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Scientology library: “"St. Petersburg Times (Florida)"”

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ben shaw • church of scientology flag service organization (csfso) • clearwater • cost • david miscavige • death • fort harrison hotel (also, flag land base) @ 210 south fort harrison avenue clearwater fl united states • fraud, lie, deceit, misrepresentation • gabriel "gabe" cazares • internal revenue service (irs) • joan wood • lawsuit • legal • lisa mcpherson • mark c. "marty" rathbun • michael j. "mike" rinder • operation snow white • real estate • richard a. haworth • robert farley • sea organization (sea org, so) • super power/flag building (formerly, gray moss inn) @ 215 south fort harrison avenue clearwater fl united states • tax matter • the truth rundown (st. petersburg times' special report) • thomas c. tobin
Reference materials St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
746 matching items found.
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Page of 25: ⇑ Latest         
Dec 20, 2001
Scientologists buy high-rise in Clearwater — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Christina Headrick
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
The church pays $5-million for the 13-story downtown property, which the church tried and failed to purchase years ago. CLEARWATER – The Church of Scientology has purchased a vacant 13-story high-rise downtown that will house more than 600 new staff members in another step in Scientology's unprecedented expansion in the city. The church last week closed the deal to buy the nearly 2-acre property for $5-million from a nonprofit corporation, BEF Inc., which does business as the Oaks of Clearwater. Scientology ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Dec 9, 2001
Church loads up for one last fight — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
CLEARWATER – No angry swarms picketed the Church of Scientology last week. No candlelight vigils. No TV cameras. No extra police patrols. For the first time in six years, the anniversary of the death of Scientologist Lisa McPherson passed quietly. The McPherson maelstrom, which brought nightmarish publicity for the church, has ebbed dramatically, now that the high-profile criminal charges against the church were dropped and a raucous group of church critics recently left Clearwater. But one critical battle remains, one so ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Oct 26, 2001
$80-million development planned — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Christina Headrick
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Lee Arnold envisions a 17-story condominium and a luxury hotel overlooking Clearwater's waterfront. CLEARWATER — Real estate heavyweight Lee Arnold announced plans Thursday to build an upscale, 17-story condominium and a luxury "boutique" hotel in an $80-million project that could boost downtown redevelopment. The project, which would span 1.7-acres between Osceola and Fort Harrison avenues south of Drew Street, incorporates some ideas voters rejected in a referendum on redevelopment last summer. Arnold, chairman of Colliers Arnold Commercial Real Estate Services, said ...
Sep 15, 2001
'Mental health' hotline a blind lead — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
The televised blurb offered mental health assistance dealing with the attacks. Callers reached Scientologists. Television viewers who turned to Fox News on Friday for coverage of the terrorist attack also saw a message scrolling across the bottom of their screens – National Mental Health Assistance: 800-FOR-TRUTH. Unknown to the cable news channel, the phone number connects to a Church of Scientology center in Los Angeles, where Scientologists were manning the phones. Scientology officials said the number is a hotline offering referrals ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Sep 8, 2001
Scientology in sermon title raises eyebrows — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
"Why Scientology Isn't a Church" is just a provocative title, and the sermon may not even mention Scientology, a pastor says. CLEARWATER — The church marquee faces a busy six-lane highway and announces Sunday's sermon: "Why Scientology Isn't a Church." It's the title of the Rev. Raymond Guterman's message at Northwood Presbyterian Church in Countryside. And along with the marquee, the church also promoted the sermon this week in ads in the St. Petersburg Times. Such a public affront to Scientology ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Aug 24, 2001
Real problems with a fictional movie — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Steve Persall
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Peter D. Alexander believes he's doing a public service with his film The Profit. For the Church of Scientology, The Profit is just a nuisance. Moviegoers can see for themselves beginning tonight. Alexander's work of fiction, based on the life of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, begins an exclusive run at Clearwater Cinema Cafe at the corner of U.S. 19 and Sunset Point Road. Alexander declares his movie to be a warning against the influence of religious cults. It's the story ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Aug 14, 2001
Building boom expands lodgings for Scientology — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
With the Sandcastle and Osceola expansions, the church now has 565 rooms in and near downtown Clearwater. CLEARWATER — The Church of Scientology boasts more hotel rooms and religious counseling spaces in Clearwater than ever before with the completion this summer of $9-million of construction downtown. The church now has 565 hotel rooms in and near downtown Clearwater. In a typical week, about 1,300 visiting Scientologists from around the world lodge there while receiving spiritual counseling and training. The newest expansions ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Aug 4, 2001
Doctor in Lisa McPherson case suspended — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Thomas C. Tobin
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
David I. Minkoff loses his license for one year for improperly prescribing drugs for the Scientologist. TALLAHASSEE — Florida's Board of Medicine has sternly sanctioned Clearwater physician David I. Minkoff, finding he improperly prescribed medicine for a patient he had never seen — Scientologist Lisa McPherson. Minkoff, also a Scientologist, prescribed Valium and the muscle relaxant chloral hydrate at the behest of unlicensed Church of Scientology staffers who were trying to nurse McPherson, 36, through a severe mental breakdown. When they ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Aug 2, 2001
Man's film a veiled look at Scientology — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Robert Farley
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
A 20-year former Scientologist who now calls it a cult has created a work of fiction that closely resembles the Clearwater group. It's a movie about cults based on fictional characters, says the director. But it's hard to miss the inspiration behind The Profit. The main character is a science-fiction writer who founds a religion. Get it? The leader starts the Church of Scientific Spiritualism. His name: L. Conrad Powers. The full-length feature film was written and directed by Peter Alexander, ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jun 22, 2001
Church scores round in death suit — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Robert Farley
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
A judge dismisses the allegation that Lisa McPherson was falsely imprisoned. ST. PETERSBURG — The Church of Scientology won a partial victory Thursday when a judge dismissed one of four counts in a 4-year-old wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of Lisa McPherson. In one of his final acts overseeing the case, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Frank Quesada dismissed the count alleging that McPherson was falsely imprisoned. Ken Dandar, the lawyer representing the McPherson estate, argued that McPherson was psychotic and ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jun 19, 2001
Parking garage plans fall apart — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Christina Headrick
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
That means plans for a new bus terminal downtown also have crumbled. CLEARWATER — A first-of-its-kind partnership to build a downtown parking garage on top of a new bus terminal was pronounced dead Monday. Negotiations involving the city, the Church of Scientology, Pinellas County and the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority failed to produce a deal to make the project work. Several months of talks ended last week, after one last-ditch effort to save the project. "We really did try," said Assistant ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jun 12, 2001
Church, city may trade property — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
More: rickross.com
Type: Press
Author(s): Christina Headrick
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Clearwater says the deal with Scientologists consolidates downtown properties. Clearwater — The Church of Scientology and the city have forged a deal to swap land downtown so both organizations can consolidate blocks of property. Commissioners will vote June 21 whether to approve the proposal, which would give the church two vacant parcels now used for parking while the city would get a smaller lot with a building on it. If the deal is approved, the church would own an entire block, ...
May 26, 2001
Opinion: Church behavior? — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Scientology claims that it has reformed and says it should be treated like any other church. But the Jesse Prince case and others continue to set this church apart. You have to be courageous to publicly criticize the Church of Scientology. The organization recently proved – again – how far it will go to investigate, smear and intimidate critics. Jesse Prince is one of those people the Church of Scientology perceives as an enemy because he is a vocal critic. A ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
May 26, 2001
Scientology critic won't face retrial — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Prosecutors decide to drop a marijuana charge after jurors, concerned about church influence, deadlock. CLEARWATER — When the two-day misdemeanor trial of Scientology critic Jesse Prince ended Thursday, jurors had little doubt he had possessed marijuana as the state charged. What bothered some of them, according to two jurors, was the possibility that Prince had been set up by the Church of Scientology. They heard testimony about how Prince, once a high-ranking church member, was watched, videotaped and trailed for months ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
May 24, 2001
Scientology is a key player in marijuana case — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
The defense is bringing the church into the case, saying that the arrest was tied to the church's relentless surveillance of a critic, the defendant. LARGO — Five lawyers helped fill the courtroom Wednesday in a misdemeanor trial that included poster-board-size charts, a video recording, expert scientific testimony, five other witnesses and repeated references to the Church of Scientology. After five hours of courtroom proceedings, the marijuana possession case against strident Scientology critic Jesse Prince still was not over at the ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
May 19, 2001
Church critic trailed, arrested — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
The Church of Scientology investigated critic Jesse Prince, then passed information along to police. Last spring, a private investigator working for the Church of Scientology went to Largo police with a tip: A vocal critic of Scientology named Jesse Prince was involved with illegal drugs. Prince, 47, is a former church member and a key witness in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the church. Police investigated and arrested Prince, who is charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession. The case is set ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Apr 26, 2001
Scientology critics to get bricks — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
A group beautifying a Clearwater alley reverses course and will let donors memorialize a church member who died. CLEARWATER – Lisa McPherson will be memorialized in a downtown alley next door to a Church of Scientology building. A group that sold hundreds of engraved bricks to beautify the city-owned alley has reversed an earlier decision, deciding to allow a McPherson memorial brick and two other bricks submitted by Scientology critics. McPherson was a 36-year-old Scientologist who died in 1995 in the ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Mar 22, 2001
A Times Editorial / Police work for Scientology — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Thomas Penick, who has the unenviable task of refereeing sidewalk skirmishes between the Church of Scientology and anti-Scientology protesters in Clearwater, recently pointed to an arrangement that allows off-duty Clearwater cops to work for Scientology and noted, "They are coming very dangerously close to becoming a private security force for the Church of Scientology." Penick was right to call attention to the uncomfortably cozy relationship developing between city police and the church, which has its spiritual headquarters in ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Mar 11, 2001
Church pays those it reviled — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Off-duty Clearwater police provide security for the Church of Scientology, subject of many investigations. To some in law enforcement, the officers are crossing an ethical line. [Picture / Caption: "Off-duty Clearwater police officer Scott Wilson watches for oncoming cars on Watterson Avenue as Scientologists leav a bus."] CLEARWATER – Every day, off-duty Clearwater police officers provide security for the Church of Scientology, which was investigated by police for 18 years but now is putting thousands of dollars in officers' pockets. The ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jan 30, 2001
Scientology adds quietly to holdings — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Jan 10, 2001
Scientologist withdraws bid for church — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Dec 31, 2000
Avatar draws on wide sources to provide path to self-fulfillment — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Dec 21, 2000
Reaction mixed to plan for church — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Dec 20, 2000
Scientologist to buy downtown Largo site — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
A church building would be converted into a Scientology mission with classes and a bookstore. LARGO – A prominent Scientologist is leading an effort to buy an 86-year-old church in downtown Largo, where she plans to open a Scientology mission, a development that has raised concerns among some city officials. The investment is a substantial one. The newly incorporated Church of Scientology Mission of Largo Inc. is paying $389,000 for the church at 160 Sixth St. SW and the house behind ...
Dec 2, 2000
Scientology critics plan protest this weekend — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Deborah O'Neil
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
The annual event is restricted by a court order prescribing where the pickets can be. Police expect little or no friction. CLEARWATER – Critics of the Church of Scientology will take to downtown streets this weekend and march in a protest that has become an annual ritual. They will picket against a backdrop of special community events celebrating the holidays and the 10th anniversary of the Pinellas Trail. As it was last year, the protest will be tempered by a court ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Sep 30, 2000
Medical examiner leaves office — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): William R. Levesque
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Pinellas-Pasco Chief Medical Examiner Joan Wood was forced to resign after 18 years on the job. LARGO — It wasn't a happy day for employees of the Pinellas-Pasco medical examiner's office on Friday. Their longtime chief was finally gone. Chief Medical Examiner Joan Wood, the embattled doctor who swore never to resign after 18 years at the helm, finally closed out her last autopsy, cleared out her office this week and headed for a new start. "We've all gone through a ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jul 26, 2000
German visitor takes on Scientology — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Thomas C. Tobin
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Church leaders say the German official is a "fascist demagogue'' who has stoked a hate campaign. She says they exaggerate. CLEARWATER — The battle between the Church of Scientology and the German government, a long-running dispute steeped in emotion and international politics, has come crashing into Clearwater with a visit by a controversial German official. Ursula Caberta, who heads a government office in Hamburg that works to curb Scientology in Germany, said Tuesday at a downtown news conference that Scientology is ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jun 23, 2000
Editorial: Able medical examiner needed — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Medical examiners are vital to the criminal justice system. They investigate suspicious deaths, help determine if crimes were committed and influence the outcome of trials. They should be competent medical professionals, managers and witnesses. In each of those areas, serious questions have been raised about Pinellas-Pasco Medical Examiner Joan Wood. Before Gov. Jeb Bush decides whether to reappoint Wood to another three-year term, he should consider the consequences. Wood was at the center of a controversial decision by State Attorney Bernie ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jun 14, 2000
A case so different from all the others — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Howard Troxler
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
The distinction was important. To McCabe, the issue was never about the Church of Scientology as a religious institution. It was about whether a corporation of the church had illegally abused a member named Lisa McPherson, and whether it practiced medicine on her without a license, in the days leading to her death in 1995. The Church of Scientology now has two distinctions at the hands of Bernie McCabe. The first is that he chose to prosecute the church (I mean, ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
Jun 14, 2000
Scientology leader wanted a deal — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s): Thomas C. Tobin
Source: St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
CLEARWATER — Alarmed at the "massive impact" of two criminal charges, the Church of Scientology's worldwide leader quickly offered Pinellas County's top prosecutor a deal. Drop the charges, David Miscavige told State Attorney Bernie McCabe in November 1998, and the church would make a $500,000 donation to the county's EMS system. It also would pay the nearly $200,000 in expenses incurred in what then was a three-year investigation into Lisa McPherson's 1995 death while in the care of her fellow Scientologists. ...
Item contributed by: Ron Sharp
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