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Rich Dunning & Anne Marie Dunning

Rich Dunning was Deputy to the Executive Director, Church of Scientology of Buffalo.
Anne Marie Dunning was
EO & HCO Executive Secretary, Church of Scientology Buffalo.


The Buffalo News: "Being In, Breaking Out"

«Rich and Anne-Marie Dunning joined the Church of Scientology of Buffalo because they wanted to help save the world.

When they left their high-level church staff jobs on Mother's Day 2003, it was to save themselves.

By then, the Niagara Falls couple had concluded the church was an authoritarian, money-making cult that brainwashes its followers.

They say they ought to know, because it happened to them.

The Dunnings claim the church demanded unquestioning obedience to every church policy, belief and decision. They say it kept members in line with an elaborate security system - including use of personal files and lie detector-like devices; a system for informing on others, including spouses; and its own justice system.

The church also nearly gained control of their 9-year-old daughter.»

A Chat With Anne Marie Dunning

«Tanya: That doesn’t surprise me. You know my brother has been taught by Scientology to be deathly afraid of the psychiatric profession. He would freak out at the mention of the word psychiatry. He really used to display a radical and fanatical hatred towards the whole profession.

Anne Marie: Right. We practice those responses for hours and hours. We drilled on them, over and over, again and again. Everything you read or are told within the church about the field of psychiatry is evil, so eventually it becomes easier to accept the lies as truth.»

Dunnings and Durni Converse

«Tanya: Here’s another question that was posed to me since our last chat. Do you know anything about a Scientology family whose house burned in a fire and then the Church of Scientology went after the insurance money?

Anne Marie: Yes. Bill and Sue Weibert. They live in Youngstown, not far from Fort Niagara. I know they used at least part of the money they received from the insurance company to purchase auditing. I also know that her daughter, who is in the Sea Org, wrote a knowledge report about this. This was right before I left. I am not sure what happened from there. I do know that Jeff Carlson was trying to get them to use more of the money towards Bill’s auditing, but while I was there, Bill resisted.

Rich: That would be the good Scientologist in Jeff, it is more important for him to sell Scientology services, than to rebuild a family’s home.

Tanya: I suppose Jeff would make commissions off of that sale.

Rich: Of course. Commissions and praise from upper management.»

Rich Dunning's Report: Part I - My Indoctrination

«I took a post as Deputy to the Executive Director, Jeff T. Carlson. Jeff was surprised for a new comer to take that much responsibility; he told me I was a huge thetan to do that, and his words made me feel good. I only worked on post three days a week due to the fact that I had a full time wog job. After a few months on staff I began to question why I wasn’t being paid for my duties as promised.»

Rich Dunning's Report: Part II - The Black Hole

«I took my children with me to the Org so that I could be on post. My kids got there at 12:00 PM and did not leave until their mother was done some six hours later. I was forbidden to leave my post to check on them or get them something to eat, because that would be treason according to Jeff the Executive Director. And if I left to go check on them, he would immediately put me into that condition.»

Rich Dunning's Report: Part III - Disenchantment

«We were called in one at a time and asked if we read any of the material. We both vigorously denied doing any such thing, yet to my astonishment, we were told to disconnect from our families right away or “terrible” things would start to happen to us. In the mean time, I was secretly doing research at work about this “religion” and read the heart felt stories of people and families being split apart, children being taken away at young ages, deaths and other horrible things.»

Rich Dunning's Report: Part IV - Breaking Free

«Scientology preys upon people with good intentions and hearts, or others who have done something wrong and want to correct it.»

 

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