Graham Berry on Riverside Ordinance

Graham has sent out this reposnse to a proposed ordinance which would prohibit protests at Gold:

GRAHAM E. BERRY
ATTORNEY & COUNSELOR AT LAW
3384 McLAUGHLIN AVENUE
LOS ANGELES, CA 90066
Telephone and Facsimile: (310) 745-3771
Email: grahamberry@ca.rr.com

January 4, 2009

By Fax, Email and Hand Delivery.

The Chairman and Board of Supervisors
Riverside County Board of Supervisors
County Administrative Center
4080 Lemon Street-Fifth Floor
Riverside, CA 92501

Re:  Proposed Ordinances 884 and 888: Targeted Residential Picketing
Board meeting January 6, 2009, Agenda Items 3.28 and 3.29 (Supervisor
Stone)

Honorable Chairman and Gentlemen:

The real purpose of the two proposed ordinances is to prevent staff
employed by the Church of Scientology Sea Organization from seeing or
hearing the messages of persons engaged in peaceful First Amendment
protected activity outside the Church of Scientology International
Headquarters and Golden Era Productions facilities at 19625 Highway
79, Gilman Hot Springs, CA 92583. Scientology senior management call
the property “Gold Base” and I shall too. In that regard, I urge you
to do an Internet Google search of “gold base.” The Church’s only need
for urgency is an anticipated public picket of Gold Base on January
24, 2009, and the orders of Scientology’s totalitarian, self-
appointed leader, David Miscavige, that the picket be stopped
irrespective of what doing that costs.

For over a decade, a steady stream of public pickets along the side of
Highway 79 outside Gold Base have contributed to many Church of
Scientology staff members finding a way out of what many ex-members
describe as a forced labor and detention camp where some staff members
have been confined for many years on what Scientology calls the
“Rehabilitation Project Force” or the RPF, and the even more draconian
RPF’s RPF. For example, it has been reported that over the past decade
the number of Gold Base staff has declined from about 1,200 to about
400.  Consequently, for nearly a decade Scientology’s leader has tried
to deter these public protests with contrived arrests, contrived
criminal charges and perjured civil claims. The flavor of some of this
sordid history can be read through a Google search of the terms: hemet
henson corruption. Indeed, an appeal of the travesty of justice in one
of the Henson cases is now pending before the Fourth California
District Court of Appeals. A more recent case involving hogtying by
Scientology security goons, excessive force, false imprisonment and
personal original is now commencing its journey through the criminal
and civil courts.

Gold Base is not an ecclesiastical or fraternal dormitory as
Scientology has argued elsewhere. Gold Base includes the offices and
residences of Scientology’s senior international management staff, the
RPF and RPF’s RPF which many former Gold Base staffers have compared
to Soviet Gulags and Nazi concentration camps (where, ironically, work
would also set the inmates free).

Gold Base also includes the very profitable manufacturing E-Meters (a
form of lie detector), film production and the publishing facility for
Scientology media as well as The Golden Era film studios which are
also understood to be rented to non-Scientology entities from time to
time. The Scientology E-Meters, which cost less than fifty dollars to
manufacture, are sold to Scientologists at prices that range from a
few thousand dollars to nearly thirty thousand dollars. Gold Base is,
in reality, a slave labor camp as illustrated by the enclosed copy of
a September 23, 2008, letter initiating a now pending California Labor
Commission claim against Gold Base. Scientology staffers at Gold Base
sign billion year employment contracts and work 100 hour plus weeks
for about 39 cents per hour.

In addition, as you can read in the enclosed news article called
“Selling Scientology,” many of these so-called life-long religious
volunteers at Gold Base have been physically assaulted by Captain
David Miscavige, the leader of the para-military church and “best
friend” of Scientologist Tom Cruise who himself lobbies political and
governmental officials on behalf of the Scientology enterprise. As you
will also read among the enclosures with this letter, Gold Base
includes fortified facilities complete with an armed sniper
overlooking the City of Hemet.

What happens to all the money from the sale of these E-meters, books,
videos, courses, auditing (counseling) hours, etc.? This is how it has
been recently explained including approximate amounts, percentages,
etc., herein for illustrative purposes only. In 1999, there was a
reporting change in the income system and then again in 2007 there was
another change in connection with reporting book sale revenue.
However, it has been explained that the Church of Scientology now uses
secret Merrill Lynch numbered bank accounts for these monies.
Approximately 50-75% of the money “earned” is deposited into numbered
Merrill Lynch accounts in Los Angeles and Antigua. Apparently, there
are about forty numbered “Pool Accounts” in secret Scientology
accounts with Merrill Lynch in Antigua. After its deposit into these
accounts, the money is then apparently transferred elsewhere offshore.
Almost all of the Scientology money goes through the numbered Merrill
Lynch accounts so that there is no way to trace it. Scientology’s
totalitarian leader, Captain David Miscavige, has absolute power over
the money. There is no accounting to anyone else within the Church of
Scientology International, The Religious Technology Center or
Scientology’s apex corporation the shadowy Church of Spiritual
Technology. Please Google these various entities. Because the 1993
settlement agreement between the United States Internal Revenue
Service (IRS), and the Scientology conglomerate makes the Scientology
enterprise responsible for its own tax compliance, the Church does not
have to worry about the IRS ever seeing the second set of financial
records. Allegedly, the Church of Scientology has largely ignored most
of the requirements of the secret tax agreement that also gives
individual Scientologists, the Churches and Corporations of
Scientology special tax advantages and exemptions that are not
permitted to any other United States taxpayer or church. Google: Sklar
v. IRS.

It has also been alleged that Merrill Lynch itself is infiltrated by
Scientology operatives. The amount of Church of Scientology money that
regularly is moving offshore through the secret numbered Merrill Lynch
bank accounts is apparently in the many tens of millions of dollars.
It is said there are Pool Accounts in Los Angeles, CA. and Clearwater,
FL. Additionally, Bridge Publications Inc., apparently has a numbered
account in Merrill Lynch New York and the International Association of
Scientologists (IAS) has a numbered account at Merrill Lynch in Los
Angeles as well. There are also secret numbered Merrill Lynch accounts
in Europe; for example: Merrill Lynch in London.

In mid April/May 2003, there was a problem in the Church of
Scientology “Incomm” finance system. Many longs hours were required to
provide a proper paper trail to deal with all the money that was just
sitting in the Incomm. “Pool” accounts. There was an “invoice drive”
to create six years of invoices for things that were never received.
This would be false invoicing and apparently Scientology attorney
Kendrick Moxon was extensively involved. It took a good deal of effort
involving a big push to get all of the false invoicing completed by a
certain date. Mr. Moxon was in his office pushing the Incomm staff to
get it done 24/7 to fix “the Flap.” The “shore story” was that there
was lost data and un-transferred data between the old and new Incomm.
systems. It is claimed that about $25 million had to be cleaned up in
this allegedly attorney supervised fraud.

Let’s use the example of a $1,000 course payment paid to a Scientology
Class IV Church or “Org.” Once a week, the Org pays its revenues into
the Church’s electronic “Incomm” finance system where it is
transferred to the Treasury Secretary at the Flag Banking Office. Some
money is retained at Flag for the provision of services. The rest of
the money goes to a “Pool Account” which is a numbered account inside
the Scientology Finance System. The payment itself is also assigned a
number. Donations, invoiced payments and debits are then paid into
different secondary accounts within the numbered Merrill Lynch
accounts.  Returning to our $1,000 course payment example, $500 would
be deposited “on account” into a Services account and the other $500
for an OT package (usually costing many thousands of dollars) into the
“Pool Account.” Of this, 30% would be transferred via Merrill Lynch to
the Religious Technology Center (“RTC”) secret numbered account in Los
Angeles for the various RTC licensing fees [then up to Church of
Spiritual Technology or CST]. The other 70% would also be paid into a
Merrill Lynch numbered account, but transferred offshore to another
numbered Merrill Lynch account in Antigua.

The frequent and numerous Scientology “special events” also provide a
vehicle for pushing money around offshore in numbered accounts. For
example, there may be a M.V. Freewind’s event. Some of the money would
be paid to the Org and transferred into the “Pool Account.” Thirty per
cent of that might be paid to RTC for its license fees. The rest of
the money would be paid to the ship’s account offshore from which
another 30% would be paid to RTC for its license fees. Here we see
that RTC is, in effect, “double dipping.” Thus from a $10,000 payment,
$5,000 would be paid to the Org from which $1, 500 (30%) would be paid
to RTC and $5,000 would be paid offshore to the ship from which about
$1,500 would also be paid to RTC.

There is also a great deal of money flowing into the World Institute
of Scientology Enterprises (“WISE”) every week. Some of the money
stays in the local chapter for operating costs. Most of the money goes
to WISE Int. (International). From WISE Int., (1) a variable amount
(more than 30%; likely 40-50%) goes to RTC; (2) the rest is paid into
the WISE Chapter “Pool Account.” It is used for buying church
buildings and for forming real estate companies to buy buildings (e.g.
Waterfront, Inc., in Hamburg, Germany). Consequently, tax exempt IRS
section 501 (c) (3) religious monies are allegedly being paid into
offshore numbered Merrill Lynch bank accounts and then invested into
various for profit projects and into for profit corporate accounts. It
has been alleged to me that many of these companies (false fronts)
then declare bankruptcy, the documents disappear and on the W.I.S.E.
account books you merely see “company ceased operations.”

All Scientologists must belong to the International Association of
Scientologists (“IAS”) which has multiple levels of very expensive
memberships. Officially the IAS monies are paid to the U.K. but this
is another “Scientology shore [or false] story” for the United States
tax authorities. In fact, IAS monies get bundled and are paid into a
Merrill Lynch Pool numbered bank account, one of about forty different
numbered Merrill Lynch pool accounts maintained by the Church. For
example, there is might be IAS membership drive requiring every Org to
raise $20,000-$30,000. A total of five million dollars is bundled.
Then a certain amount of that bundle is transferred to the Church
accounts in the U.K. The Church then waits until the currency exchange
rate is as high as possible. However, as between IAS [CoS] and Merrill
Lynch there is an agreement that currency exchanges and transfers will
be made at a fixed exchange rate. Allegedly, only the lower rate is
reported to the U.S. IRS. The IAS has a trading account with Merrill
Lynch and Merrill Lynch has one with Travel Ex (on behalf of the
Church of Scientology). Subsequently the difference between the higher
exchange rate and the lower exchange rate is transferred to the
numbered Merrill Lynch accounts in Antigua. The rest of the money [of
say $5 million] from the IAS drive [say $2.5 million] goes to the IAS
goal drive. So the Scientology public is [fraudulently] told that all
the money goes to the U.K. but in reality it is only a small
percentage of what is actually raised. Most of the money has been
transferred to a secret numbered Merrill Lynch offshore bank account
in Antigua (and other favorable havens).

The next step of one of these alleged frauds may well go like this:
IAS might launch a new campaign by the Scientology front-group
Citizen’s Commission for Human Rights (“CCHR”) a group opposed to the
mental health profession. It requires publications and videos which
will be produced by Gold Base at Gilman Hot Springs, CA. For example,
Gold Base might charge the IAS $2 million for the video but the actual
cost to the IAS will be only $1 million. So there is the invoiced
amount and the amount actually paid. Then, say $1 million is paid by
Gold Base to RTC for the use of the LRH copyrights.  The same type of
scheme is used for the book sales by Bridge Publications (BPI).

Other sources of Scientology income are also amendable to this alleged
fraud by the Church. For example, the Scientology “chapel” might be
rented out for cash, say $1,500 per month. This cash all goes into the
“Pool Account” and then to one of the secret Scientology offshore
numbered Merrill Lynch bank accounts in Antigua. Meanwhile, for
operating purposes, the Church of Scientology maintains many local
bank accounts. For example, with Bank of America and Washington
Mutual.

Let me give one recent example to those celebrity opinion leaders who
say the Church of Scientology is a harmless mainstream church that
should be ignored and allowed to go about its business of making
money. Allow me give one example of how insidious and despicably
deceitful, dangerous and deadly this faux church is, even to its own
celebrity members such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta.

In 1987, the Church of Scientology bought the 5,000 ton cruise ship
the M.V. Freewinds. At the time, the Church of Scientology knew that
the ship was riddled with blue asbestos. It said this all over the
plans and they were told that by the engineer in charge of converting
the ship to Scientology use. David Miscavige and the Church of
Scientology intentionally and negligently ignored the warnings. Why?
Because the ship would be used by upper level Scientologists who are
immune to all disease or injury, and because Scientology E-meter
monitored auditing will cure all injuries or illnesses anyway,
including, by way of example, cancer, and since Hubbard never wrote
that asbestos can cause cancer, it cannot be true. In 1991, there was
another reminder that the M.V. Freewinds was a killer ship exposing
its passengers and crew to deadly cancer causing blue asbestos. The
affidavit of Lawrence Woodcraft, the man who advised Miscavige of the
cancer causing blue asbestos was posted on the Internet. Three months
ago, the Scientology killer ship, M.V. Freewinds, was arrested in
Curacao, because of asbestos contamination. Experts say the ship
cannot be fully stripped of the deadly substance. Scientology is
stripping away what asbestos it can, with its slave labor who believe
that Scientology will protect them from asbestosis.

Today, Scientology staff is callously still being exposed to deadly
cancer causing agents. Asbestos is being dangerously dumped in
landfills. This is a public health and safety outrage involving
thousands of people knowingly and intentionally being exposed to
asbestos and the potential of Asbestiosis. Tom Cruise, John Travolta
and all of the other Scientology celebrities have been intentionally,
knowingly and negligently exposed to cancer causing blue asbestos,
which is the very worst sort of asbestos. Scientology has ignored the
problem. Scientology denies it. Scientology is now selling cruises and
Scientology courses on the Freewinds in spite of the asbestos
contamination. This is a public health and safety threat, and a huge
looming public health cost. The Riverside County Supervisors should
not be supporting the Church of Scientology in its attempts to prevent
its staff members at Gold Base from receiving information and regular
monitoring for asbestosis. Suppressing freedom of speech to prevent
Scientology staffers from learning, among other things, of their
potential exposure to deadly blue asbestos is despicable. You should
Google: “Scientology and IRS” and  “Blown for Good” and you should
also read: www.xenu.net/ and www.whyweprotest.net/ and  www.forum.exscn.net/
and http://www.exseaorg.com/ and www.lermanet.com/ and www.whyaretheydead.net/
and www.scientology-kills.org/ , and the many dozens of related web
sites critical of the criminal conduct, human and civil rights
violations, and other abusive conduct of the corporations and churches
of scientology.

I urge each of you vote against the proposed ordinances in any form
that might arguably be applied to limit the proximity of public
protests along the edge of Highway 79 outside the Church of
Scientology’s Gold Base at Gilman Hot Springs near Hemet.

In addition, I urge each of you to introduce and/or support a full,
transparent and public investigation, with public submissions and
public hearings, into any actual unlawful activities, unlawful conduct
or human rights/civil rights/labor rights violations that have
occurred in, and in connection with, the Scientology facilities known
as Gold Base. Remember Jonestown and Waco. Your oaths of office
require nothing less.

        Respectfully,

                                               Graham E. Berry

Map of Scientology’s International Headquarters:
http://www.portlandmercury.com/extras/pdf/feature/base-map.pdf from:
Selling Scientology, A Former Scientologist Marketing Guru Turns
against the Church by Matt Davis http://www.portlandmercury.com/news/selling_scientology/Content?oid=862344

www.grahamberry.com

Ccs: Per separate
list.
Enclosures: Per separate list.

Supervisor Roy Wilson, Chairman
Riverside County Board of Supervisors
4080 Lemon St., 5th Floor
Riverside, CA 92502

district4@rcbos.org
Fax: (951) 955-2194

Tel: (951) 955-1040

Supervisor Bob Buster
Riverside County Board of Supervisors
4080 Lemon St., 5th Floor
Riverside, CA 92502

district1@rcbos.org
Fax: 951-955-1019

Phone: 951-955-1010

Supervisor Marion Ashley
Riverside County Board of Supervisors
4080 Lemon St., 5th Floor
Riverside, CA 92502

district5@rcbos.org
(951) 955-1050

Supervisor John Tavaglione
Riverside County Board of Supervisors
4080 Lemon Street, 5th Floor
Riverside, California 92501

district2@rcbos.org

(951) 955-1020

Supervisor Jeff Stone
Riverside County Board of Supervisors
4080 Lemon St., 5th Floor
Riverside, CA 92501

district3@rcbos.org
Faxes: (951) 955-2194, (951) 301-8571, (951) 791-3465

(951) 955-1030

Press Enterprise: Riverside News Fax (951) 368-9023; Hemet News Fax
(9510) 763-3450
Los Angeles Times:  michael.owen@latimes.com
tenny.tatusian@latimes.com

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