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CITY OF CLEARWATER COMMISSION HEARINGS RE: THE CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY |
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EXHIBIT 59: AFFIDAVIT OF PEGGY BEAR I, Peggy Bear, a resident of Pensacola, Florida, hereby depose and state: 1) I was involved with the Church of Scientology from May through August 1978. 2) During the period I was involved with the Church I paid for courses at Scientology's Celebrity Center in New York. 3) I read information at Scientology Churches in New York concerning L. Ron Hubbard. Church members and Hubbard books claimed Hubbard was a nuclear physicist, world traveller and miracle worker. I also read and was told by members of the Church's "regging", i.e., Scientology's salesmen, that Scientology courses and processing would make me physically well and give me "peace of mind". I felt I needed help at this time since my husband had just passed away in February 1978 and I was depressed. 4) I was shocked to learn the "regges" knew of my husband's death, and incredibly of the large inheritance left to me by my deceased husband. 5) The "regging" department at Celebrity Center in New York subsequently convinced me to start paying thousands of dollars for a Scientology process known as "auditing". Auditing is a Scientology technique to trick parishioners to reveal to an "auditor", i.e., Church interrogator, all the details of one's past. This information includes a parishioner's financial history, family, relatives, friends, etc., sexual relations, criminal and drug background, and family members antagonistic towards Scientology. 6) Through the months of May, June and July of 1978, I was constantly pressured by Scientology officials to deposit more money for Scientology auditing if I "really wanted to make it up the bridge" (in Scientology parlance: to keep persons chasing the proverbial "carrot" in order to swindle them of their money) and find "peace of mind". 7) Approximately two months after I began, the Church had almost $32,000 of my money and I had nothing. At this time, a Mr. Harris and a Mr. Bernstein suddenly showed up as "Flag missionaries" from Clearwater, Florida. A "Flag missionary" is a recruiter sent from Clearwater to Churches around the country as soon as the Clearwater Church discovers the "raw meat", i.e. potential Scientology recruit, has money. 8) I was informed by these men they knew of money left to me by my deceased husband which I had not yet forfeited to Scientology. 9) They screamed, yelled and harassed me to turn over this money to Flag in Clearwater, Florida. They showed me on paper, that by paying $15,000 additional to Celebrity Center in New York and more than $25,000 to Flag in Clearwater, I would finally have "peace of mind". 10) I visited the "Flag Base" in Clearwater, Florida for a few days during 1979, and was shocked to discover how filthy the headquarters of Scientology was. In fact, dirty, disheveled children ran about unsupervised. 11) Finally, in August 1978, I left Scientology after being defrauded of more than $33,000 and depressed at the possibility of blackmail or extortion from their Guardian's Office, i.e., secret police, of information concerning my innermost thoughts given to them in auditing. Signed under the pains and penalties of perjury this 23rd day of April, 1982.
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