Scientology-linked drug rehab centre sued over $150,000 sniffer dog bills

Tom Cowie
The Age
April 4, 2017

A private security company that provided round-the-clock sniffer dogs to a secretive drug rehabilitation facility linked to the Church of Scientology is suing over more than $150,000 in unpaid debts.

The company, Australian K9 Detection Unit, lodged a writ in the County Court last week, claiming the secluded Narconon rehab centre in the Yarra Valley stopped paying bills racked up from the daily use of a narcotics dog and handler in late 2015.

The controversial international drug rehabilitation program Narconon was founded in 1966 and is based on the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard, the creator of the Church of Scientology.

The program has drawn criticism for its focus on detoxing from drugs through the heavy use of saunas. It has operated at O'Shannessy Lodge in Warburton East since 2001.

Court documents show Australian K9 Detection Unit began providing sniffer dogs and handlers to the Narconon program, which was also run under the name Get Off Drugs Naturally, in October 2013.

Sniffer dogs were on site at Narconon seven days a week between 6pm and midnight, according to court documents, with extra late-night services provided on Friday and Saturday.

The unit was also stationed at the 48-bed centre for family visiting day on Sunday afternoons.

The security company provided "student control", according to a statement of claim lodged in court, which involved regular sweeps of the facility to ensure drugs were not brought on to the premises.

A photo posted on social media shows employees with a German Shepherd outside the facility.

The security company claims the centre fell behind in payments in late 2015.

But dogs were still being provided until July 31 last year after the centre assured the plaintiff it would pay up "once a large donation was received".

Australian K9 Detection Unit is seeking $158,767.75 that it claims is still outstanding, plus late fees. Small weekly payments of between $500 and $2000 were still being made by the centre when the action was lodged, the writ said.

The writ was filed against the Association for Better Living and Education, an offshoot of the Church of Scientology, as well as the previous secretary and executive directors of Get Off Drugs Naturally.

The program was investigated by Consumer Affairs Victoria in 2015 and subsequently fined after claiming on its website that it had a high success rate of curing drug addiction with detox treatments.

Clients are charged about $30,000 for a six-to-nine-month stay, as well as $260 weekly fees for board.

Association for Better Living and Education was blocked by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal in 2015 from opening a new centre in central Warburton after more than a year of intense community opposition.

In the decision, VCAT ruled the residential site was an inappropriate location for the centre, due to the program's insufficient security and management regime.

The objectors cited 26 police callouts to the centre since 2005, including an incident in which a student threatened staff with an axe, a psychotic offender threatened to kill and an offender detoxing from heroin and ice harassed neighbours.

According to its website, Australian K9 Detection Unit also provides bomb detection dogs for government and private companies, including music concerts.

The company's CEO declined to comment on the case on Tuesday. Get Off Drugs Naturally was contacted for comment.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/scientologylinked-drug-rehab-centre-sued-over-150000-sniffer-dog-bills-20170404-gvd8en.html

Sheriff criticized for seeking state Senate post following handling of Narconon investigation

 

Friday, November 4, 2016

By Paighten Harkins Tulsa World 

 

Two men connected to the embattled Narconon Arrowhead say they consider Pittsburg County Sheriff and state Senate candidate Joel Kerns unqualified, saying he didn't do enough to investigate the drug rehab center, where a string of deaths drew national attention.

When asked for comment, Kerns said he couldn't see the link between his role in the investigation at Narconon Arrowhead and their experiences with the facility, saying his department carried the investigation as far as they could before it was handed over to different agencies.

Robert Murphy, whose daughter was the third patient to die at Narconon Arrowhead between 2011 and 2012, and former patient at the center, Colin Henderson, held a news conference Tuesday in which they challenged Kern’s fitness for District 7’s state Senate seat.

Both said they were "appalled" that someone who failed to prevent the Narconon deaths was seeking government office.

Murphy's daughter, 20-year-old Stacy Dawn Murphy, died at the center in July 2012. Her death followed those of patients Gabriel Graves in 2011 and Hillary Holten in 2012.

Murphy and his wife sued the rehab facility in 2013 over his daughter's death. He said if Kerns' department had properly investigated the previous deaths or complaints, she might still be alive.

“Anybody with any common sense could have seen what was going on in Narconon and pushed for its closure, so in my opinion, I feel he is responsible for those who lost their lives out there,” Murphy said.

Kerns' department conducted the initial investigation before it was turned over to the Pittsburg County District Attorney's Office, he said Wednesday.

The OSBI completed two partial investigations at Narconon related to Stacy Murphy's death. Kerns first called them to assist documenting the crime scene on July 19, 2012, bureau spokeswoman Jessica Brown said.

The district attorney asked for the agency's help again in March 2013 to interview witnesses about Murphy's death, Brown said.

"As far as I know, we did everything feasibly possible that we had our means to,” Kerns said about the investigation.

Murphy and Henderson's criticism hinged in part on newly discovered information revealed in a deposition with Kerns.

In the deposition, Kerns reportedly said he did not speak with anyone from Narconon Arrowhead during the investigation, did not review surveillance footage from the facility and never read the OSBI's final report into the deaths.

These statements coupled with a 2013 TV news interview Kerns gave, in which he says his department's investigation found nothing out of order at the facility, prove he's unqualified, Murphy and Henderson said.

The deposition will be made public when Murphy's case goes to trial, Henderson said.

When asked about the apparent contradiction between his on-air statements and the deposition, Kerns said he couldn't comment because of ongoing court proceedings.

"I really can't even comment on what I did say," Kerns said.

Murphy's attorneys are seeking a date for a jury trial. They filed an application to set a pretrial conference Oct. 24, according to online court records.

Neither Murphy nor Henderson live in District 7 and said they wanted to expose Kerns' "incompetency" to help voters.

“We have no stake in the race at all, and all we want is the constituent base to be informed to cast a vote that counts,” Henderson said.

The two alleged that the initial deaths should have warranted a more thorough investigation from the Sheriff's Office before more people died.

Kerns denied any wrongdoing and said his critics were playing "political games."

"We contacted the proper agencies and proper channels to properly investigate the accusations,” Kerns said.

A Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services report into practices at Narconon Arrowhead, a program based on the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology, recommended the facility be shut down after the string of deaths.

On its website, the facility bills itself as "non-religious" and claims students — as participants in the program are called — don't become Scientologists via enrollment in the facility.

The facility is still operating beside Lake Eufaula near Canadian in Pittsburg County.

 

Paighten Harkins

918-581-8455

paighten.harkins@tulsaworld.com

Twitter: @PaightenHarkins

 

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/courts/sheriff-criticized-for-seeking-state-senate-post-following-handling-of/article_29e644aa-3751-5ddc-91b8-53ee8c313172.html

 

Anti-drugs campaign is Scientology in disguise: spies

22 Jul 2016

The Local.de

Germany’s domestic security agency has warned Hamburg residents to be wary of information stands with the slogan ‘say no to drugs - say yes to life’.

While the slogan may seem innocuous enough, it is believed to be a cover for the local branch of the Church of Scientology.

Unlike the US, Germany does not recognize Scientology as a religion; it has instead been regarded as an 'anti-constitutional sect' in Germany since 1997, and is observed by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany's domestic security agency.

For this reason, the group - which has come under fire for controversial beliefs such as rejecting psychiatry and for harassment of critics - often operates under different names in Germany.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution warned Hamburg residents about the stands in a statement which described Scientology as an ‘anti-constitutional sect’, and said the ‘Say no to drugs’ group was ”one of the many camouflages” used by the controversial sect.

They said that the campaign was not affiliated to any professional drugs counselling services, and was merely a pretext to start conversations with unwitting Germans “and ultimately win over new members” to their belief system.

The agency added that use of an anti-drug slogan was a tactical decision, saying: “It is well known that the Scientology organization is observed by us, so it is unlikely that a single passerby would be interested if they openly used the ‘SO’ label."

The stands are due to appear in the Bergedorf district of Hamburg this Saturday, but it is far from the first time that Scientologists have used anti-drugs marketing to draw in new followers. The agency warned that the group distribute their leaflets in shops, including in Hamburg, and rarely include any indication that Scientology is behind the campaign.

The website and leaflets only provide brief overviews of what the organization is, and encourage people to sign up for membership - which provides Scientology leaders with a means of direct contact to spread their message.

In 2011, the 'Say no to drugs' organization was found to be targeting German youth through blogs and videos on social networking sites.

One Church of Scientology member was last week denied security clearance for access to classified materials at his place of work, a decision which a Berlin court upheld.

Even Tom Cruise ran into trouble when filming Valkyrie in Germany in 2009, with film-makers initially denied access to a Berlin building complex due to Cruise's Scientology membership.

Courts have ruled in the past that the group is engaged in activities that are subversive to freedom and democracy, making members both psychologically and financially dependent, and that Scientologists should be subject to closer surveillance.

Far-right extremists have also used ‘anti-drugs’ campaigns to further their cause, for example the far-right group ‘Sachsen Young National Democrats’ launched anti-drug campaigns aimed at increasing membership in numerous towns in 2014.

http://www.thelocal.de/20160722/anti-drugs-campaign-is-scientology-in-disguise-warns-govt

 

Class action lawsuit against Scientology’s drug rehabs refiled with new plaintiffs

Tony Ortega
The Underground Bunker
April 13, 2016

Rana v Narconon (Burgoon Second Amd Complaint)

The last time we checked in with Indiana attorney Jonathan Little, we talked to him about how a class-action lawsuit against Scientology’s Narconon system had hit a rough patch.

If you’ve been keeping up with our Narconon coverage over the last few years, you know that suing the rehab network turned into a cottage industry as a number of lawyers realized that Narconon’s essentially deceptive business model made it ripe for accusations of fraud.

Scientology either claims credit for Narconon as its glorious attempt to rid the earth of drug addiction or, depending on the circumstances, pretends that it has almost no connection to the rehab centers. The truth is that Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, as documents show, saw Narconon as a way to spread Scientology’s influence as an organization interested in “social betterment.” But Hubbard didn’t want that goal to seem overt. Narconon was one of several stealthy front groups that pushed Scientology concepts while pretending to be “secular” and not a part of the Scientology empire.

Read more: http://tonyortega.org/2016/04/13/class-action-lawsuit-against-scientologys-drug-rehabs-refiled-with-new-plaintiffs/

Church of Scientology claims religious discrimination in Trout Run case

Patti Borda Mullins
The Frederick News-Post
April 1, 2016

The main entrance to Trout Run on Catoctin Hollow Road near Thurmont is shown last April.

The Church of Scientology’s real estate arm is continuing to lay the groundwork to sue Frederick County for religious discrimination if the Narconon drug treatment program is not able to operate at the former Trout Run camp site.

Social Betterment Properties International filed complaints in March with Frederick County Circuit Court to get all of the records mentioning Trout Run in the period of time last year when the county was deciding whether the property should be designated a historic site.

Social Betterment bought the 40-acre camp south of Thurmont in September 2013 to open a group home for drug and alcohol abuse treatment operated by Narconon. The Narconon program is based on the writings and techniques of L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology’s founder.

The Trout Run property is zoned for resource conservation, and a group home would not be allowed. Properties with historic designation may apply to the Board of Zoning Appeals for special-exception uses, and a group home has been among those allowed uses.

Social Betterment has alleged that the decision not to designate the site as historic was not based on its history, zoning and legal grounds. The council made its decision after receiving oral and written comments against the Church of Scientology, and Social Betterment alleges that the decision was influenced by religious discrimination.

“The county should reasonably anticipate that Social Betterment may file a lawsuit ... because of the county’s improper, illegal and discriminatory treatment of Social Betterment,” the document filed March 22 with the court stated. Jennifer Kneeland, Social Betterment’s attorney, responded in an email Friday that “Social Betterment does not wish to comment at this time.”

The county’s attorneys said the council acted within its legal rights to decide against the historic designation.

“Certainly there’s been a lot of public commentary,” County Attorney John Mathias said in a telephone interview. “I think the County Council went out of their way to make sure they base all of their decisions on county law.”

Social Betterment filed a public information request for all of the communications that the council sent and received to see what went into their deliberations. Social Betterment received dozens of pages, but not everything. Mathias said that what was withheld could be kept confidential based on one of three legal reasons: executive privilege, the deliberative process privilege, or the inter-agency or intra-agency record exception.

“It’s designed to protect the deliberations of ... the executive staff and the legislature in the formative stages,” Mathias said, explaining the amount of information the county shared with Social Betterment. “We think we fully complied.”

Social Betterment’s March court filings request an immediate court order to get all of the withheld documents, emails and attachments.

Since January, the county has also been considering a council bill to remove group homes from the list of allowed uses on historic property. Social Betterment states in the filings that the council’s bill discriminates against Social Betterment.

“The bill is targeted at a single entity, Social Betterment, and a single proposed use, group homes, because of improper and illegal bias against Social Betterment and the Narconon drug treatment program based on their affiliation with the Church of Scientology,” the filing states.

The bill was recommended for approval by the Frederick County Planning Commission, and the council is scheduled to make a decision about it April 5.

Social Betterment is also waiting for the county to respond to Circuit Judge William R. Nicklas Jr.’s request for the council’s legal justification to deny historic status to Trout Run. Social Betterment said after the vote, and Nicklas agreed, that the council was acting in a quasi-judicial capacity when it voted and so was required to issue a final decision including findings of fact and conclusions of law.

Because no final decision was issued in that form, Nicklas said, the court could not properly perform its function of reviewing the council’s denial. Nicklas said he also could not evaluate the claims of religious discrimination without specific factual findings of the council.

Attorneys for Frederick County argued that the decision was a legislative action, which does not require written or spoken findings of fact before a vote.

Nicklas ordered that the case be returned to the council, which will have to issue those findings of fact.

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/politics_and_government/health_and_welfare/church-of-scientology-claims-religious-discrimination-in-trout-run-case/

Scientologists Take Md. Zoning Spat to Court

DANIEL W. STAPLES 
Courthouse News Service

FREDERICK, Md. (CN) - Blaming Scientology opponents for blocking its opening of a Narconon drug-rehabilitation center, the church's real estate arm filed suit for public records.

     Filed earlier this month in Frederick County Circuit Court, the Church of Scientology affiliate Social Betterment Properties International says it has had its eye trained for at least three years on converting "Trout Run," a piece of property at 12929 Catoctin Hollow Road, into a Narconon facility.

     A 40-acre property near Thurmont, Md., Trout Run lies in the Cunningham Falls State Park, just 7 miles from the famed presidential retreat Camp David.

     Social Betterment says designation of Trout Run by the Frederick County Historic Register "is a crucial step" toward opening the Narconon, but that its religious affiliation has denied it a fair shake in the zoning process.     

     Frederick County Attorney John Mathias emphasized in an email that Social Betterment's lawsuit does not raise any "planning, zoning or land-use issues."

     Before the dispute became a referendum on Scientology, Social Betterment says it had made headway in its 2013 application for a special exemption that would let it convert the existing historic site at Trout Run into an addiction-treatment facility and group home.

     In addition to a 2013 finding of eligibility by the county Historic Preservation Commission, Social Betterment says the county board of appeals unanimously granted its special-exemption application that year.

     The commission recommended Trout Run's placement on the historic register to the county council in 2014, and the placement earned support last year from a county planning board, according to the complaint.

     Social Betterment says critics of Scientology changed the tenor of the case once the council held public hearings on the matter in April 2015.

     "I don't know what you all know about that, but that is a cult," one resident said of Scientology at the first hearing, as quoted in Social Betterment's complaint.

     "Please do not allow this nefarious organization to set up shop in our beautiful county," one email to a council member said, as repeated in the complaint.

     Another allegedly warned that "the Narconon program is notorious for it [sic] use of highly questionable, if not illegal, Scientology methods to treat its inmates."

     The council denied placing Trout Run on the historic register in June, and Social Betterment says the council simultaneously voted for the county executive to put future applications in this vein on ice. The county executive signed the moratorium on future applications for placement of properties on the historic register one week later, June 9, according to the complaint.

     Social Betterment says the council went a step farther earlier this year with its introduction of a bill that would eliminate "group home" use at properties listed on the Historic Register.

     "The bill is targeted at a single entity, Social Betterment, and a single proposed use, group homes, because of improper and illegal bias ... [toward] the Church of Scientology," according to the complaint.

     Even council member Billy Shreve noted in June, the complaint states, that Social Betterment's "application has been clouded because the record does reflect that there was testimony based on Narconon and Scientology."

     In addition to appealing the council's decision last year, Social Betterment asked the county for various communications on the bill. The suit challenging this document production is dated March 9.

     Social Betterment says it paid $1,218 for document production but that the county answered its records request with 27 emails missing attachments, and 62 documents that included unexplained partially or wholly blank pages.

     The county also "withheld 59 documents claiming they were privileged."

     Mathias, the Frederick County attorney, has defended the response to Social Betterment's records request under the Maryland Public Information Act, or MPIA.

     "The county has provided a substantial number of documents to Social Betterment," Mathias said in an email. "For a limited number of documents, the County has complied with the MPIA by asserting one or more of the many exceptions to disclosure contained in the MPIA. The county is confident that a court will uphold its assertion of these exceptions."

     Jennifer Kneeland and Marguerite DeVoll, attorneys for Social Betterment with the firm Linowes and Blocher in Bethesda, Md., have not returned requests for comment.

     The complaint notes that Trout Run was "developed in the 1920s as a fishing camp for an affluent family [and] stands today as a remarkably well-preserved, early 20th century mountain retreat with beautifully crafted mason-work and wood buildings."

     Two weeks after the lawsuit's filing, two groups filed a federal trademark complaint in Fort Wayne, Ind., over Narconon marketing.

     Taking aim at 40 defendants, the National Association of Forensic Counselors and the American Academy of Certified Forensic Counselors dba American College of Certified Forensic Counselors say the Church of Scientology, David Miscavige and Narconon International are misusing their marks, certifications and logos. 

http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/03/28/scientologists-take-md-zoning-spat-to-court.htm

Frederick Co., Scientology-Backed Group at Odds

Mark Seagraves
NBC4 Washington
January 4, 2016

A plan to open a drug rehabilitation location in northern Frederick County is in the hands of a circuit court judge after the county council rejected a historical designation the proposed place for the rehab.

After the Frederick County Council voted 6-1 in June against granting historic designation to the Trout Run property, Social Betterment Properties International, a real estate branch of the Church of Scientology, filed an appeal in circuit court, asking a judge to overturn the council’s vote.

Trout Run is located in northern Frederick County, just south of Cunningham Falls State Park.

Attorneys for SBPI argued that the council was influenced by residents, who testified that Scientology was a “cult” and that Narconon has a troubled track record. Narconon is based on the discoveries and writings of L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology religion.

The attorneys said the council members should have voted based on historic designation guidelines only. The Frederick County Council attorney argued that the council is not mandated to approve historic designations, it’s a legislative prerogative, and they are allowed to use their own discretion when voting.

“The hearing did not focus on who the applicant was,” said Sr. Assistant County Attorney Wendy Kearney. “That was not the decision the council used. The council was interested in the historic nature of the properties.”

In a statement, Jennifer Kneeland, an attorney for SBPI, argued the council’s prior decisions on other historical preservation cases showed the bias in this case against Narconon.

“It is clear from the record that the departure from the treatment that all prior historical preservation applicants were afforded, coupled with the clear, religious animus exhibited against petitioner, shines a light on the ‘Not in My Backyard’ mentality that improperly guided the council’s decision. Social Betterment Properties International owns the property and has always intended to preserve this beautiful, unique area for the county.”

Judge William R. Nicklas Jr. is expected to rule in 30 days. SBPI has asked the judge not to remand the case back to the county but to make a decision himself.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Frederick-Co-Scientology-Backed-Group-at-Odds-364168211.html

Trout Run designation case will go back to County Council for explanation of vote

Danielle E. Gaines

Frederick News Post
January 14, 2016

The case over the historic designation of Trout Run — a Catoctin Mountain parcel where the Church of Scientology wants to open a Narconon drug treatment center — will head back to the Frederick County Council.

A Frederick County Circuit Court judge ruled this week that the council did not properly outline the basis for its decision when it voted against historic designation of the 40-acre camp south of Thurmont.

Social Betterment Properties International, the Church of Scientology’s real estate arm, bought the land in September 2013 with the hope of opening a group home for drug and alcohol abuse treatment, using the Narconon framework.

The property is zoned for resource conservation use, which would prohibit the land’s use as a group home. However, if the county included the property on its Register of Historic Places, Trout Run would qualify for a special exception and Social Betterment could open the center.

In June, the council voted against that historic designation, which had been recommended by the county’s Historic Preservation Commission in two separate votes.

Social Betterment filed a lawsuit disputing the decision, saying the evidence introduced in public hearings supported historic designation and the council’s decision showed religious animus.

Circuit Judge William R. Nicklas Jr. heard arguments in the case this month. His opinion was filed Wednesday.

Nicklas concluded, in agreement with attorneys for Social Betterment, that the council was acting in a quasi-judicial capacity when it voted and thus was required to issue a final decision including findings of fact and conclusions of law.

Because no final decision was issued in that form, Nicklas said, the court could not properly perform its function of reviewing the council’s denial. Nicklas said he also could not evaluate the claims of religious discrimination without specific factual findings of the council.

Attorneys for Frederick County had argued that the decision was a legislative action, which does not require written or spoken findings of fact before a vote.

Nicklas ordered that the case be returned to the County Council, which will have to issue those findings of fact, as required by state law.

Attorney Jennifer Kneeland, who represented Social Betterment in court, said she believes there is no evidence in the council’s record to support its no vote that specifically addresses her client’s application for historic designation.

Kneeland said much of the public testimony and even council members’ comments that they did not believe the camp was rare do not directly address Social Betterment’s application for historic designation based on three things: that the property exemplifies the cultural, economic, social, political or historic heritage of the county; that the property embodies distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of architecture; or that the property represents the work of a master craftsman, architect or builder.

Some of the issues were addressed in public comments, however, and Social Betterment did not identify any master craftsman who constructed the camp in its application.

While Kneeland said she hopes the judge’s opinion will spur a revote on the designation that would support the Historic Preservation Commission’s decisions, she thinks the council is entrenched in its opinions.

If the council continues to support its vote against designation, the case could go back to Frederick County Circuit Court. There, a judge could decide if the council’s vote was based on the evidence at public hearings or if its decision could be invalidated because the findings were arbitrary and illegal.

County Attorney John Mathias said the county’s legal staff will meet with the council to decide how to move forward after the judge’s opinion.

The county could also file a request for Nicklas to reconsider his decision. It is unclear whether Nicklas’ decision could be appealed to a higher court before the case is reconsidered by the council.

Council President Bud Otis’ office referred questions about the case to the county attorney’s office.

Social Betterment issued a statement after the judge’s opinion: “We are pleased that the Circuit Court for Frederick County has returned our historic designation case back to the Frederick County Council and ordered them to disclose the exact reasons they used to deny historic status to the property at Trout Run. The County Council has been ordered to provide a factual and legal justification for their decision, something they have been unwilling to do so far.”

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/continuing_coverage/trout_run/trout-run-designation-case-will-go-back-to-county-council/article_17fa81a7-c466-5a24-9577-24cf7fb67419.html

Irish translators concerned over Scientology links

RTE.ie
October 17, 2015

Irish language translators have expressed concern after learning material presented to them to translate for a so-called charity was in fact connected to the Church of Scientology.

The material was for Narconon, a drug rehabilitation programme established by L Ron Hubbard, the founder of the Church of Scientology in the United States.


One translator told Nuacht RTÉ that she had been told be a translation service called ProZ.com that the work was intended for a charity organisation with limited funds and as a result the rate of reimbursement would be lower than the standard rate for such work.

However, when the work was further posted on Facebook, several translators who copied the material into search engines found that it was extracts from Narconon.

Some translators told RTÉ that there was a lack of clarity about the organisation for whom the translation was intended and they should have been told they were working for a large organisation with ample funds.

The agency, Narconon or the Church of Scientology have not commented about the matter.

http://m.rte.ie/news/2015/1016/735407-translator-scientology/

Maryland: Vote Is a Setback for Scientology-Linked Rehab Center

New York Times

ANDREW SIDDONS

June 2, 2015

The Frederick County Council on Tuesday voted 6 to 1 against placing a fishing retreat on a local register of historic places, making it very unlikely that a drug rehabilitation program with ties to the Church of Scientology will be opened. The retreat, near Camp David, has been visited by several presidents. The vote against adding the property, known as Trout Run, to the historic list will deny the retreat the zoning it would need for a Narconon facility. The Council was urged by its lawyer to consider only Trout Run’s historic character and not the practices of Narconon. Narconon is likely to appeal.

A version of this brief appears in print on June 3, 2015, on page A13 of the New York edition with the headline: Maryland: Vote Is a Setback for Scientology-Linked Rehab Center

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/03/us/maryland-vote-is-a-setback-for-scientology-linked-rehab-center.html?_r=0

Operators of Scientology rehab center to open Clearwater halfway house

Joe Childs
Tampa Bay Times
July 25, 2014

Operators of a drug rehabilitation center in Hernando County, which uses Scientology-affiliated Narconon treatments under intense scrutiny in several states, plan to open a 60-bed halfway house in Clearwater.

And they won't say why.

Longtime center treasurer Sean Strickling heads a company that paid $950,000 in May 2013 for a plot on Sunset Point Road in north Clearwater. Contacted this week by phone, he declined to be interviewed.

His wife, Tammy, the top officer at the Spring Hill Narconon, helped usher the project through Clearwater's permitting process. She too declined to comment.

Prominent Clearwater Scientologist Kurt Feshbach, who heads a company that owns the Hernando Narconon center, also did not respond to interview requests this week.

The Spring Hill facility largely has avoided the furor surrounding a series of patient deaths and allegations of deception at Narconon centers outside Florida.

It has received sterling scores from state inspectors in recent years. Its only apparent involvement in the controversy is being named one of 82 defendants in a federal lawsuit challenging certification claims by several Narconon drug counselors.

But the 48-year-old Narconon program, which grew its revenues steadily as drug use expanded, has become the target in recent years of government investigations and a slew of lawsuits. Among the developments:

• In Oklahoma, three patients died in nine months at Narconon's flagship facility, Arrowhead, in 2011 and 2012. Another patient had died in 2009 after being transferred to a hospital. Several former patients have sued, alleging misrepresentations. One claimed she saw staffers trade drugs for sex with patients. Local and state agencies launched inquiries. Now, a multicounty grand jury reportedly is investigating.
• In Georgia, parents of a patient who had died in 2008 at an Atlanta-area center pursued a wrongful-death suit that drew the attention of state investigators. Allegations of insurance fraud also surfaced — specifically a claim that an insurer was billed $116,000 for treatments that never happened. Agents raided the center in April 2013. As prosecutors bore down, the center closed.
• In Canada, authorities in Quebec shut down a Narconon center in the city of Trois Rivieres in 2012, concerned that treatment procedures could "represent a health risk.''
• And in California, Nevada and Colorado, a parade of former patients and their families have filed 17 lawsuits, accusing Narconon centers of fraud, deception and veiled strategies to lure patients into Scientology.

Many of those suits, all filed by Las Vegas attorney Ryan Hamilton, recite a familiar narrative:

Families of drug users search the Internet for referral services. They speak to a representative who touts a program with a 76 percent success rate.

The program is said to have no religious involvement and boasts certified counselors. Patients pay up to $35,000 and enter a program requiring hours of sauna treatments and reading.

It's actually an immersion into Scientology teachings and programs, the suits contend, asserting the success rate is not supported by verifiable evidence.

The Church of Scientology's chief spokeswoman in Los Angeles did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Narconon is a nonprofit, tax-exempt program, like many of Scientology's affiliated entities. According to the church, it was started by an Arizona prison inmate in 1966, who, after reading the writings of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, was inspired to help other inmates. Today, there are more than 100 Narconon treatment centers worldwide.

The Spring Hill Narconon paid Feshbach's company, Toucan Partners, $175,000 in rent in 2012, according to the center's latest available tax return.

Feshbach has been a major donor to Scientology causes. In the 1980s and early 1990s, he and his brothers Matt and Joe made a fortune with their Feshbach Brothers investment firm in Palo Alto, Calif., specializing in shorting stocks.

He now operates Clearwater's Falcon Research, which gathers information about investment opportunities for clients.

The Spring Hill Narconon reported $1.97 million in revenues in 2012, down slightly from the $2.05 million generated in 2011, its highest-grossing year. Tammy Strickling was paid $109,117 in 2012. Sean Strickling was paid $39,400.

The center opened in 2008. The next year, it sought to expand from 22 beds to 54. Hernando County's government said no. The center sued, claiming discrimination. It recently won an appeal and a mediation session is scheduled in August.

Narconon is a drug-free treatment program. The Spring Hill center's website instructs drug-dependent users to first seek treatment at a detox unit and then transfer in. It does not suggest a specific facility, but a Feshbach company owns one a few miles away — Novus Medical Detox Center in New Port Richey.

It's possible the Clearwater halfway house will become a destination for those patients. One indicator it might not become a Narconon center: Remodeling plans at City Hall show no sauna. Sauna treatments are central to Narconon's program.

Other records indicate the Clearwater facility, at least for now, will have the same name as the Narconon in Spring Hill: Suncoast Rehabilitation Center.


http://www.tampabay.com/news/scientology/operators-of-scientology-rehab-center-to-open-clearwater-halfway-house-/2190139

State officials called to testify before grand jury on Narconon Arrowhead

Tulsa World
August 17, 2014
Ziva Branstetter (World Enterprise Editor)

DOCUMENTS:

• Read the subpoena sent to Eric Tenorio, a former Narconon executive director, to testify before an Oklahoma multicounty grand jury investigation Narconon Arrowhead.
• Read the federal lawsuit against Narconon and 81 other defendants by the National Association of Forensic Counselors.
• Read the affidavit filed in a Texas lawsuit against the Church of Scientology by a former top executive, David Rathbun.

State officials and a former Narconon Arrowhead executive have been called to testify before a multicounty grand jury that is investigating the drug rehabilitation facility, where three patients have died since 2011, the Tulsa World has learned.

Meanwhile, a national association that certifies drug addiction counselors has sued Narconon Arrowhead, the Church of Scientology and 80 related defendants in federal court. The lawsuit, filed in Oklahoma’s Eastern U.S. District Court in Muskogee, alleges that Narconon employees falsely claimed to be accredited by the National Association of Forensic Counselors “in order to bait vulnerable victims into the Scientology religion.”

Narconon faces federal lawsuit

May 22, 2014
By Jeanne LeFlore
McAlester News-Capital

McALESTER — A federal lawsuit against Narconon and the Church of Scientology seeks an immediate injunction to prevent the unauthorized use of counseling certifications, trademarks and logos along with compensatory, statutory and punitive damages, plus attorneys’ fees.

Narconon’s flagship center Narconon Arrowhead is a non-profit drug and alcohol rehab in Canadian affiliated with the Church of Scientology.

The facility has been under investigation following the deaths of three Narconon clients all found dead at the facility within a nine-month-span. A fourth died while at a local hospital. The deaths spurred legislation that was signed into law into 2013.

Since then, several wrongful death lawsuits along with a number of other lawsuits alleging Narconon’s counselors traded drug for sex and other allegations have been filed in Pittsburg County District Court.

Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Office, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the District 18 District Attorneys continue to investigate the four deaths, according to Sheriff Joel Kerns.

In July 2012 Stacy Murphy, 20, was found dead at the facility, Hillary Holten, 21, was found dead in her bed April 2012, and Gabriel Graves, 32, was found dead in his bed at the facility in October of 201.

Also under investigation is the 2009 death of Kaysie Dianne Werninck, 28.

I-Team: Lawsuits target Scientology rehab center in Nevada

KLAS-TV
May 12, 2014
Nathan Baca, Investigative Reporter

LAS VEGAS -- Several federal lawsuits now target an unlicensed Nevada drug and alcohol rehab center first exposed by the I-Team. Patients and the families say the rehab center isn't curing addictions; it's trying to recruit people into Scientology.

Patients at Narconon have told the I-Team they were exposed to mold, lice and treatments forcing them to try and lift objects with their mind. State lawmakers tried and failed to write a new law allowing inspectors to check out Narconon. Instead, one Las Vegas attorney gathered families nationwide and is taking Narconon to federal court.

Narconon is the last hope for some families. Its Caliente, Nevada location, 150 miles north of Las Vegas, promises a 76 percent success rate to get addicts off drugs. Las Vegas attorney Ryan Hamilton filed a series of federal lawsuits from multiple families.