French Branch of Scientology Convicted of Fraud

Although the Church of Scientology enjoys limited protection in the United States under the First Amendment of our Constitution, they are not so exempt in France.

The landmark court case against the Church of Scientology finally received a verdict yesterday.

French Branch of Scientology Convicted of Fraud

The judges said the individuals had avoided jail in part because of efforts by the church “to change its practices.”

There have been other cases brought against individual Scientologists in France, but this was the first time the organization was charged for its methods of functioning.

“This is a historic decision,” said Olivier Morice, a lawyer for the plaintiffs. “It’s the first time in France that the entity of the Church of Scientology is condemned for fraud as an organized gang.” He said that the tribunal “expressed its will to maintain the structure of Scientology in order to make it easier to control,” adding that “it gave this decision a national and international dimension so that potential victims can be warned of the methods of Scientology.”

Catherine Picard, who runs an association to help victims of sects, called the verdict “subtle enough and intelligent,” saying that it would help control Scientology in France, and expressed the hope that the state would be “more vigilant.” She said that “Scientology can no longer hide behind freedom of conscience.”

Although the Church of Scientology likes to hide behind the pretense that they are a Religion, and protected by the United States Constitution, this is a good first step towards seeing Scientology at least reformed, if not dismantled for their Organized Crime/Ponzi Scam.

It is important to note that the decision of this landmark court case doesn't ban Scientology in France, but it does force them to reform. The only reason they avoided a complete ban under the judges' decision was entirely because they willingly made reforms to their practices prior to the case being heard in court. However, non compliance with the terms of the court decision could bring the case back to court if they are found in contempt to reconsider banning them in France outright.

Of course, the Church of Scientology is appealing this decision.

Thank you for posting this. I've always been fascinated when reading up on scientology. I think the best way to sum it up is the fact that Charles manson said the church of scientology was just too far out for him.

I wanted to add another link if that is ok, because not everyone has signed up for the nyt.

another link to story

[edit on 28-10-2009 by Seiko]

reply to post by fraterormus


Thank you for sharing this. There are many who fear this organization. Some insist, rightfully so.

It is important to note that repeatedly, European courts have frequently been free to state the obvious regarding this organization and it's peculiar practices; whereas corporate law and it's influence on the American government have left it impotent to contend with Scientology within the US legal framework.

In the US, where the political careerists are utterly beholden to media support, they dare not offend this well-connected organization.

Looking for more comments?

In Breaking Alternative News

Scientology fined £545,000 in first conviction for fraud (posted on 28-10-2009 @ 08:01 PM)
www.abovetopsecret.com...


Conspiracy in Religion

French Branch of Scientology Convicted of Fraud (posted on 28-10-2009 @ 12:45 PM)

Scientology had secret ET information which is different than the
ordinary ET cult that freely gave out their ET information and had
no secrets.

A new religion based on the ET and a life force.
Yeah, guess not.

Originally posted by fraterormus

It is important to note that the decision of this landmark court case doesn't ban Scientology in France, but it does force them to reform.

Reform... hmmm... is that like asking the wolf in sheeps clothing to try on a different outfit? At the end of the day you will still have the same toxic entity operating under the facade. They operate the way they do due to the core belief system of Scientology itself... this cannot and will not change!

More needs to be done!

IRM

Originally posted by InfaRedMan
Reform... hmmm... is that like asking the wolf in sheeps clothing to try on a different outfit? At the end of the day you will still have the same toxic entity operating under the facade. They operate the way they do due to the core belief system of Scientology itself... this cannot and will not change!

More needs to be done!

Although I agree, it also has to be done the RIGHT way. Even though it is Scientology, which undeniably has been a blight on society, it would be absolutely immoral to ban them outright without first giving them an opportunity to reform. If this happened in the U.S., and they were banned in the U.S., I'd hate to say it but I would be right there with the Scientologists fighting for their Rights, even though I strongly oppose them and their core belief system.

However, when you give a group the opportunity to change then you are taking the Moral High Ground. It would be a lot easier for people to swallow a Scientology ban if Scientology were given an opportunity to reform and they didn't take it. In such a case, no one in their right mind could find fault with a government making such impositions upon a "religion".

However, for the fact that Scientologists hide behind the facade of religious beliefs, it puts the whole situation into a sticky Grey Area that could end up being a slippery slope. Apparently the French Courts understand this, and don't want to set an unhealthy precedent that has the potential of being abused in the future. What do you think would happen if the Courts could decide what merits valid Religious Belief? What if the Court decides to force Santarians to reform and stop sacrificing chickens during their religious practices? What if the Court decides to force Christians to reform and stop practicing cannibalism when taking the Eucharist during their Mass? What if the Court decides to force Seventh Day Adventists to reform and stop using Faith Healing? The Court has no place imposing those kinds of rulings on beliefs.

So, the French Courts specifically addressed the manner in which they conduct "business", rather than on religious grounds, which was the smart thing to do. Rather than make it a religious issue, and threaten a ban on religious grounds, they did so on monetary issues, and how they bilk their followers out of money. Granted, in this respect Scientology is probably no worse than Evangelical Christian Preachers who God told them that they need another vacation home in the Caymans or another fleet of BMWs...but it prevents the Court from getting involved in issues that it has no business being involved in.

Although we all would like to see Scientology taken down for the count, the best way is to only ban them if they aren't willing to make acceptable changes themselves. They deserve a chance to reform...and if they blow it, then they deserve to be banned from conducting business. Until then, even if they are despicable, they deserve a fair chance, just like anyone else.

(Besides, when large sums of money is involved, do you think they are actually going to willingly kill that revenue stream? They'll blow it all on their own, due to their greed. Have faith.)