Freewinds entangled in slavery suit

[Mimsey Borogrove]

Tony has a very interesting article about how Scientology tried to dodge making a settlement payment to the 3 Cuban workers that sued the drydock for slavery and won. What Scientology did, rather than pay the $1+ mil debt to the Cubans per the court order, was to renegotiate the balance due down to $750K and then pay the drydock via another Scio corp. They did this via a shell corp they had and did so via an interest free loan.

Talk about greed and manipulation - to go to the drydock co and dangle the $750K carrot in front of them vs. paying the $1+ mil bill to the Cubans. What is interesting, is that by doing so they exposed themselves to being responsible for paying the whole $80 mil awarded by the court to the Cubans.

Gee. The $250+K they saved by scamming the court and coercing the drydock co - was it worth it, now that $80 mil is on the line?

How are they going to avoid this? Sink the Freewinds? They will have to put into port sometime. Will it be commandeered by the Coast Guard and put up for auction? Time to get the checkbook out Dave.

This is a real interesting candid snapshot of the basic M.O. of Scientology. ( G.A.G. - the Golden Age of Greed )

For more juiciness check out Tony's blog http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...and-to-avoid-paying-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/

Mimsey

 

[Type4_PTS]

Yeah, the CoS showed their own true nature here by this maneuver.

It would be nice if the NY Times picked up this story.

Here's a thread from several months ago where AnonLover posts some relevant dox:
scientology’s cruise ship caught up in a lawsuit about human slavery

 

[Free to shine]

Yes, this is huge!

Still_On_Your_Side • 12 hours ago

In many states, failure to pay a writ of garnishment subjects the garnishee to the entire judgment. Florida seems to be one of those states. In the Licea case, the plaintiffs already informed the church that the Freewinds could be seized for payment of the judgment and the church has claimed that would be an act of "piracy." Every act by the church to evade paying the writ is exposed in the plaintiffs' objections. Making an interest free loan to the corporation that owns the Freewinds to pay a debt for the ship contracted for by a church entity means the loan was not "at arm's length." Further, instead of paying the writ, the church paid the defendant-judgment debtor. These were very, very stupid acts. The court had jurisdiction over the judgment-debtor at the time the church colluded with it to evade the writ. This act by the church was an express "FU" to the court. The church's shenanigans concerning the payment of the drydock bill, has resulted in the church being called the "alter ego" of the corporation that owns the Freewinds. Not only could the court agree that this is the case, the court could end up finding that the judgment creditors have the right to seize the Freewinds to pay the judgment. Before that, there is no question that there will be extensive financial discovery of all of the church-garnishee's "alter egos."

Moreover, the incredibly stupid collusion brings up the question, does the church have any ownership in the judgment debtor? Even if it doesn't, the church, to put it bluntly, is screwed.

http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/#comment-1481810893

J. Swift Still_On_Your_Side • an hour ago

The Church filed about 800 documents with the IRS over the period 1990-1993. These documents were submitted by the Church as part of Form 1023 (application for tax exemption). These dox were filed under penalty of perjury. Certain of these documents show the relationship of CSI -> FSO-> FSSO-> ownership of the Freewinds -> San Donato Properties. Based upon these documents, the plaintiffs are quite correct in arguing that The Freewinds is the alter ego of CSI.

I also noted several interesting facts that are also alter ego in nature. IMO, this Freewinds matter might be even better than the Narconon lawsuits in certain ways.

1. Sea Org member Captain Mike Napier represented the owners of the SMV Freewinds. Capt. Napier agreed to a bill for $962,863.00. This type of negotiation along with a million dollar "approval authority" argues that Napier is a Scientology corporate officer who effectively manages the ship. The so-called Freewinds owners are, like the Curacao Trust Management Trust (CTM) simply a shell corporation designed to shield the Church of Scientology from liability.

2. The CSI Finance Office invoice for $770,500 USD shows San Donato Properties Inc. using St. Hill's address in East Grinstead, Sussex -- When did SDP change its address to St. Hill? This shows that

3. San Donato Properties of Clearwater, FL acknowledges receipt of CSI's $770,500 by bankwire.This shows acknowledgement shows an "intercompany" transfer of funds that is, I argue, falsely mischaracterized as a loan to SDP.

http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/#comment-1482454598 The link has pix.

John P. • 12 hours ago

In reading this case, we've got a whopper: if the attorneys pierce the veil and show that FSSO is the real operator of the ship, not the offshore trust, then they could be able to attach any US bank deposits going to FSSO, essentially shutting the ship down. They may also be able to "arrest" the ship (the admiralty law term for "repossess") in port. That would certainly embarrass Miscavige, to say the least. Remember that the various components of Flag are the biggest moneymakers in the cult right now (though the ship is probably a relatively small percentage of the Flag total, given that it seems only to host a couple dozen passengers at any one time these days).

But longer term, the impact of this is even more devastating to the cult, if they're successful. It shows that the complex corporate structure set up in the 1980s can be pierced far more easily than the cult has imagined and that they are less safe than they used to be. That could lead to faster settlements in cases like the wave of Narconon suits.

But even if the cult decides to soldier on in each and every lawsuit, this case could lay out significant evidence that could be used in other cases to show that the cult routinely attempts financial chicanery to evade responsibility for the consequences of its actions. That's usable in many other suits, to show the judges up front that they're dealing with a shady organization. Lily-white protestations of "we're a church" will be harder to sustain. Ultimately, judges could be far more willing to grant preliminary injunctions freezing assets, or taking other actions on the presumption that the cult is guilty, just as courts do with suspected racketeering organizations.

In other words, evidence given here (and disseminated by Tony) adds to the playbook that attorneys can use to sue the cult. In the past, the attorneys representing those few courageous individuals suing the cult would have had a tough time taking advantage of what worked in previous suits -- it was very hard to find other cases. But with the Internet, attorneys can find information about prior cases quite easily. Over time, that leads to either an informal or formal "cottage industry" of helping attorneys sue Scientology. There was quite an industry going in training lawyers how to sue over asbestos, with monthly journals and training classes so people could learn from others what worked.

Something on a smaller scale could happen here, with evidence and strategies being readily available. And that's huge because Scientology is so micro-managed by Miscavige that he would utterly be unable to function if he is facing literally hundreds of suits brought by increasingly effective lawyers. I'd have to believe that Miscavige is spending at least half his time on the Marty Rathbun suit and all the Narconon suits, and he's spending the rest on micromanaging stuff of no importance like the avalanche of stupid videos that Tony's been posting.

With Miscavige completely immobilized, the entire organization would come to even more of a screeching halt than it is. Mistakes will happen. It's impossible to predict what those mistakes will be, but they will become increasingly serious and will be cumulative in their effect. That will in turn hasten the demise of the organization.

http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/#comment-1481841950

Go read the article!

 

[Mick Wenlock]

Yes, this is huge!



http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/#comment-1481810893


http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/#comment-1482454598 The link has pix.


http://tonyortega.org/2014/07/12/sc...-in-human-slavery-lawsuit/#comment-1481841950

Go read the article!

great stuff indeed - I would really like to read Denise's take on this.

 

[Mimsey Borogrove]

Alter ego means what to a lawyer? An evil twin? A Clark Kent like cover for Superman?

Alter Ego
A doctrine used by the courts to ignore the corporate status of a group of stockholders, officers, and directors of a corporation in reference to their limited liability so that they may be held personally liable for their actions when they have acted fraudulently or unjustly or when to refuse to do so would deprive an innocent victim of redress for an injury caused by them.

A corporation is considered the alter ego of its stockholders, directors, or officers when it is used merely for the transaction of their personal business for which they want Immunity from individual liability. A parent corporation is the alter ego of a subsidiary corporation if it controls and directs its activities so that it will have limited liability for its wrongful acts.

The alter ego doctrine is also known as the instrumentality rule because the corporation becomes an instrument for the personal advantage of its parent corporation, stockholders, directors, or officers. When a court applies it, the court is said to pierce the corporate veil.

Courts have not traditionally applied the alter ego doctrine to other business forms, such as partnerships and limited partnerships, because partners generally do not enjoy the same form of limited liability as corporate stockholders, officers, and directors. By comparison, however, owners of limited liability companies may structure their business in a manner similar to a corporation so that members and managers are shielded from personal liability for the debts of the Limited Liability Company (LLC). Several courts have determined that the alter ego doctrine may also apply to LLCs. For instance, in Kaycee Land & Livestock v. Flahive, 46 P.3d 323 (Wyo. 2002), the Wyoming Supreme Court held that the equitable doctrine of piercing the veil was an available remedy under the Wyoming Limited Liability Company Act.

Cross-references

Corporations; Immunity; Liability.

West's Encyclopedia of American Law, edition 2. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.


alter ego n. a corporation, organization or other entity set up to provide a legal shield for the person actually controlling the operation. Proving that such an organization is a cover or alter ego for the real defendant breaks down that protection, but it can be difficult to prove complete control by an individual. In the case of corporations, proving one is an alter ego is one way of "piercing the corporate veil." In a lawsuit complaint, it might be stated (pleaded) that "the Hotshot Corporation was the alter ego of Joseph Snakeoil."

 

[freethinker]

I hope Leslie Hyman is reading this and having an aha moment.

 

[PTS]

I long for the day when this cult has to handle the full force of wog law. It cannot happen soon enough.

 

[Karen#1]

The Freewinds has been used an an external "SP Hole" far away from FBI jurisdiction, where Miscavige can act out his wrath and escalating punishments. John Brousseau earlier revealed that Colm Mclaughlin, husband of Janet Light (McLaughlin) was imprisoned in a lower down cabin for 1 year where he repeatedly threatened to go to the FBI on his Kidnap and threw the auditing cans when they wanted to sec check him. Activists posted the continuing story and a couple of Irish guys were going to report it to the Irish equivalent of their State department at which point it got too "hot" and Colm was released off of Freewinds.
What utter hogwash that the ship is not a Scientology owned and operated weapon for extortion and abuse. Panamian owned indeed !
The Freewinds has been used for sadism and kidnap.
Cleaning the bilges 14 hours a day, lockdown, kidnap, no medical treatment, a function which should be done by machines was executed on Senior Execs, and I have started a compilation of Freewinds stories on my YouTube channel exposing the use of the ship as a Prison ship.​

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pR-SikcjiY0&list=PL97bG9F7T-UcbIont808sKIv75RutRvff

 

[NoName]

The Freewinds has been used for sadism and kidnap.
Cleaning the bilges 14 hours a day, lockdown, kidnap, no medical treatment, a function which should be done by machines was executed on Senior Execs, and I have started a compilation of Freewinds stories on my YouTube channel exposing the use of the ship as a Prison ship.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/CENTER][/B]

Wasn't there a gal who jumped off in a port after being held against her will a few years ago?

 

[dchoiceisalwaysrs]

The cult of perpetual fraud, all the way from May 1950 (270 clears) up to the present Super-Powers, increasingly appears to be in it's final stages of palliative care. One of the most obvious symptoms is the frequent delusion from it's newest members, throughout OSA and even infecting its few remaining whales. Rigamortus appears to be well underway in various tissues.

 

[AnonLover]

Yeah, the CoS showed their own true nature here by this maneuver.

It would be nice if the NY Times picked up this story.

Here's a thread from several months ago where AnonLover posts some relevant dox:
scientology’s cruise ship caught up in a lawsuit about human slavery

There is more updates and dox on how this case played out now posted over on WWP starting here:
https://whyweprotest.net/threads/re...bestos-case-slavery.25975/page-3#post-2505960

Much lulz was had, before the cult finally settled.

 

[Type4_PTS]

There is more updates and dox on how this case played out now posted over on WWP starting here:
https://whyweprotest.net/threads/re...bestos-case-slavery.25975/page-3#post-2505960

Much lulz was had, before the cult finally settled.

Wow! The cult got slapped down hard on this case! These guys made the cult attorneys look like amateurs.

Orlando do Campo and John Thornton received the "2008 Most Effective Lawyers Award" from the Daily Business Review.

This award recognizes lawyers who have won the most significant civil and criminal cases in South Florida.

http://www.dandtlaw.com/

Law firms working on this case:

FL - Campo & Thornton, P.A. http://www.dandtlaw.com/
FL - Grossman Roth PA http://www.grossmanroth.com/
NY/PA/CA - Reed Smith LLP http://www.reedsmith.com/

 

[oneonewasaracecar]

Wow! The cult got slapped down hard on this case! These guys made the cult attorneys look like amateurs.

That WWP thread is really worth looking at. It's got mountains of dox and mountains of interpretation.