Lisa McPherson Trust
Encyclopedia
The Lisa McPherson Trust was an organisation created in 1999 by Bob Minton. The trust was named after Lisa McPherson
, a Scientology member who died in 1995 after being in the Church of Scientology
’s care for 17 days. The for-profit company’s stated goal was "expose the deceptive and abusive practices of Scientology
and help those victimized by [the Church of Scientology]."
Of the five staff members at the Lisa McPherson trust, 4 were former members of Scientology.
. Many property managers denied the group access to their buildings after being contacted by members of Scientology. Eventually, the group purchased a building at 33 N Fort Harrison Ave, which was situated 30 feet from Scientology buildings. Scientology offered to buy the building out from Minton but the property manager declined.
which read: "Lisa McPherson: We will never forget you." An injunction was quickly sought against the group and a no-picket zone was established in front of Scientology buildings. Church members and trust members were also ordered to keep 10 feet away from each other at all times.
In 2001 this injunction was expanded by a county judge. The new order prevented either side from yelling, shouting, whistling, singing, blowing a horn whistle or other noisemaker, or otherwise creating noise which would disturb "reasonable persons of ordinary sensibilities." It also expanded the no-picket zone to include the area across the street from Scientology’s dining hall.
The new order also required trust members to inform the police of any picket an hour in advance of the event.
To enforce this ruling, Clearwater city painted two white lines across Watterson Avenue, stating that whilst Scientologists were loading or unloading buses in the area, the trust staff and members could not enter it.
Lisa McPherson
Lisa McPherson was a member of the Church of Scientology who died of a pulmonary embolism while under the care of the Flag Service Organization , a branch of the Church of Scientology...
, a Scientology member who died in 1995 after being in 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...
’s care for 17 days. The for-profit company’s stated goal was "expose the deceptive and abusive practices of Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
and help those victimized by [the Church of Scientology]."
Of the five staff members at the Lisa McPherson trust, 4 were former members of Scientology.
Location
The company’s headquarters were located in downtown Clearwater, FloridaClearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of...
. Many property managers denied the group access to their buildings after being contacted by members of Scientology. Eventually, the group purchased a building at 33 N Fort Harrison Ave, which was situated 30 feet from Scientology buildings. Scientology offered to buy the building out from Minton but the property manager declined.
Picketing
The company frequently engaged in pickets in downtown Clearwater. On the anniversary of Lisa McPherson’s death in 1999, the group used a projector to beam a message on the side of the Fort Harrison HotelFort Harrison Hotel
The Fort Harrison Hotel serves as the flagship building of the Flag Land Base, the Church of Scientology's spiritual headquarters in Clearwater, Florida...
which read: "Lisa McPherson: We will never forget you." An injunction was quickly sought against the group and a no-picket zone was established in front of Scientology buildings. Church members and trust members were also ordered to keep 10 feet away from each other at all times.
In 2001 this injunction was expanded by a county judge. The new order prevented either side from yelling, shouting, whistling, singing, blowing a horn whistle or other noisemaker, or otherwise creating noise which would disturb "reasonable persons of ordinary sensibilities." It also expanded the no-picket zone to include the area across the street from Scientology’s dining hall.
The new order also required trust members to inform the police of any picket an hour in advance of the event.
To enforce this ruling, Clearwater city painted two white lines across Watterson Avenue, stating that whilst Scientologists were loading or unloading buses in the area, the trust staff and members could not enter it.
Legal problems
In late 2001 Scientology named the Lisa McPherson Trust as co-defendants in a case they had brought against the estate of Lisa McPherson.For-profit status
Bob Minton claimed that the trust had a for-profit status to allow them to hide financial and other records from the Church of Scientology. Scientologists claimed that the for-profit status was proof that the group was created in order to allow Minton to recuperate the almost $2.5 million that he had put towards creating the group.Reaction from the Church of Scientology
The Church vehemently opposed the creation of the trust. They levelled many accusations against it including allegations that the trust was violently attempting to deprogram ex-Scientologists. Scientology hired off-duty police officers, who were paid close to $150,000 over the course of 15 months, to ensure that trust members stayed 10 feet away from Scientology buildings and parishioners at all times.Closure of the trust
The trust was disbanded in November 2001. Minton cited mounting legal pressure from Scientology as the official reason. The closure of the trust was delayed for some months as a judge ordered that Scientology could conduct an official review of all of the Trust’s records. This included phone records and financial records which were later produced in court.External links
- The Lisa McPherson Trust from Operation ClambakeOperation ClambakeOperation Clambake, also referred to by its Web address, Xenu.net, is a Web site and Norway-based non-profit organization, launched in 1996, that publishes criticism of the Church of Scientology. It is owned and maintained by Andreas Heldal-Lund, who has stated that he supports the rights of all...
- Former webpage from Archive.org
- Mirror of the site