protesters had crossed onto private property and were infringing on the quality of life at the church’s Golden Era Productions compound on Gilman Springs Road."

From what I have read, the quality of life in that compound is shockingly bad, but it has nothing to do with the protesters.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/9856545/Complaint-Filed-1509
From reading the documentation filed on January 5, 2009 in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles, I am of the opinion that the Scientology compound is being run almost like a slave camp - the Scientology leadership thinks labor laws do not apply to their operations. They think they are allowed to employ underaged workers and pay less than minimum wage. The law says otherwise.

I wish the plaintiff success in this legal action and I hope that Scientology will be forced to comply with all applicable laws.

[StopAnonymousBigotry]

Anonymous is a bunch of cowards hiding behind masks. Why? So they cannot be held accountable for their lies and harassment of Scientology members. It is hilarious that these people are allowed at all to stand on private property.

Other reports said there are only Scientologists living at this compound so nobody else would see these protests. THAT is obvious harassment!

About Anonymous and the bomb threats the scientology speaker talks about there is background information on Youtube. Just got to youtube com/anonymousexposed .

[StopAnonymousBigotry]

The arrest taking place at Golden Era on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0CHkEeu5a0

[StopAnonymousBigotry]

what is happening to my comment? where is it? is the la times giving preference to certain pro-anonymous tactics?????

[Anonymous]

I'd like to echo the comments of another anonymous comment - where is the evidence of these bomb and death threats? There have been no such activities, and allegations to the contrary are simply slanderous.

[William Johnson]

David Kelly, watch your back. You have ticked off the $cientologists and they will be probably be following you, intimidating neighbors/friends/employer soon.

Let us know how it works out.

[Joe]

This is simply a cult, no other word for it! L. Ron HUbbard was a con artist and a thief. All members are brain washed. As for the Riverside county Sherriff's deputies, they are the biggest "Key stone boobs" to ever wear a badge! They seem to forget what the academy teaches, like the ammendments, law, people's rights, just to mention a few things! RSO acts like NAZI's and noone wants to stop them. The FBI needs to investigate the entire law less department.

[Scientology.org]

Where the evidence for wrongdoing of the people at the Golden Era Compound? These people you are harassing and insulting have done nothing to justify these personal attacks!

[Jorge I. Gomez]

To treat scientology as a religion is a travesty of justice. Jim Jones was run out of the country, I imagine< by the powers to be, yet this guy who claims that a spaceship is to take them to their "kingdom" makes as much sense as the ponzi scheme of Madoff. Madoff used finances to scam his greedy investors. The scientology "pastor" or "god" uses religion to scam "his sheep" and let the fleecing begin. Mr Howard is just another snake oil peddler, but religion is farthest from his mind. It's more fleecing than religion. Actually, it's just fleecing.

[Mark A. Bian]

It's good to see the "church" of scientology publicly admitting that the protests are gaining momentum. I very highly doubt any of their claims about the bomb and death threats however, they have been saying that for a year now and have yet to provide any proof. Proof of the protestors' claims is all over and easily findable with a few easy google searches. Ask any of them for proof of what they say and they will scramble to provide it for you. Ask scientology for proof of it's claims about these protestors and you will get only evaded questions riddled with vague accusatory language yet when it comes to any sort of proof you will be left empty handed.

[AndreasFusse]

In my opinion people should have a right to peacefully practice their religion without being under constant attacks of hate groups that invade their privacy.
This is not a free speech issue, because the sole intention of these protestors is to harass the Scientologists, who work at this place. If they actually had a message that they wanted to direct at the public, they could protest somewhere else, where the public sees them.

[M. Mulhall]

Is this the same "Golden Era Productions" that had a huge lawsuit filed against it a couple days ago?
The lawsuit charges them with physical abuse, child labor law violations, federal and state violations of safe work place laws, failure to pay taxes, abuse of religious worker visas and more!
Is that what Riverside is sending so many police out to protect? Apparently the county supervisors think it's a good way to spend taxpayers money.

[HuhWhat?]

There are scores of videos of scientologists picketing private homes. They are posted on youtube and vimeo. Scientologists have been doing this for decades.
So why are they complaining about privacy and quality of life issues when the picketers are outside their door instead of the other way around?

[Garry Scarff]

I was one of the three persons at Scientology's cult slave camp masquerading as a legitimate church yesterday. Hey, I have been the receipient of hundreds of death threats, bomb threats, wedgies, etc. etc. from Scientologists. Fact? No, but it shows how easy the cult has cultivated a longtime tactic to feed the media, police & public officials with tales to draw undeserved sympathy to themselves and their global fraud and scams. One only has to Google "Scientology+TR-L" to see for yourselves a training drill right from the official Scientology handbook which trains adherents how to effectively lie. (TR-L = Training Routine - Lie). One day, this matter will come back to bite Riverside County Supervisor & cult shill Jeff Stone hard in the butt.

[Scientology.org]

Mark A. Bian: Three protesters! Not a lot of momentum in terms of pickets. Most Anonymous seem to hide and spread their lies in comment sections like these.

[Kim]

So... California lets people protest the Mormon church but not Scientology?
How does that work?
And why are people LIVING at a MOVIE STUDIO????
Don't they have real homes to go to?
And Why are the cops so aggressive? Shouldn't they be neutral?
WHAT IS GOING ON IN RIVERSIDE?
Thank you LA Times for covering this. I would really like to see more about this. There is something weird about this that needs more investigating!

[Manny]

"Everybody has a right of a private life! Anonymous "protesters" in scary masks screaming in front of the homes of Scientology families are disgusting and uncalled for,"

Nice try Lesley. but Golden Era Productions is a MOVIE STUDIO. Anonymous has never protested outside the homes of any Scientologists. Show a me a video where thats happened. Now Scientologists protesting outside people homes, I can show you several videos of that. XenuTV.com has several. While your at it go to youtube.com and search for a video called "cult fiction". It basically shows how The Church of Scientology faked a bomb threat against themselves.

[Artoo45]

The idiots in Riverside are still protecting Li'l Davy and his Li'l Fake Navy out in Hemet? Elron's minions must be paying them under the table. It shouldn't last too much longer though. The "stats" have crashed all over the world. Empty orgs. Closed missions. Real estate values plummeting. The 150,000 people worldwide who are actually Scientologists are being squeezed for "donations" like never before. Who's gonna keep paying off all the officials? The cult may have won this round, but in the long run . . . Epic Fail. Read John Duignan's "The Complex" for a painful, personal rundown on what it's like to lose 22 years to a lie.

[Dr. Psych]

We are Anonymous. We are legion. We do not accept attempts to censor our internet. This is our time. Scientology had it's time and all it has brought is ruin and death for thousands. Now it is our turn, our generation's time. And we look upon things like Scientology and wonder how our parents and grandparents could have stood by and let a con man like L. Ron Hubbard build an empire of slavery and suffering right under their noses. Now it is our mess to clean up, and clean it up we shall.

We are the youth of the world growing up to take our place as it's citizens and leaders and workers. We are the faceless masses. We are Anonymous.

Our Energy Will Prevail.

[sparky]

Scientologyl.Org, so what is it? A residence or a business? Make up your mind, you know..the part of your mind that hasn't been brainwashed?

Plenty of people driving by see the protestors, so there goes that lie. What? Is Davey Miscavige beating you guys up even more now that there's protestors out front of his mansion? LMAO!

[James Brown]

Homes? So they live in a movie studio, some needs to call the attorney general to have an inquest into Scientology. That is a workplace violation if they live in a movie studio.

Plus Scientology complains when someone pickets them for their crimes of harassment that spark for over 50 years. But Scientology and Scilons have been picketing and protesting at peoples houses calling them terrorists and false things. Scientologists harass people criticize them all of the time. So you are living in a double standard.

I got a question for the scientologists: If Golden Era Productions is a residential area then why do you blare 110 decibel sounds at protesters at the compound? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffNw4g5onas

Start at :50 on: wouldn't be illegal to play music over a certain decibel range if you claim that Golden Era is a residential area?

[sparky]

"Mark A. Bian: Three protesters! Not a lot of momentum in terms of pickets. Most Anonymous seem to hide and spread their lies in comment sections like these.

Posted by: Scientology.org | January 09, 2009 at 03:42 PM

As you are well aware, it only takes one Anonymous protestor to close down an org. In between the worldwide protests we are working very hard informing people about your evil cult. And it's working!!

Second Chance, one of your NarCONON front groups was just given an eviction notice on Christmas Day by the mayor of Albuquerque, NM. :) AND the mayor of Las Cruces, NM just threw your Drug Free Marshall's program out of their school system!! AND Anonymous discovered NarCONon was using fake state seals on their websites to make people think they were state sites. Anonymous immediatly informed state officials and got the fake seals taken down. No, scientology NEVAR lies about anything, does it?

See? Anonymous is becoming more efficient, more powerful, and more lulzy with every passing day!

[Deana M. Holmes]

Scientology had no problem picketing my home and leafleting my neighborhood with "Religious Bigot" flyers when I lived in Salt Lake City back in the 1990s. Of course, I was picketing their org on a regular basis. But Scientology and its leaders are rank hypocrites when they say they want to protect residential areas from picketing but have sent the OT Committee to do the same in the past.

[Steven S.]

The protesters have a right to protest there, covered under the constitution of the United States of America. It's obviously the Church of Scientology put this motion forward to only protect themselves from protests, and it has NOTHING to do with other residential pickets at all.

As a matter of fact, if Scientology is so against people picketing residences... Why do they make it a COMMON OCCURRENCE to picket the homes of Scientology critics?

Check out this video of a protesters outside of Mark Bunker's (a Scientology critic) home in Hollywood:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjeS6sNBFqw

So, it's OK for them to do it? But no one else can?

[Martha S.]

I am a Scientologist and have been for 10 years. anonymous protesters are obviously being PAID to spread hateful lies and decpetion about my church. if they weren't being paid then how do they have so much time to protest around the world with so many people?

its a shame they're taking the money of big pharma to spread lies. i hope they see the light and come into an org sometime to use some of that pharma money to take some courses and heklp themselves out.

[cathylin]

Standard operating procedure for the "church" of scientology: call the cops, manufacture threats, call the cops, call the cops. Often the cops turn against peaceful protesters because they are just stick of being called.

[Resistance is Futile]

Residents of Riverside County, your Board of Supervisors rolled over this week, compromising your Constitutional rights in order to placate a single constituent located in Mr. Jeff Stone's district: the Church of Scientology's paramilitary compound in Gilman Hot Springs, generally called Gold Base.

Supervisor Bob Buster was once a hero when he stood up to sleazy Scientology attorney Samuel Alhadeff (who personally drafted this ordinance)(that's right citizens of Riverside County -- Scientology is drafting your laws!), and defended picketing as part of the "hurly burly of democracy." But sadly, Buster rolled over this week.

Supervisor Roy Wilson wasn't "comfortable" with the ordinance, but he rolled over anyway.

Seduced by Supervisor Jeff Stone's charm and new found power as chairman of the board, last Tuesday all five Riverside County Supervisers agreed to impinge the Constitutional rights of every citizen in this country to favor an institution now in the limelight for a litany of unsavory behavior, including slave labor, forced abortions, and brutally attacking one the very protesters upon which this terrible ordinance was based. ([url]http://gawker.com/5074201/anonymous-v-scientology-protest-turns-ugly?autoplay=true[/url])

God speed to all those who are standing up to Scientology and to weak corruptible government officials. Keep on protesting far and wide! Let your message be known!

[Chuck Beatty]

Scientology is infamous for crying wolf, and manipulating police to their advantage. Hubbard's policy is cry wolf and label enemies carefully to distract off of Scientology's nefarious behavior, this policy by L. Ron Hubbard says it all: "OFFICE OF SPECIAL AFFAIRS NETWORK ORDER
15, 18 February 1988 Confidential BLACK PROPAGANDA …. Our propaganda is dirty.... We do this trick by survey and attack.... we become re-classified as attackers and the enemy as bad hats …... We just run propaganda campaigns....It reclassifies our attackers as evil people... Achieve for ourselves a dominance in classifying ourselves and others." "L. RON HUBBARD, … official Church policy." Catherine Fraser is the ex wife of Jeff Hawkins, Jeff went public about the beatings he got from Scientology's leader David Misacavige, and some of the rest Golden Era Productions protesting was to "STOP THE BEATINGS!". See the Portland Mercury article on Jeff Hawkins. It's a small world. Catherine Fraser, the PR for Golden Era, is so deep in the Stockholm Syndrome, today, she would not believe it that David Miscavige had beaten up her former husband, Jeff Hawkins. The violence is on the other side of those razor wire fences, and the story to uncover is the beatings by church leader David Miscavige. Everyone's in denial about his beatings. At least Portland Mercury got that story finally out:
http://tinyurl.com/6lwksr Chuck Beatty, ex Scientology staffer (1975-2003), Pittsburgh.

[ARCnow]

Anonymous is a cyberterrorist organization consisting of punkish college-age and teenage deliquents that are aided by a cadre of bitter ex-Scientologist failures and journalists who give them attention. Knowingly and unkowingly they are also having their strings pulled by various entities that seek to destroy the only source of hope on this planet.

Anonymous I ask you this. After a year of protesting across the world, what affect have you created? Nothing, except to pollute youtube and the rest of the internet with your lies. Scientology is as strong as ever and is expanding. You would be better off to quit now and save yourself. When one cup falls, they all will, your time is coming.

[Jeff]

I lived and worked at Scientology’s International base in Hemet for over 15 years. I’ve written up my experiences inside Scientology at http://counterfeitdreams.blogspot.com. The fact is that Scientology will go to any lengths to isolate their Sea Organization staff from the outside world and prevent them from seeing any criticism of Scientology or its methods. They do not allow them to use the internet or own cell phones or even leave the Base without supervision. All calls to family are covertly monitored. All letters in or out are monitored and censored. And they certainly don’t want their staff to see anyone protesting their methods. They do not want their staff to realize that working 100 hours a week, seven days a week, with no breaks, is NOT normal. That getting paid 35 cents an hour with no overtime, minimum wage or retirement benefits is NOT normal. That verbal and physical abuse from their seniors is NOT normal. The only way they can operate is by keeping their captive labor force in a very carefully protected bubble. They are told that they are “Clearing the Planet” and that any outside criticism is from “enemies” trying to destroy them. I know Catherine Fraser, a wonderful and caring woman. Like most of the people on that Base, she is a dedicated believer in Scientology, and because of that belief, is willing to turn a blind eye to the daily abuses she sees around her. And believe me, she does see them. But as a Scientologist you are trained to both see these abuses and not see them. It’s called “cognitive dissonance” or, to use Orwell’s term, doublethink. This ordinance is simply enabling Scientologists to maintain this cultic bubble and continue to exploit their Sea Organization staff.

[ZayTonday]

"Hate Crowds outside of Mormon churches protesting their support of Prop 8" huh? So intolerance is okay (passing prop 8) until it is intolerance of intolerance (protesting prop 8)?

[thetanmonger]

Nice to see some real reporting for once, it seems free press was just an idea and not something practiced. Kuddos Mr. Kelly

[Anonymous]

Dear fellow readers. Riverside county is unaware of what is happening in their own backyard. Honest, humble citizens who want to share their opinion on Scientology are being harassed, assaulted, and arrested just for practicing their First Amendment right. These two videos will demonstrate on why The Church of Scientology should OBEY the law instead of being ABOVE it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynr5cfW0qyU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8J2Og2mYvw

[Chaz Kildare]

infringing on rights is very dangerous. I wonder what the supervisors will do come election time when it turns out that they need vote support?

Ordinances can be reversed, it just takes time for the slow, but rightful wheels of justice to start rolling. Trust me, if the supervisors stick to thier guns on this, they will soon be out of a job, either by removal from office, or sitting in a jail cell for corruption charges.

Ultimately, it's up to the citizens of Riverside to decide what the outcome will be, if popular opinion is strong enough, they will roll over again to save thier jobs. Scientology payoffs or not.

I have it on good authority that the FBI is VEERRRRY interested in the events that are taking place in riverside. Also the gay and lesbian community are upset about this as well, considering that somehow Scientology got their hands on private medical records of some of the protesters...disgusting.

[John C. Randolph]

Legislation bought and paid for at the local level, by a very well-funded criminal nut cult. So much for the first amendment.

-jcr

[Truth]

Thank you for reporting on this.
It's time Scientology take some responsibility for their actions. Tommy Davis outright lies about disconnection and about what the church believes about drugs.
I'm tired of seeing an organization claiming to be a church file law suites that could otherwise simply be ignored by the organization. Fair game is real that is obvious.