Where is Scientology’s David Miscavige? Opposing lawyers want to know.
— Leah Remini (@LeahRemini) December 30, 2022
Attorneys for three former workers suing Scientology for trafficking say he has evaded service of the lawsuit.https://t.co/oFnHpNFFdc
The Washington Examiner
written by Tori Richards, Investigative Reporter
Thursday December 29, 2022
Church of Scientology leader David Miscavige has vanished in the midst of a child trafficking lawsuit alleging forced labor, accused of evading process servers and frustrating those who want to move the case along in federal court.
A review of court records by the Tampa Bay Times shows that servers tried to locate Miscavige 27 times over the past four months in Los Angeles and Clearwater, Florida, to provide him with documents as required by law. They came up empty-handed, and now, a Jan. 20 court date is pending in Tampa to declare Miscavige served.
“Miscavige cannot be permitted to continue his gamesmanship,” said plaintiff attorney Neil Glazer in a Dec. 13 motion requesting the hearing.
Glazer is claiming that Miscavige has engaged in “intentional concealment of his location and evasion of service.”
The lawsuit filed by former Scientology members Gawain Baxter, his wife Laura, and Valeska Paris alleged that they were forced to work on church-owned ships as children and sign a 1 billion-year service contract with little or no pay.
The trio claimed they were abused, separated from society, and indoctrinated into the church with little hope of escape. Paris claimed she was repeatedly sexually assaulted and once locked in the ship’s engine room for 48 hours as punishment when her mother fled the church.
Miscavige, 62, has left no trace of a personal residence in databases normally used by lawyers.
The plaintiffs even went so far as to dig through Florida traffic tickets Miscavige received in 1991 and 1995, but the tickets listed the Los Angeles Scientology building as his home address, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
Attorneys for Miscavige filed a court brief on Tuesday that says he should not be included in the lawsuit, which is “part of a litigation strategy to target the leader of the religion for harassment.”
They said Miscavige is not evading service. Rather, he lives in California and has not been present to accept service there.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Julie Sneed has also assisted in the matter, directing the Florida secretary of state to issue a summons. This went out to 10 different Scientology addresses in California and Clearwater, but none of the envelopes were accepted with a signed receipt, the Tampa Bay Times said.
Former church executive Mike Rinder said in court documents that numerous ways exist “to shield Miscavige from liability or being served with summonses and subpoenas.” Rinder, who left the church in 2007, has since turned into a vocal critic of Scientology and co-hosted an A&E documentary and a podcast with the King of Queens actress Leah Remini.
Growing Up In Scientology published October 31, 2022: Patrick Bet-David On The FBI Raiding Scientology. Patrick Bet-David interviews Mike Rinder and finds out why the FBI has not raided Scientology again like they did in 1977.
60 Minutes Australia published February 11, 2019: Where is the missing wife of Scientology's ruthless leader? Shelly Miscavige is the wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige, the high priestess of Scientology who vanished 13 years ago. 60 Minutes investigate into the missing Queen’s whereabouts and speak to the former Scientologist’s who want answers.
Fox News
written by Elizabeth Pritchett
Saturday December 31, 2022
Scientology leader David Miscavige is nowhere to be found as attempts are made to serve the 62-year-old with a child trafficking lawsuit that names him as a defendant, according to public court documents and the Tampa Bay Times.
The court documents show process servers attempted to serve papers to Miscavige 27 different times over the past few months in the Clearwater, Fla. area and in Los Angeles to no avail.
A motion to serve Miscavige by default filed in Florida court on Dec. 13 read, "there is more than enough evidence to demonstrate that [Miscavige] has intentionally concealed his location and erected obstacles to evade personal services of process."
The Church of Scientology's Public Affairs Director Karin Pouw told Fox News Digital Miscavige is "not running from the law." She declined to comment further on the pending lawsuit.
Former Scientology church members, husband and wife, Gawain and Laura Baxter and Valeska Paris filed the lawsuit after claiming they were forced into labor on Scientology boats as children after signing a one billion-year contract in exchange for little or no money. Paris reportedly left the church in 2009 and Gawain and Laura Baxter left in 2012.
In addition to the trafficking allegations, Paris alleges she was the victim of repeated sexual assaults in her youth and that when her mother left Scientology, the then-17-year-old was locked in an engine room for 48 hours as punishment.
Gawain Baxter said his parents put him in a Sea Org nursery when he was two months old, according to the lawsuit. When he turned six, he was also forced to sign the one billion-year contract and sent to live in a Cadet Org dormitory with around 100 other children.
Children over six years old are considered to be, and are frequently told that they are, adults and that they should act and expect to be treated as adults. The lawsuit noted in background that the children must be referred to as "cadets" and not kids.
Miscavige's last known address is the church's international building in L.A., but similar to other members of Scientology's extremist wing, the Sea Org, he does not have a publicly recorded address. When lawyers showed up to Scientology properties in search of the leader, security guards denied entry to the properties and reportedly said they were not aware of his location.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit have also hired a private investigator to help reach Miscavige, according to
Court filings related to the recent lawsuit list his home as a Scientology property in a gated community known as the Hacienda Gardens in Clearwater. The 120-unit apartment complex hosts Scientology staff and was purchased by the organization in 2001, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
During the motion filed earlier in December, one of the plaintiff's attorneys, Neil Glazer, said, "Miscavige cannot be permitted to continue his gamesmanship." He is due in court on Jan. 20, 2023, but that meeting is pending unless he is served with the papers.
Court documents related to the suit stated lawyers have tried to locate him through two traffic tickets he received in the 1990s, but both of those citations list the Scientology Los Angeles center as his home.
Miscavige's lawyers told the newspaper he is merely the target of a legal strategy due to his status within Scientology. They added that he does not live in Florida, which is why they can't serve him there.
US Magistrate Judge Julie Sneed served a summons to Miscavige on behalf of the plaintiffs. Ten copies of the summons were sent to various Scientology properties in Florida and California in efforts to reach Miscavige.
All were sent back as undelivered since nobody would sign for them, court documents showed.
Miscavige is one of five defendants named in the lawsuit. The remaining four are operating entities of the Church of Scientology.
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