Fishman Affidavit
Encyclopedia
The Fishman Affidavit is a set of court documents submitted by ex-Scientologist Steven Fishman
in 1993 in the federal case, Church of Scientology International v. Fishman and Geertz (Case No. CV 91-6426 (HLH (Tx) U.S. District Court for the Central District of California).
The Affidavit contained criticisms of the Church of Scientology
and substantial portions of the Operating Thetan
course materials.
and Laurie Bartilson, Timothy Bowles
was one of the lead attorneys for the Church of Scientology in the case.
Fishman told the court that he had committed crimes on behalf of the Church. He also attested that he was assigned to murder
his psychologist, Dr. Uwe Geertz, and then commit suicide
.
As evidence, Fishman submitted course materials he said that he purchased from Ellie Bolger, a fellow Scientologist, and Richard Ofshe
, an expert witness for his defense. The Church says the documents were stolen and considers them to be copyright
ed and a trade secret
. Among other materials, the affidavit
contains 61 pages of the allegedly trade-secret and copyrighted story of Xenu
.
The Fishman Affidavit contains much text from the old versions of the Operating Thetan levels. The versions of OT I to OT VII in the Fishman Affidavit are considered authentic as the church's Religious Technology Center
(RTC) brought copyright
lawsuits over their release on the Internet
. Fishman's description of OT VIII
contains the accusation that Jesus
was a pedophile. After initially asserting copyright to all the OT level descriptions in the affidavit, RTC amended its claim to remove the OT VIII description, calling it a forgery. Fishman stated that he had obtained his copy of OT VIII from Ofshe, a different source than his copies of the other OT Levels, purchased from a fellow Scientologist.
The Church of Scientology dropped its libel case against Fishman and Geertz in 1994.
An important side aspect of the case was the fact that several highranking Scientology officials and lead attorneys for the organization and former highranking Scientologists submitted declarations on their activities for the Church of Scientology, giving thereby insight into the internal ongoings of the Scientology management.
Among others, declarations were submitted by:
, and posted onto the Usenet
newsgroup alt.religion.scientology
by ex-Scientologist Arnie Lerma
. The material was then placed on the World Wide Web
by David S. Touretzky
.
Lerma's newsgroup posting resulted in the August 1995 raid of his home for copyright violation on the materials, and the resulting lawsuit Religious Technology Center (Scientology) vs Arnaldo Lerma, Richard Leiby, and The Washington Post. U.S. Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema
ruled that while Richard Leiby and the Washington Post had not violated copyright, Lerma was liable and fined $2,500 but with no costs awarded to Scientology. Judge Brinkema also stated that the primary motivation for the case was "to stifle criticism of Scientology in general and to harass its critics."
After being posted to the newsgroup, the documents were mirrored on hundreds of websites worldwide. The Church of Scientology responded by suing
a number of people and their Internet service provider
s for copyright infringement. The defendants responded by challenging the church to prove it was actually the copyright holder of the disputed documents.
The other notable case in connection with this was against Dutch
writer Karin Spaink
. The Church brought suit on copyright violation grounds for reproducing the source material, and claimed rewordings would reveal a trade secret. In 2003, Spaink won the case, with the court holding that her quotation of Scientology works was acceptable and expressing concern about Scientology's attempts to prevent discussion of its doctrines. The Church appealed but dropped the case after a negative advice on the appeal from the Attorney-General to the court in March 2005. In December 2005 the court dismissed the appeal, making the previous ruling final. The Church has no further possibility for appeal due to their dropping the case. The ruling also reversed earlier decisions affecting hyperlinking.
Critics of the church have accused it of intentionally using lawsuits in these and other cases as SLAPP
suits, intended to silence their opposition. Critics of Steven Fishman have produced the affidavit of Kenneth D. Long, a Scientology executive, which states that Fishman received services from a Scientology mission, did a few introductory courses, never worked for the Church or CCHR, and did not get any auditing or do any courses at the main Miami church, which would conflict with his claims. Vicki Aznaran, a former Scientologist who was involved in anti-Scientology litigation before retracting her claims as part of a settlement with Scientology, gave a declaration through Scientology attorneys in which she states various allegations made by Steven Fishman and other church critics are untrue, contradicting her previous declaration given in CSI v. Fishman and Geertz.
Steven Fishman
Steven Fishman is an American former Scientologist whose inclusion of Scientology's secret Operating Thetan levels in a court filing led to the first public confirmation by the Church of Scientology of its doctrines regarding Xenu and the Wall of Fire....
in 1993 in the federal case, Church of Scientology International v. Fishman and Geertz (Case No. CV 91-6426 (HLH (Tx) U.S. District Court for the Central District of California).
The Affidavit contained criticisms of the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
and substantial portions of the Operating Thetan
Operating Thetan
In Scientology, the state of Operating Thetan is a spiritual state above Clear. L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, defined it as "knowing and willing cause over life, thought, matter, energy, space and time ". According to religious scholar J...
course materials.
Church of Scientology International v. Fishman and Geertz
The documents were brought as exhibits attached to a declaration by Steven Fishman on 9 April 1993 as part of Church of Scientology International v. Fishman and Geertz. Along with Kendrick MoxonKendrick Moxon
Kendrick Lichty Moxon is a Scientology official and an attorney with the law firm Moxon & Kobrin. He practices in Los Angeles, California, and is a lead counsel for the Church of Scientology. Moxon received a B.A. from American University in 1972, and a J.D. degree from George Mason University in...
and Laurie Bartilson, Timothy Bowles
Tim Bowles
Timothy Bowles is an American attorney who has worked for the Church of Scientology and its related organizations for the majority of his career....
was one of the lead attorneys for the Church of Scientology in the case.
Fishman told the court that he had committed crimes on behalf of the Church. He also attested that he was assigned to murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
his psychologist, Dr. Uwe Geertz, and then commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
As evidence, Fishman submitted course materials he said that he purchased from Ellie Bolger, a fellow Scientologist, and Richard Ofshe
Richard Ofshe
Richard Ofshe is a Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a member of the advisory board of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation advocacy organization, and is known for his expert testimony relating to coercion in small groups, confessions, and...
, an expert witness for his defense. The Church says the documents were stolen and considers them to be copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
ed and a trade secret
Trade secret
A trade secret is a formula, practice, process, design, instrument, pattern, or compilation of information which is not generally known or reasonably ascertainable, by which a business can obtain an economic advantage over competitors or customers...
. Among other materials, the affidavit
Affidavit
An affidavit is a written sworn statement of fact voluntarily made by an affiant or deponent under an oath or affirmation administered by a person authorized to do so by law. Such statement is witnessed as to the authenticity of the affiant's signature by a taker of oaths, such as a notary public...
contains 61 pages of the allegedly trade-secret and copyrighted story of Xenu
Xenu
Xenu ,also spelled Xemu, was, according to the founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard, the dictator of the "Galactic Confederacy" who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of his people to Earth in a DC-8-like spacecraft, stacked them around volcanoes and killed them using hydrogen bombs...
.
The Fishman Affidavit contains much text from the old versions of the Operating Thetan levels. The versions of OT I to OT VII in the Fishman Affidavit are considered authentic as the church's Religious Technology Center
Religious Technology Center
The Religious Technology Center is a Californian non-profit corporation. RTC was founded in 1982 by the Church of Scientology in order to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics, including the copyrighted works of Scientology founder and...
(RTC) brought copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
lawsuits over their release on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Fishman's description of OT VIII
OT VIII
OT VIII is the highest current course and level in Scientology. Collectively, the OTs are referred to as Operating Thetan course materials. OT VIII is known as "The Truth Revealed"....
contains the accusation that Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
was a pedophile. After initially asserting copyright to all the OT level descriptions in the affidavit, RTC amended its claim to remove the OT VIII description, calling it a forgery. Fishman stated that he had obtained his copy of OT VIII from Ofshe, a different source than his copies of the other OT Levels, purchased from a fellow Scientologist.
The Church of Scientology dropped its libel case against Fishman and Geertz in 1994.
An important side aspect of the case was the fact that several highranking Scientology officials and lead attorneys for the organization and former highranking Scientologists submitted declarations on their activities for the Church of Scientology, giving thereby insight into the internal ongoings of the Scientology management.
Among others, declarations were submitted by:
- Richard & Vicki Aznaran, former executives of the Religious Technology CenterReligious Technology CenterThe Religious Technology Center is a Californian non-profit corporation. RTC was founded in 1982 by the Church of Scientology in order to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics, including the copyrighted works of Scientology founder and...
- Jonathan EpsteinJonathan EpsteinJonathan Epstein is an economist who worked on the implementation and establishment of Australia's sovereign wealth fund, the Future Fund as a senior analyst and adviser to the chairman....
, at that time "International Finance Director" of the Church of Scientology InternationalChurch of Scientology InternationalThe Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology.... - Guillaume Lesevre, at that time Executive Director InternationalExecutive directorExecutive director is a term sometimes applied to the chief executive officer or managing director of an organization, company, or corporation. It is widely used in North American non-profit organizations, though in recent decades many U.S. nonprofits have adopted the title "President/CEO"...
of the Church of Scientology International - David MiscavigeDavid MiscavigeDavid Miscavige is the leader of the Church of Scientology and affiliated organizations. His title is Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Center , a corporation that controls the trademarked names and symbols of Dianetics and Scientology. Miscavige was an assistant to Hubbard while a...
, Chairman of the BoardChair (official)The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...
of the Religious Technology CenterReligious Technology CenterThe Religious Technology Center is a Californian non-profit corporation. RTC was founded in 1982 by the Church of Scientology in order to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics, including the copyrighted works of Scientology founder and... - Raymond Mithoff, at that time "Senior Case Supervisor International" of the Church of Scientology International
- Thomas Spring, tax attorney for the Church of Scientology International
- Norman Starkey, at that time Executive DirectorExecutive directorExecutive director is a term sometimes applied to the chief executive officer or managing director of an organization, company, or corporation. It is widely used in North American non-profit organizations, though in recent decades many U.S. nonprofits have adopted the title "President/CEO"...
of Author Services Inc.Author Services Inc.Author Services Inc. represents the literary, theatrical and musical works of the late Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Church of Spiritual Technology.... - André TabayoyonAndre TabayoyonAndre Tabayoyon is a former member of the Church of Scientology who is primarily known for an affidavit in which he describes the inner workings of the Church. Among other things, he states in his affidavit that he was formerly in charge of security at Church's Gold Base near Hemet, California...
, Ex-Scientologist and former security official of the Church of Scientology International - William Walsh, attorney for different organizations of the Church of ScientologyChurch of ScientologyThe Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
- Marc Yager, at that time Chairman of the "Watchdog Committee" of the Church of Scientology International
- Monique Yingling, tax attorney for the Church of Scientology International
- Robert Vaughn YoungRobert Vaughn YoungRobert Vaughn Young commonly known by his initials RVY, was a whistleblower against the Church of Scientology after working high inside their organization for over twenty years.-In Scientology:...
, former spokesperson for the Guardian's Office and Author Services Inc.Author Services Inc.Author Services Inc. represents the literary, theatrical and musical works of the late Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Church of Spiritual Technology.... - Stacy Brooks YoungStacy BrooksStacy Brooks is a critic of the Church of Scientology. Like her late ex-husband Robert Vaughn Young, a Scientology whistleblower employed by Scientology for over 20 years, Brooks was also a member of the Church, working in its upper level management in Los Angeles for almost fifteen years.After...
, former official of the U.S. Office of Special AffairsOffice of Special AffairsThe Office of Special Affairs or OSA is a department of the Church of Scientology. According to the Church, the OSA is responsible for directing legal affairs, public relations, pursuing investigations, publicizing the Church's "social betterment works," and "oversee[ing its] social reform programs"...
Posted to the Internet
Although the Church of Scientology attempted to prevent others from receiving the document by continuously borrowing it, the text of this declaration and its exhibits were scanned, converted to textOptical character recognition
Optical character recognition, usually abbreviated to OCR, is the mechanical or electronic translation of scanned images of handwritten, typewritten or printed text into machine-encoded text. It is widely used to convert books and documents into electronic files, to computerize a record-keeping...
, and posted onto the Usenet
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
newsgroup alt.religion.scientology
Alt.religion.scientology
The newsgroup alt.religion.scientology is a Usenet newsgroup started in 1991 to discuss the controversial beliefs of Scientology, as well as the Church of Scientology, which claims exclusive intellectual property rights thereto and is viewed by many as a dangerous cult...
by ex-Scientologist Arnie Lerma
Arnaldo Lerma
Arnaldo Pagliarini Lerma is an American writer and activist, a former Scientologist, and critic of Scientology, who has appeared in television, media and radio interviews...
. The material was then placed on the World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
by David S. Touretzky
David S. Touretzky
David S. Touretzky is a research professor in the Computer Science Department and the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition at Carnegie Mellon University. He received a BA in Computer Science at Rutgers University in 1978, and earned a Master's degree and a Ph.D. in Computer Science at Carnegie...
.
Lerma's newsgroup posting resulted in the August 1995 raid of his home for copyright violation on the materials, and the resulting lawsuit Religious Technology Center (Scientology) vs Arnaldo Lerma, Richard Leiby, and The Washington Post. U.S. Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema
Leonie Brinkema
Leonie M. Brinkema is a United States District Court judge, in the Eastern District of Virginia.-Early life and education:...
ruled that while Richard Leiby and the Washington Post had not violated copyright, Lerma was liable and fined $2,500 but with no costs awarded to Scientology. Judge Brinkema also stated that the primary motivation for the case was "to stifle criticism of Scientology in general and to harass its critics."
After being posted to the newsgroup, the documents were mirrored on hundreds of websites worldwide. The Church of Scientology responded by suing
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
a number of people and their Internet service provider
Internet service provider
An Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
s for copyright infringement. The defendants responded by challenging the church to prove it was actually the copyright holder of the disputed documents.
The other notable case in connection with this was against Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
writer Karin Spaink
Karin Spaink
Karin Spaink is a journalist, writer and feminist.Spaink is a free speech advocate and social critic. Some of her battles include:* New-age writers who assert all diseases are only a psychological phenomenon;...
. The Church brought suit on copyright violation grounds for reproducing the source material, and claimed rewordings would reveal a trade secret. In 2003, Spaink won the case, with the court holding that her quotation of Scientology works was acceptable and expressing concern about Scientology's attempts to prevent discussion of its doctrines. The Church appealed but dropped the case after a negative advice on the appeal from the Attorney-General to the court in March 2005. In December 2005 the court dismissed the appeal, making the previous ruling final. The Church has no further possibility for appeal due to their dropping the case. The ruling also reversed earlier decisions affecting hyperlinking.
Critics of the church have accused it of intentionally using lawsuits in these and other cases as SLAPP
Strategic lawsuit against public participation
A strategic lawsuit against public participation is a lawsuit that is intended to censor, intimidate, and silence critics by burdening them with the cost of a legal defense until they abandon their criticism or opposition....
suits, intended to silence their opposition. Critics of Steven Fishman have produced the affidavit of Kenneth D. Long, a Scientology executive, which states that Fishman received services from a Scientology mission, did a few introductory courses, never worked for the Church or CCHR, and did not get any auditing or do any courses at the main Miami church, which would conflict with his claims. Vicki Aznaran, a former Scientologist who was involved in anti-Scientology litigation before retracting her claims as part of a settlement with Scientology, gave a declaration through Scientology attorneys in which she states various allegations made by Steven Fishman and other church critics are untrue, contradicting her previous declaration given in CSI v. Fishman and Geertz.
See also
- Andre TabayoyonAndre TabayoyonAndre Tabayoyon is a former member of the Church of Scientology who is primarily known for an affidavit in which he describes the inner workings of the Church. Among other things, he states in his affidavit that he was formerly in charge of security at Church's Gold Base near Hemet, California...
-- Affidavit referenced in the case, in United States District Court. - Scientology and the Internet
- Scientology and the legal systemScientology and the legal systemThe Church of Scientology has been involved in court disputes in several countries. In some cases, when the Church has initiated the dispute, question has been raised as to its motives. The Church says that its use of the legal system is necessary to protect its intellectual property and its right...