Scientologists will let the trial "determine the ability to empanel an unbiased jury." CLEARWATER — Church of Scientology officials thought hard before making public a survey they commissioned that found widespread negative opinions about Scientology. The church then used the survey to argue that negative media reports had prejudiced Tampa Bay area residents so badly that the church could not get a fair trial in an upcoming civil case. The trial should be moved, they said. Church officials knew the survey ...

Scientology officials have gotten smarter about public relations, but they shouldn't be surprised that most local residents still remember their past tactics. Many Pinellas County residents know the story of how the Church of Scientology slipped into Pinellas under a different name in 1975 and began buying property in downtown Clearwater, where it established its international religious retreat known as Flag. They remember the clashes that followed between Clearwater city officials and Scientology, the church's penchant for secrecy and the disinformation ...

TAMPA — How many roving Scientologists are too many? The church, which has been criticized for aggressive canvassing in Ybor City, met with its neighbors this week and discussed that very question. After the meeting, Ybor civic leader Vince Pardo was pleased. The Scientologists, he said, had agreed to dispatch no more than two people at a time to recruit new members from the streets of Ybor. But church spokeswoman Ana Tirabassi didn't remember it that way. She said the church ...

The church will use the renovated building to sell books, administer IQ tests and offer courses. But some merchants are grumbling about canvassing tactics. The Church of Scientology will raise its Ybor City profile with the grand opening Saturday of a building it renovated next to Centro Ybor. Scientology of Tampa spokeswoman Ana Tirabassi said the church wants to be a good neighbor. But some merchants and community leaders have raised concerns about canvassing tactics. The church spent $200,000 renovating the ...

The church says a survey shows that Pinellas jurors have been heavily influenced by media reports. Respondents used words such as "cult" and "evil" frequently. CLEARWATER — Earlier this spring, as the Church of Scientology prepared for its biggest trial in recent history, professional researchers combed Tyrone Square Mall asking Pinellas residents what they thought of the church. "A cult," said person after person. "Scam," said one. "Crooks," said another. The researchers, hired by the church, questioned 300 people. Their findings ...

Recent articles disturb an active Scientologist There are two points I would like to state about your recent articles on Scientology missions and the Scientologist landlord. I have been active in Scientology since 1969. I have lived in Clearwater since 1989. I have worked in the church from 1971 to 1981, as well as having worked with (Scientology founder) L. Ron Hubbard on a few occasions. I feel I have enough background to understand people's responses to these articles. 1) Scientologists ...

Re: Detox center seeks acceptance, story, March 30. Narconon, a Scientology drug treatment program, wants taxpayers' dollars by having the local court system order people into the program at a cost of $7,500 per client. The article goes on to state that the "political elite" - such as Clearwater Mayor Brian Aungst, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judges Linda Allan and Linda Babb (how can judges endorse a $7,500-per-client religious program?) and County Commissioner Susan Latvala - are impressed, and Pinellas Public Defender Robert ...

Narconon, a drug treatment program with Scientology backing, now wants taxpayer assistance. CLEARWATER – At Tampa Bay's newest alternative to mainstream drug treatment, the license issued by the state hangs next to commendations from the Church of Scientology. Narconon, a controversial drug treatment program based on techniques developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, has opened its first Florida facility in Clearwater in a commercial park off U.S. 19. Past the meticulously clean lobby are classrooms where recovering addicts take a ...

A man says he and two friends restrained his wife for a trip to the doctor. Instead, they earn a trip to jail. LARGO — A man was arrested Tuesday and accused of enlisting two friends to help him tie up his wife so he could take her to the doctor. Largo police arrested Terry Ray Hemphill, 54, on charges of felony false imprisonment and misdemeanor domestic battery. Jamie J. Popa, 33, and Laurie Lynn Miller, 32, also were arrested on ...

The church's check will pay for double-breasted jackets with brass buttons for Clearwater Fire Department's Honor Guard. CLEARWATER — A new ceremonial unit of the Clearwater Fire Department will now be fully uniformed, thanks to a $3,300 contribution from the Church of Scientology's Volunteer Ministers. City manager Bill Horne, who was asked by the fire chief to okay the donation presented to firefighters Thursday, said he thinks this is the first monetary donation Scientologists ever have made to the city. After ...

Greg Bashaw's father respected him and trusted him to make wise choices. Even after he chose to devote his life to Scientology. While the shock and grief of his son's suicide were still fresh, Bob Bashaw read back through their decades-long correspondence, looking in particular for references to Scientology. "I wanted to see what there was here I missed," he says. His son Greg had been a member of the Church of Scientology for more than 20 years. During that time ...

Scientology's largest facility in the world, still more than a year from completion, has altered the Clearwater skyline. CLEARWATER – From arched 31-foot windows to the 1,140-seat dining room, there is much that will be grand in the Church of Scientology's new downtown religious center. It will have 889 rooms, 447 windows, 42 bathrooms. A two-story lighted cross will perch atop the highest tower, 150 feet up. The building even has a hefty nickname, "Super Power." In recent weeks, the building's ...

For years, Bob Minton was the principal opponent in one of the church's nastiest public battles. Now, in a stunning reversal, Minton's testimony is helping the church fight the Lisa McPherson wrongful death lawsuit. The handwritten list ran three pages long, an account of the trouble and expense Robert Minton had caused the Church of Scientology. * Fighting the Lisa McPherson wrongful death case: $14.4-million. * Dealing with lawsuits around the globe: more than $6-million. * Paying security to protect Clearwater ...

The millionaire testifying on behalf of the church "is in all manner of trouble," a judge says. ST. PETERSBURG — New England millionaire Robert Minton came forward recently to say he wanted to set the record straight about lies he told in a wrongful-death lawsuit against the Church of Scientology. But his confessions and testimony may bring him a heap of new legal problems. Judge Susan Schaeffer said Wednesday that Minton could be in serious trouble with her, the State Attorney's ...

Monday was supposed to be Day One of the long-delayed wrongful death trial against the Church of Scientology. Instead, it was Day 22 of a hearing to throw out the lawsuit that blames the church for the 1995 death of Scientologist Lisa McPherson. The hearing, which began May 2 and now boasts nearly 300 exhibits, is not nearly over. Judge Susan Schaeffer has set aside most of this week and next for the proceeding. The church is accusing attorney Ken Dandar, ...

Home is a pair of waterfront mansions valued at $3.8-million on a gated Belleair island. His ride to work is a sleek Mercedes S600. Retail: $100,000. He has a $6.6-million getaway in Aspen, Colo. He's refurbishing two New York City office buildings he bought for $41-million. Bryan Zwan has become wealthy since founding Digital Lightwave 12 years ago. Last fall, he joined Bill Gates and Warren Buffett on the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans. Zwan, 54, exudes the friendliness, ...

Months of interviews and thousands of pages of court papers show the effect that influential church members had on a Clearwater company that was a darling of the dot-com boom. It was New Year's Eve 1997 when Digital Lightwave's chief, Bryan Zwan, made his biggest deal: a $9-million contract for his signature product, a 10-pound device that tests telephone lines. At 5:30 p.m., Zwan phoned his production staff and gave them a tall order: Ship the 308 units right away. It ...

Regardless of legal misconduct claims, a judge says a wrongful death suit against the Church of Scientology is going to trial. ST. PETERSBURG — A wrongful death lawsuit against the Church of Scientology probably won't be dismissed because of recent allegations of legal misconduct, a judge indicated Thursday. A hearing resumes this morning on a motion to remove attorney Ken Dandar, who represents the estate of Lisa McPherson, a church member who died in 1995 while in the care of Scientologists ...

It is unknown whether [Wood] and [Marie Hansen]'s conduct simply was inept or disturbingly conspiratorial in the zeal to hold someone accountable for the death of a child. Their sloppy records in the Long case include listing the wrong gender for the baby and contradictory accounts of the existence of subarachnoid hemorrhage - bleeding in the brain. Inexplicably, the autopsy report contains no documentation of the baby's pneumonia-filled lungs. Wood, who approved Hansen's autopsy of Long, has little credibility left. Her ...

Scientology tries to end a lawsuit by having the plaintiff's attorney in the case removed. CLEARWATER – The Church of Scientology is rolling out an aggressive set of legal maneuvers aimed at wiping out one of its biggest headaches: the lawsuit blaming the church for the 1995 death of Lisa McPherson. The church is zeroing in on Tampa attorney Ken Dandar, who in representing McPherson's family has mustered an unrelenting challenge costing the church millions and fueling unending bad publicity. Accusing ...

As a Scientologist, I was encouraged by Mayor Glenda Hood's op-ed piece regarding Leadership Florida's initiative, "Faces of Florida," which she co-chairs and whose goal is to curtail prejudice. As a new religion, Scientology has come up against discrimination from time to time. Discriminating against a religion is not a new activity for prejudiced individuals. Having a group such as Faces of Florida promoting communication between citizens of diverse backgrounds whether they be religious, racial or geographic will certainly improve our ...

Billboards are going up in major U.S. cities claiming to have an answer for those in distress. Some mental health experts question the church's motive. For Americans troubled by economic uncertainty, fear and grief, 1,100 Church of Scientology billboards going up in major U.S. cities claim to have an answer. "No matter how bad it is ... SOMETHING CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT." The billboards are part of an unprecedented national media campaign by Scientology to reach what it calls "a ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...