IV. The Conspiracy to Obstruct Justice, to Obstruct an Investigation, to Harbor a Fugitive and to Make False Declarations Before the Grand Jury

A.  The preparation of the Cover-Up Story

On June 12, 1976 Mr. Meisner was met at the Quality Inn Motel, in Arlington, Virginia by Mr. Bruce Ullman who gave him money for a round trip flight to Los Angeles. Mr. Ullman drove Mr. Meisner to National Airport where Mr. Meisner took a United Airlines flight to Los Angeles. On the plane, Mr. Meisner completed his detailed report of the Courthouse incident as he had been directed to, the night before, by the defendant Weigand through the defendant Hermann/Cooper. Mr. Meistier arrived in Los Angeles at approximately noon, and went directly to the defendant Weigand's office on the seventh floor of the Fifield Manor. Defendant Weigand reviewed Mr. Meisner's handwritten report and then asked him to type it. Mr. Meisner typed it at defendant Weigand's desk. (Government Exhibit No. 114.) [130] When he had finished, Mr. Meisner showed the typed report to defendants Weigand and Willardson, both of whom read it. Defendant Weigand remarked that he would take it to the defendant Heldt's office on the sixth floor. He did this and returned approximately fifteen minutes later. The defendants Weigand and Willardson then, together with Mr. Meisner, analyzed the crisis to determine what leads the FBI had and how they could contain or stop the investigation. The three men decided to devise a cover story for use by the defendant Wolfe if he were arrested. The plan contemplated further that defendant Wolfe would, if captured, enter a guilty plea, after which Mr. Meisner would surrender to the FBI and give the same story to them as Wolfe had. An alternative plan had both the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner surrendering immediately and giving the same cover story. All parties recognized that the highest priority lay in stopping the FBI investigation before it could connect the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner to the Church of Scientology and thereby expose other officials of the Guardian's office who had been involved in the burglaries, thefts, and buggings, described in the first conspiracy, _supra_. After a full afternoon of discussions, the defendants Weigand and Willardson drove Mr. Meisner to a Holiday Inn located near Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, where Mr. Meisner registered under a false name. That evening he had dinner together at the motel prior to leaving Mr. Meisner for the evening.

On Sunday, June 13, 1976, the defendant Willardson met Mr. Meisner at his motel room and drove him to the defendant Weigand's office, where all three met to finalize the outline of the plan, which they had discussed the day before, in order to present it to the defendants Heldt and Snider. Soon there- after, the defendant Weigand and Mr. Meisner met with the defendants Heldt and Snider in the defendant Heldt's sixth floor offices at the Fifield Manor. The defendants Heldt and Snider each indicated that they had already read Mr. Meisner's report (Government Exhibit No. 114) and were fully conversant with the matters discussed in it. All present concluded that the F8I could readily trace already existing leads back to the Church of Scientology. With this in mind, the defend- ants Heldt and Snider suggested an alternative plan which they had formulated on their own earlier that day. That plan called for the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner to be withdrawn from the District of Columbia and sent out of the United States. The defendant Heldt stated that as long as there were no bodies, the FBI would have nothing to investigate. The defendant Weigand, however, countered that if no bodies were found then the FBI would look even more deeply and find the connection between the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner and the Church of Scuentology organization. The defendant Weigand explained that Mr. Meisner had given the FBI an address close to his real residence where, by cnavas, the FBI might find someone who could identify him by the photograph on his counterfeit IRS credentials. It was also pointed out that the FBI not only had Mr. Meisner's and the defendant Wolfe's handwriting on the Courthouse and library logs, but also Mr. Meisner's fingerprints on his false IRS identification card. Thus, the defendant Weigand suggested that if the defendant Wolfe allowed himself to be arrested and gave the proper cover story, then the investigation could be contained. Then, following the defendant Wolfe's plea of guilty, Mr. Meisner would surrender, give the same cover story as the defendant Wolfe, and enter a guilty plea. This, he posited, would terminate the investigation with little or no connection to Scientology. The defendant Heldt directed the defendant Weigand and Mr. Meisner to discuss both plans, and detail one of them and present it to him for his final approval.

The defendant Weigand and Mr. Meisner returned to the defendant Weigand's office where the defendant Willardson joined them to implement the defendant Heldt's orders. During that meeting, the defendant Hermann/Cooper informed them that the defendant Wolfe had left the District of Columbia and was to arrive in Los Angeles later that evening. The defendant Hermann then joined the meeting for a short period of time. The three men drafted defendant Weigand's ideas in proposal format. The defendant Weigand himself actually wrote out the proposal for the defendant Heldt's approval, typed it, and took it to the defendant Heldt. Some fifteen minutes later, the defendant Weigand returned to his office and stated to the defendant Willardson and Mr. Meisner that the defendant Heldt had approved that plan. They decided to meet again the next morning to prepare the cover story with the defendant Wolfe. The defendant Weigand directed Mr. Meisner to change his appearance with the assistance of Weigand's secretary, Janet Finn. The defendant Willardson and Mr. Meisner then had dinner, after which Mr. Meisner was returned to the Holiday Inn motel.

On Monday, June 14, the defendant Weigand's communicator (secretary), Janet Finn, met Mr. Meisner at approximately 9:00 a.m. at his motel room. She cut his hair, then dyed it red. Mr. Meisner then shaved his mustache. Establishment Officer (Esto Off) Peeter Alvet met Mr. Meisner and gave him approximately $200 to obtain contact lenses. Mr. Meisner then went to an optometrist on Hollywood Boulevard where he purchased soft contact lenses. [132]

At approximately 1:00 p.m. the defendants Weigand, Willardson and Wolfe arrived at the Holiday Inn to create the cover story to be given by Wolfe to the FBI. The defendant Weigand informed Mr. Meisner that the defendant Hermann/Cooper was on a plane on his way to the District of Columbia where he was to assume temporarily the position of Assistant Guardian for Information until Richard Kimmel could be brought back from England where he had been undergoing training at World- Wide for that position. [133]

During the next hour the following cover story was prepared: The defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner were to have met in February 1976 in a District of Columbia bar, which was to be selected later, and struck up a friendship. Mr. Meisner was to have introduced himself as "John Foster". Mr. Mr. Meisner was to have told the defendant Wolfe that he was a law student attending Georgetown University School of Law. The defendant Wolfe was to have informed Mr. Meisner that he worked at the IRS. The two individuals were to have met on a number of occasions. Then in mid-March 1976, after having drunk heavily at a few different bars, Mr. Meisner was to have mentioned that he had never been to the IRS, and Wolfe was to have offered to take him on a tour of that building. The defendant Wolfe was to have taken Mr. Meisner to the IRS, signed him in, and taken him on a tour of the first floor. Inadvertently, according to the story, they stumbled upon the identification room which had an open door. They went in and as a lark decided to make identification cards for themselves. The defendant Wolfe was to have made Mr. Meisner an identification card and typed in the name "John Foster" upon it. Mr. Meisner was then to have made an identification card for the defendant Wolfe who had decided to use the name "Thomas Blake". On a subsequent occasion, the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner were to have met at a bar and after a few drinks the defendant Wolfe asked Mr. Meisner to teach him how to do legal research so that he might be able to obtain a better job. Mr. Meisner agreed to do so if Wolfe would, as a return favor, look up some information for him at the IRS for a paper which Mr. Meisner was writing on section 501 (c)(6) of the IRS Code (the section dealing with exempt organizations). They decided that the District of Columbia Bar Association Library in the United States Courthouse in the District of Columbia was the most convenient for them. Thus, on May 21, 28 and June 11, they went to the Courthouse to use the D.C. Bar Association Library where Mr. Meisner taught the defendant Wolfe legal research. While there, they were directed by the cleaning personnel to the photocopying machines within the United States Attorney's Office. Specifically, they used those machines to photocopy cases in law books and their own notes from those books. However, they had no idea that they were within the United States Attorney's Office. After the confrontation with the FBI agents, the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner were so upset that they forgot to set up a further meeting. Since the defendant Wolfe did not know where Mr. Meisner lived, he could not contact Mr. Meisner again, and therefore, could not give the FBI his location.

After the defendants Weigand, Willardson, Wolfe and Mr. Meisner had outlined the cover story, the defendant Weigand instructed them to write out "mission orders" for the defend- ant Hermann in the District of Columbia, write out the cover story, and drill the defendant Wolfe on it. The defendant Weigand then left the Holiday Inn Motel.

The defendant Wolfe called his office at the IRS in Washington, D.C., to determine through a friend whether anyone, such as the FBI, had made any inquiries regarding him. In the process, he requested his friend to notify his supervisor that he would not be at work the next day. [134] After that phone call, the three individuals prepared written "mission orders" for the defendant Hermann/Cooper. Those orders required Hermann/Cooper to: (1) keep in constant contact with the defendant Wolfe; (2) locate an attorney for the defendant Wolfe so that he could test the plausibility of the concocted story on someone other than the FBI; and (3) supervise the defendant Wolfe pending his arrest. They then wrote out the cover story, gave a copy to the defendant Wolfe and drilled him on that story.

At approximately 7:00 p.m. Mr. Meisner checked out of his motel room, and, together with the defendant Willardson, drove the defendant Wolfe to the airport where Wolfe took a night flight to Baltimore-Washington International Airport. Mr. Meisner stayed that night at the defendant Willardson's home on Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills.

On June 15, 1976, in Washington, D.C., the defendants Hermann/Cooper and Wolfe met, discussed the cover plan, story and the attorney who was to be selected for Wolfe. The defendant Wolfe then met with his attorney and presented him with the cover story which had been prepared the previous day.

In Los Angeles, Mr. Meisner, who began to use the alias "Jeff Murphy", moved to the defondant Weigand's house on Westmoreland Street, near Wilshire Boulevard, where he stayed for the remainder of the summer. The defendant Weigand directed Mr. Meisner to prepare a complete report on his activities as Assistant Guardian for Information in the District of Columbia and on all pending activities there as required by Guardian's Office procedures when an official leaves a post. For the next few days, Mr. Meisner, working in the defendant Weigand's office, prepared the report as directed. On June 18, 1976, that completed report was typed by Mr. Meisner and presented to the defendant Weigand. (Government Exhibit No. 108.) [135] In his report, Mr. Meisner explained how he had burglarized government offices, including the manner in which he had forcibly opened doors, and supervised covert operatives. He identified the current covert operatives who were still operating and itemized what remained for them to accomplish. He also described his duties as Assistant Guardian for Information. Within a few days thereafter, the defendant Willardson issued "mission orders" to Mr. Meisner which had been approved by the defendants Weigand and Heldt. These orders directed Mr. Meisner to go to Dallas, Texas, to attend the American Medical Association Convention, and then to New York to resolve a local Guardian's Office matter. Upon his return to Los Angeles, on July 7, Mr. Meisner was appointed National Secretary for the United States by Guardian World-Wide Jane Kember.

B. The Defendant Gerald Bennett Wolfe is Arrested in Washington D.C. by the Federal Bureau of Investigation

On June 30, the defendant Wolfe was arrested in the main IRS building by FBI Special Agent Christine Hansen. He was charged with the use and possession of a forged official pass of tho United States, in violation of 18 U.S. Code, Section 499, and arraigned before United States Magistrate Henry H. Kennedy, Jr. (U.S. Mag. No. 76-930 M (Cr)). On that same day, Assistant Guardian for Information in the District of Columbia Richard "Rick" Kimmel notified the defendant Hermann/Cooper of the defendant Wolfe's arrest. The defendant Hermann/Cooper then informed the defendant Weigand that at 2:30 p.m. Wolfe had been arrested by the FBI, that he had been arraigned, and released on his own recognizance pending a preliminary hearing. As a condition of his release, the defendant Wolfe was to submit handwriting exemplars to the FBI. (Government Exhibit No. 117.) [136] The defendant Hermann/Cooper told the defendant Weigand that all covert activities in the District of Columbia had been ordered "shut down", that "sensitive material" had been moved to another office, and that "Kelly" (another covert name for the defendant Wolfe) "has been briefed to carry out his part". He also told the defendant Weigand that all data on "Jeff" (Mr. Meisner's alias at the time) had been taken out of the organization. 137/ On July 1, the defendant Weigand wrote a letter to Deputy Guardian for Information World-Wide Mo Budlong informing him of the arrest of the defendant Wolfe and the information brought to his attention the previous day by the defendant Hermann/Cooper. (Government Exhibit No. 118.) [138]

In a letter dated July 1, 1976, and entitled "Re: Mike and the FSM", the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard stated to the defendant Weigand that "[flrom an investigative point of view it was really too easy for the opposition. All they had to do was to trace the common enrty [sic] points of the log back for both Mike and the FSM [Wolfe] until they arrived at the point where the FSM used his correct ID card." She urged the defendant Weigand to keep her informed of what has happened to the FSM, the defendant Wolfe. (Government Exhibit No. 119 at p. 2.) Handwriting expert James Miller is "positive" that the signature on that document was written by the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard. 139/ The defendant Weigand responded to the defendant Hubbard's inquiry in two separate letters, both dated July 2, 1976. He informed her that the defendant Wolfe (Silver) was about to submit his resignation to the IRS to avoid being suspended. He also wrote that the prosecutor in the case had been told that Wolfe had obtained his identifica- tion card as part of "[a] lark gone sour". He added that an additional $800 would be needed to "cover the balance of the retainer" of Wolfe's attorney. (Government Exhibit No. 119 at P. 3-4.) He also stated that the defendant Wolfe was "instructed . . . [to] go nowhere near the org [Church of Scientology] and . . . have no personal contact with the case officer [Kimmel] either." He concluded that it was still possible that the defendant Wolfe would be "given minimal punishment" and that the matter would terminate without any connection to the Church of Scientology. (Government Exhibit  No. 119 at p. 1.) 140/ In the other letter of 2 July 1976 regarding "Silver", the defendant Weigand updated for Mr. Budlong the information regarding the defendant Wolfe's arrest. (Government Exhibit No. 120.) That coded letter was decoded by a cryptanalyst, Special Agent Arthur Eberhardt. (Government Exhibit No. 213.) In the letter, the defendant Weigand reiterated the information which he had given on that same date to the defendant Hubbard. 141/ On July 2, 1976, the defendant Hermann/Cooper inquired of the defendant Weigand whether the defendant Hubbard in her letter of July 1, 1976 "is looking toward Silver [Wolfe] denying the use of the false ID card and then it not being able to be proven that he had actually used one." (Government Exhibit No. 121.) 142/ The defendant Hermann/Cooper recommended that "we go ahead with the worked out cover story".

C. The United States Case Against the Defendant Gerald Bennett Wolfe is Referred to the Grand Jury, and an Arrest Warrant is Issued for Michael Meisner.

On July 28, 1976, the defendant Wolfe appeared with his attorney, Lawrence Speiser, Esquire, before United States Magistrate Henry H. Kennedy, Jr. for a preliminary hearing. Following that hearing, United States Magistrate Kennedy found that probable cause existed, and ordered the case "bound over for the action of the Grand Jury". A few days later, on August 5, 1976, Magistrate Kennedy issued a sealed warrant for the arrest of Michael Meisner for the use of a forged official pass of the United States, in violation of 18 U.S. Code, Section 499. (U.S. Mag. No. 1101-76M(Cr)). In mid- August, CSG Assistant for Information Jimmy Mulligan informed Mr. Meisner that the defendant Thomas had overheard a conversation in Mr. Paul Figley's office at the Department of Justice in which it was stated that a sealed arrest warrant had been issued in the District of Columbia. On August 30l FBI Special Agents Joseph Jackson and John Pavlansky went to the offices of the Church of Scientology at 2125 S Street, N.W., in Washington, D.C., to attempt to locate Mr. Meisner. They were met there by Assistant Guardian for Legal Bureau Kendrick "Rick" Moxon. They explained to Mr. Moxon that they were acting on behalf of the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia and were attempting to locate Mr. Meisner because an arrest warrant had been issued for him on August 5, 1976, charging him with forgery of United States Government identification cards. They told Mr. Moxon that they wanted to inform him and all others concerned of Mr. Meisner's status so that they could notify him and help him "avoid putting himself in a fugitive status". They warned Mr. Moxon that anyone who aided Mr. Meisner in remain- ing a fugitive "would be guilty of a criminal act under the harboring of criminals statute." Mr. Moxon informed the agents that he did not know where Mr. Meisner was. Mr. Moxon immediately notified his superior, Mary Rezzonico, the Deputy Guardian for the Legal Bureau in the United States, and appended to that letter the harboring of fugitives statute, emphasizing that it provided for a penalty of 115 year sentence and $2,000 maximum fine" (Government Exhibit No. 123.) [143]

D. The Guardian's Office Harbors and Conceals Fugitive From Justice Michael Meisner

On August 30, 1976, the same day that he received notification that an arrest warrant had been issued for Mr. Meisner, the defendant Weigand notified the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard that he has "Just received word that Mike [Meisnerl had a warrant out for his arrest." He added that "[tlhe plan at this time is to hide Mike out. It appears that the safest place to do this is in Europe somewhere." (Government Exhibit No. 124.) 144/ The defendant Weigand added:

My actions are as follows:

1. Immediately remove M [Meisnerl from all GO connected spaces and get him into a motel.

2. Further alter his appearance.

3. Get with legal for legal opinion to include what the statue [sic] of limitations is on this offence.

4. Work out how to obtain M the neces- sary papers to get him out of the country.

5. Obtain the papers.

6. Get him out of the country.

The defendant Mary Sue Hubbard responded to the defendant Weigand's letter as follows:

Wonder how they got a lead onto him?

On getting him abroad, unless you have good ID for him different than his own, it might be dangerous. _He would better be "lost" in some large city where it would be difficlut [sic] to find him_.

What a shame. (Emphasis added.)

 (Government Exhibit No. 124 at p. 2.) On September 2, the  defendant Weigand responded to the defendant Hubbard's inquiry that he did not know how the FBI had connected "John M. Foster" to Michael Meisner. He suggested, however, that they might have been able to locate his former apartment house and have his photograph identified by a tenant. [145] On the evening of August 30, the defendant Weigand contacted Mr. Meisner and requested him to come to his office, which had since been moved to a warehouse in Glendale, California. In the presence of the defendant Hermann and Assistant Guardian for Information in Clearwater, Florida, Joe Lisa, he informed Mr. Meisner of the outstanding warrant for his arrest, and instructed him to sever all outward connections to the Guardian's Office. He told him that the defendant Hermann would assist him in moving out of the Weigand residence into a motel. He also removed him from the position of National Secretary for the United States. Mr. Meisner was given funds for the motel. With the defendant Hermann's assistance, Mr. Meisner moved to the RegaLodge on 200 West Colorado Boulevard, in Glendale, where he registered as "Jeff Burns". On September 1, Mr. Meisner moved to the Bon Air Motel at 1727 North Western Avenue in Los Angeles, where he stayed until September 8. He registered there as "Jeff Marks." During that time, the defendant Hermann/Cooper ordered Mr. Meisner to change his appearance. (Government Exhibit No. 125.) [146]

In a letter dated 3 September 1976 the defendant Weigand notified the defendant Hermann/Cooper that the defendant Heldt had issued new orders relating to "Jeff Murphy" - Mr. Meisner's alias at the time. (Government Exhibit No. 126.) [147] The defendant Weigand suggested that Los Angeles was a better place to hide Mr. Meisner since it was "a huge city and he can get lost here very successfully," while still being close to the Guardian's Office. He directed the defendant Hermann/ Cooper to give this matter "top priority and lets [sic] get it done." [148]

On September 10, 1976, Mr. Meisner moved to the Westgate Hotel located at 445 South Western Avenue in Los Angeles. At midnight, as a result of new developments in the District of Columbia, Mr. Meisner was moved by the defendants Willardson and Hermann/Cooper to the Wilshire Dunes Motel at 4300 Wilshire Boulevard, also in Los Angeles. He registered at both locations as "Jeff Marks", and stayed at the latter until September 12. Mr. Meisner was then moved by the defendant Hermann-Cooper to the Travelodge at 7370 Sunset Boulevard for one night. On September 13 and 14, he stayed at the Sunset 8 Motel at 6516 Sunset Boulevard. Then, on September 15, he registered at the Burbank Hotel located in Burbank, California, where he remained until early October. Mr. Meisner paid for all of these hotels with Guardian's Office funds supplied to him by the defendant Hermann/Cooper who was his immediate con-tact.

In a September 18, 1976 letter, the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard informed the defendant Weigand that she had "at last gotten a copy of the warrant" for the arrest of Mr. Meisner. She concluded that there was "the need to establish an alibi for MM", The defendant Weigand responded to the defendant Hubbard's letter on 22 September 1976 in which he expressed his belief that her plan would "encounter difficulties" in view of the fact that the FBI had the defendant Wolfe's and Mr. Meisner's handwriting on the log books of the Courthouse. He stated his opinion that establishing an alibi as she bad suggested, would "come down to our word(s) against 2 FBI agents, cleaners and guards, plus handwriting experts, ear experts and possibly fingerprint experts."

He concluded that there were two options open:

1. Turn Mike in at the most opportune time (when we can get some better prediction of what will be done with him and us, which as you wrote should follow the handling of Silver.)

2. Not turn him over. Which means he hides or runs for 5 years at least (that being the statute of limitations.). [149]

"The worst," he stated "from my viewpoint is that M would get 5 years in jail and a $2000 fine that being the maximum for the action. Also, there would be attempts to get him to turn or otherwise implicate us or others in various wrong doings." He added that "[i]f the investigation continues I expect that more data will be turned up linking us with M's and others [sic] actions." He asked the defendant Hubbard to send him her views. (Government Exhibit No. 127.) [150]

The defendant Hermann/Cooper and Mr. Meisner met for some two hours on September 20, 1976. Mr Meisner told the defendant Hermann/Cooper that he was absolutely opposed to leaving the country. (See also Government Exhibit No. 128.) 151/ The defendant Hermann/Cooper advised Mr. Meisner that, pursuant to a Guardian's Office directive, a San Diego police lieutenant had made an inquiry through the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) computer to determine the specifics regarding the arrest warrant which had been issued for Mr. Meisner on August 5. The defendant Hermann/Cooper stated that the NCIC check revealed that the Meisner warrant was for the forgery of government identification cards. He told Mr. Meisner that the FBI had contacted the police lieutenant to find out why he had made that inquiry.

San Diego police lieutenant Warren Young, a member of the Church of Scientology, told the FBI that he had made the NCIC check because he had arrested Mr. Meisner for a pedestrian violation the previous day in San Diego. In fact, Mr. Meisner had never been to San Diego. In a handwritten letter dated 16 September 1976, the defendant Duke Snider stated to the defendant Weigand that "[i]t looks as though AG SD [Assistant Guardian for San Diego] has set C of S [Church of Scientology] up to be accused of conspiring with this policeman to violate the law." He directed the defendant Weigand to take the necessary steps to handle the matter. (Government Exhibit No. 129A.) On the same day, the defendant Weigand responded to the defendant Snider that, while he did not know whether the policeman was "cool", he knew that the police officer was a lieutenant who "is on SCN (Scientology] lines". He observed that they "have laid a nice false lead for the FBI which cant [sic] help but help us while dispersing their investigation. This according to reliable sources is one thing that can draw an investigation to a quik [sic] close.'' (Government Exhibit No. 129B.) The defendant Snider, in a handwritten notation thanked the defendant Weigand and stated that he was "glad to see it is under control".  [152]

On September 28, 1976, Deputy Guardian for Information World-Wide Mo Budlong, in a letter to the defendant Weigand "Re: Murphy [Meisner]", stated:

The answer for this gentleman is to have him depart for some whereabouts wherein he can obtain documents concerning his ability to drive but does not have to give details of his life history, if you know what I mean, to obtain the documents.

Then he should find some out of the way large city where he can rent himself a quiet place to do research or some such for an article or a book or whatever.

He can then live and work there for some time undisturbed.

Once Silver has completed his cycle we will have some idea of which way things are moving and we will be able to ascertain Murphy's next move, but for the time being he should keep himself fairly exclusive.

Silver should admit what he did but let his representative do his talking for him and should not volunteer any further informa- tion.

To achieve this of course Silver and his representative will have to push for the big event to occur as soon as possible.

Once the Silver event is over we can reassess the whole cycle in light of the data that comes up, which you will have to work out some way of reporting to me.

_If any of the above is not clear, please ask immediately as I don't want any confusions on what has to be done_. (Emphasis added.)

(See Government Exhibit No. 131.) [153]

E. The Guardian's Office Gives the FBI and the Grand Jury False Handwriting Exemplars.

In late September 1976, FBI Special Agent Hansen requested the Church of Scientology in Washington, D.C., to supply the government investigators with exemplars of Mr. Meisner's handwriting. In Los Angeles, California, the defendant Raymond met with Mr. Meisner to discuss what should be given to the FBI. She informed Mr. Meisner that it had been decided to give false exemplars to the FBI. In a letter dated September 30, 1976, to the defendant Weigand, the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard stated that she was aware that the FBI had requested Meisner handwriting exemplars and that those would be compared to the log books of the buildings which Mr. Meisner had entered. She, thus, requested the defend- ant Weigand to furnish her with a list of all the buildings which Mr. Meisner had illegally entered. The defendant Hubbard stated in that letter that she was, as of that date, fully aware of the existence of an arrest warrant for Mr. Meisner. (Government Exhibit No. 132.) [154]

In order to respond to the defendant Hubbard's inquiry the defendant Raymond met with Mr. Meisner to obtain from him a list of all the buildings he had illegally entered in the District of Columbia and the details of those entries. She then relayed that information to the defendant Weigand who responded to the defendant Hubbard's request in a late October 1976 letter. (Government Exhibit No. 132 at page 1.) In that letter, the defendant Weigand informed the defend- ant Hubbard that the buildings illegally entered by Mr. Meisner included the Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service, the Office of International Operations, as well as a number of other private and Government build- ings. 155/ The defendant Weigand pointed out to the defendant Hubbard that he was in the process of "working out a full cover that would cover the log book sign-ins along the lines of they were done to reveal the insecurity within the govern- ment for a series of articles that M [Meisner] would be writing as exposes." [156]

On October 8, 1976, FBI Special Agent Hansen served upon Assistant Guardian for the Legal Bureau in Washington, D.C. Kendrick "Rick" Moxon a Grand Jury subpoena for all original known handwriting exemplars of Michael Meisner and the employment application and personnel records of Mr. Meisner in the possession of the Church of Scientology. That subpoena was returnable on October 14, 1976. Assistant Guardian for Information in the District of Columbia Richard Kimmel immediately notified the defendant Hermann/Cooper of the service of that subpoena. The defendant Hermann/Cooper then notified the defendants Heldt and Weigand in an October 9, 1976 memorandum. (Government Exhibits Nos. 133 and 134 at p. 1.) 157/ In that same memorandum, the defendant Hermann/ Cooper requested approval from the defendants Heldt and Weigand for a mission by Randy Windment, the real name of Bruce Raymond, the National Operations Officer for the Information Bureau in the United States. Mr. Windment/Raymond was to go to the District of Columbia to check the security of the Guardian's Office and the covert operatives who were still functioning-- amely the defendant Sharon Thomas (also known as "Judy") and Ms. Nancy Douglass (also known as "Pitts"). Both the defendants Weigand and Heldt signed their approval of that mission. (See Government Exhibit No. 134.) [158]

On October 14, 1976, District of Columbia Assistant Guardian for the Legal Bureau Kendrick "Rick" Moxon, submitted an affidavit with nine pages of handwritten material. In the affidavit, he stated that he was unable to locate a personnel file for Mr. Meisner, and that the nine pages of appended handwriting were those of Mr. Meisner. However, as the defendant Raymond stated to Mr. Meisner in a meeting in late September 1976, Mr. Moxon had been directed to supply the government with fake handwriting samples in lieu of Mr. Meisner's true handwriting exemplars.

F. The Guardian's Office Refines its Cover-Up Plans

In early October 1976, the defendant Raymond decided that it would be best for Mr. Meisner to move from his motel  o an apartment, thereby reducing the expenses of the Guardian's Office. Paul Poulon, the Collections Officer for the Informa- tion Bureau, rented an apartment for Mr. Meisner at 444 South Burlington Street in Los Angeles, California, to which Mr. Meisner moved on October 6. Mr. Meisner, at that time, was spending most of his days at local libraries doing research on the security of government buildings, in order to support one of the cover-up stories, _viz._, that he had entered various government buildings to do an expose on the lack of security. The defendant Raymond and Mr. Meisner met approximately twice a week to discuss the ongoing cover-up. Mr. Meisner requested of the defendant Raymond that she set up a meeting between him and the defendant Snider as soon as possible. Mr. Meisner had been anxious to communicate his views regarding the cover-up in the current District of Columbia situation with someone in a position of higher authority. He thus selected the defendant Snider because of his high position in the Guardian's office as well as the fact that he had known him for a long time. Indeed, the defendant Snider had recruited Mr. Meisner for the Information Bureau of the Guardian's office. On October 28, the defendant Snider and Establishment Officer Peeter Alvet met with Mr. Meisner at the Burlington Street apartment. Mr. Meisner told the defend- ant Snider that he was concerned about the length of time that the cover-up operation was taking. The defendant Snider cautioned Mr. Meisner that "we didn't want him doing something too fast as we wanted to see what happened with Silver [Wolfe] first, the threat of a Grand Jury." Government Exhibit No. 137, is a letter dated 4 November 1976 in which the defendant Snider wrote the defendant Heldt of the outcome of his meeting with Mr. Meisner. [159] In it, the defendant Snider stated that Mr. Meisner "seemed to finally realize . . . that his actions would ultimately seriously effect [sic] the church . . ." Mr. Meisner had expressed concern for his wife and his parents as well as for the fact that he was being kept almost totally uninformed of Guardian's Office actions on the ongoing cover-up. The defendant Snider' assured Mr. Meisner that he would be briefed on all decisions taken by the Guardian's Office and that his views would henceforth be considered. He assured Mr. Meisner that the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard was concerned about the situation and was fully aware of it, and that anything Mr. Meisner wanted to express to the defendant Hubbard would be sent directly to her. At the conclusion of the meeting, the defendant Snider asked Mr. Meisner to continue doing work for the Information Bureau. In his letter to the defendant Heldt reporting on that meeting (Government Exhibit No. 137), the defendant Snider concluded that Mr. Meisner "_is not a traitor and will cooperate_" with the Guardian's Office. (Emphasis added.)

Three days later, in a letter to defendant Weigand the defendant Hubbard added yet another dimension to the cover-up plan. She suggested that the following scenario be considered: Mr. Meisner (whom she refers to by the letter "H" for the code name Herbert which Mr. Meisner had assumed since going under- ground after the issuance of his arrest warrant) was having marital trouble and was jealous that his wife was being more productive than he. Therefore, he took it upon himself to organize the burglaries of government buildings and thefts of documents from those buildings to prove that he too could produce for the Guardian's Office. She instructed the defend- ant Weigand that "[i]f this seems workable" then Mr. Meisner should be ordered to work on the details of this aspect of that plan. (Government Exhibit No. 135.) 160/ In response to an order that he received from his "senior", the defendant Heldt directed the defendant Willardson to contact the defend- ant Wolfe and instruct him to "push his lawyer to get the scene handled." (Government Exhibit No. 136.) [161]

On November 5, pursuant to the decision made during his meeting with the defendant Snider, Mr. Meisner was moved by Mr. Paul Poulan to a new apartment located at 840 South Serrano Street in Los Angeles, California. Mr. Meisner rented that apartment in the name of "Jeff Marks" with funds provided him by Mr. Poulon. Mr. Meisner resided at that location until the end of April 1977. On November 26, Mr. Meisner wrote a lengthy letter to the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard explaining to her the extent of his predicament. Government Exhibit No. 138.) 162/ In that letter, he expanded upon the various aspects which she had proposed in her October 31 letter to the defendant Weigand (Government Exhibit No. 135). Mr. Meisner told the defendant Hubbard, that regardless of what cover story was eventually used to handle the ever expanding Federal investigations in the District of Columbia, it would be necessary to explain where he had been living since June 11 when he was confronted by the FBI in the United States Courthouse. He explained that, in any event, the FBI would want to know how Mr. Meisner was able to support himself during all the time that be was in hiding. Thus, Mr. Meisner told the defendant Hubbard that he and the defendant Raymond had already worked out a plan, whereby Mr. Meisner would tell the FBI that he had been living with a friend in Canada. Mr. Meisner wrote that Canada was selected because the FBI had no authority to conduct investigations there. However, he also stated that a cover would have to be created in Canada. He concluded in a postscript that "in my opinion, no matter what story we use, the longer we wait to implement it, the less believeable it will be and the more that the government will be inclined to believe that the Church is behind it."

On November 30, the defendant Mitchell Hermann (a/k/a Mike Cooper) wrote a briefing memorandum outlining step-by- tep the activities in which the defendant Wolfe (Silver) and Mr. Meisner (Herbert/MM) had been involved in the District of Columbia, and the cover story which had been prepared since their encounter with the FBI. The defendant Hermann/Cooper explained that the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner had been involved, from 1974 through June 1976, in the burglaries of Government offices and thefts of Government documents in Washington, D.C. In the spring to summer of 1976, they had directed their attention to the office of Assistant United States Attorney Nathan Dodell in the United States Courthouse in Washington, D.C. It was there, on June 11, 1976, that they were confronted by the FBI. The defendant Hermann/Cooper stated that on June 12, Mr. Meisner had come to Los Angeles, where over the next few days a cover-up story and plan was prepared to contain and terminate the FBI investigation. On June 30, the defendant Wolfe was arrested by the FBI and subsequently gave the previously prepared cover-up story to the FBI and the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia. Then, on July 28, the defendant Wolfe's case was referred to a grand jury for investigation. On August 5, he pointed out, a sealed warrant had been issued for Mr. Meisner. He concluded that "an overall cover story for MM and Silver is being put together by Natl Sec to submit uplines for final approval." That briefing memorandum was sent on December 1, 1976, to the Deputy Guardian for Informa- tion World- ide, via the defendants Heldt and Weigand, with a copy to the defendant Raymond. (Government Exhibit No. 139.) 163/ The defendant Raymond sent to the defendant Weigand the cover-up plan and story intended to stall the FBI investigation in the District of Columbia (Government Exhibit No. 141 at p. 2 et seq.) 164/ She stated that once the defendant Wolfe's District of Columbia case was resolved, Mr. Meisner (Herbert) would be surrendered by the Church of Scientology and would give the agreed-upon cover-up story which she outlined. That story conformed to the one prepared and approved by the defendants Heldt, Snider, Weigand, and Willardson in mid-June, and given to the defendant Wolfe. Appended to her letter was a project for the containment of the investigation which was being conducted by the FBI and United States Attorney's Office in the District of Columbia.

The defendant Weigand simultaneously informed the defend- ant Mary Sue Hubbard that the cover-up plan had been completed.

He explained that:

As I see things now:

1. We turn Herbert in.

2. He says he did it via an attorney who should check the accuracy of the charge(s).

3. He says nothing more than guilty.

4. We establish lines as possible to see if the govt continues its investi- gation of us and if so we hit them with a full scale attack using BI, PR and Legal.

5. We get the Herbert case super- vised closely by Legal and see that he gets the best treatment possible.

And that does it. The key thing being Herbert [Meisner] does not have to get into any cover with the Government . . . . The only complication I can see is that they might try to hit Herb for flight to avoid which needs to be worked out with Legal so that the handling is effective.

(Government Exhibit No. 141.) The defendant Weigand sent the same information to Deputy Guardian for Information World- Wide Mo Budlong. (Government Exhibit No. 142.) [165]

G. The Federal Grand Jury Investigation in the District of Columbia Continues

On December 15, 1976, the Grand Jury investigation continued before a new Grand Jury of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia with the appearance of Special Agent Christine Hansen. [166]

In a briefing paper dated January 7, 1977, the defendant Hermann/Cooper informed the defendant Heldt that the Commodore Staff Guardian, defendant Mary Sue Hubbard, had "approved" a plan identical to the one previously laid out by the defendant Raymond on December 10, 1976. (Government Exhibit No. 143.) 167/ In that briefing paper the defendant Hermann/Cooper outlined for the defendant Heldt the following events: the arrest of the defendant Wolfe; the investigation which was being conducted by the FBI and the United States Attorney's Office; the cover-up story given by the defendant Wolfe; Principal Assistant United States Attorney Carl S. Rauh's statement that he did not believe that story; the assignment of the investigation to Assistant United States Attorney Garey Stark of the Fraud section; the statement by Wolfe's attorney "_that the case has been prepared to go to the grand jury_" (emphasis added); and the various attempts which  were being made by the FBI to locate Mr. Meisner in Washington, D.C. He suggested that research should be conducted to determine if a "guilty plea would then eliminate the grand jury." He also stated that the defendant Wolfe had been directed not to give any further information beyond the cover-up story prepared for him by the Guardian's Office. (See Government Exhibit No. 143 at P. 5.)

On January 23, 1977, the defendant Hermann/Cooper notified the defendants Heldt and Weigand that the defendant Wolfe had a scheduled meeting with the United States Attorney's Office in Washington, D.C. He suggested that that meeting be used to present "further cover story to them as a possible means of forstalling [sic] a possible grand jury." He added, however, that the "furthr [sic] cover story needs to be elaborated." Thus, he appended to his "CSW" the original story with the additions that were prepared to "dovetail" with it. (Government Exhibit No. 144.) [168] In handwritten notations throughout the document, the defendant Raymond opposed some of the changes in the cover-up story proposed by the defendant Hermann/Cooper, In an appended report beginning at page five of Government Exhibit No. 144, the defendant Hermann/Cooper outlined the final proposed cover-up story which in fact was given by the defendant Wolfe to the United States Attorney's Office, the FBI, and later to the United States Grand Jury for the District of Columbia. He included in that report the names of restaurants and bars which had earlier been left unnamed. One week later the defendant Hermann/Cooper reminded the Deputy Guardian for Legal Affairs in the United States Mary Rezzonico that "it is still planned to get Silver [Wolfe] out here for briefing prior to the meeting" which Wolfe had scheduled with the United States Attorney's Office. He expressed the defendant Wolfe's concern that the United States Attorney's Office would attempt to strike a deal with him to become a government witness. (Government Exhibit No. 146.) [169]

During the months of February and March 1977 the cover- up preparation by the Guardian's Office and Information Bureau slowed considerably due to the failure of the defendant Mitchell Hermann (a/k/a Mike Cooper) to complete the outstand- ing aspects of the cover-up story, and because of the defendant Wolfe's waiver of the rule requiring an indictment within forty-five days of arrest. [170] The defendant Raymond and Mr. Meisner continued to elaborate upon various portions of that cover-up story. The defendants Willardson and Raymond assigned Mr. Meisner the task of preparing other covert operations and projects. During this period, Mr. Meisner continued to be audited three times a week.

Towards mid-March, however, Mr. Meisner became upset at the lengthy delays and complained to the defendant Raymond, who informed her superiors of Mr. Meisner's dissatisfaction. The defendant Weigand notified Mr. Meisner that the defendant Hermann/Cooper had been removed from the Information Bureau in part for his failure to properly handle the cover-up, and was assigned to the Services Bureau. He was replaced as cover-up coordinator by the defendant Raymond. Simultaneously, Brian Andrus was appointed to replace the defendant Hermann/ Cooper Southeast U.S. Secretary. [171] Soon thereafter, Mr. Andrus also became Mr. Meisner's case officer. On March 27, 1977, the defendant Raymond sent a "CSW" to the defendants Heldt and Weigand emphasizing the need for action in regard to the defendant Wolfe's and Mr. Meisner's situation in Washington, D.C. She pointed out that she had recently been assigned the task of coordinating the cover-up and reminded them that the Commodore Staff Guardian, the defendant Mary Sue Hubard, and the Guardian's Office World-Wide had ordered the containment of the grand jury investigation. (Government Exhibit No. 147.) [172]

H. The Guardian's Office Cover-Up Moves Into its Final Phase

In late March, Mr. Meisner wrote to the defendant Heldt requesting him to take a more active role in the handling of the District of Columbia situation because the delays were becoming intolerable. Mr. Meisner stated that he was prepared to return to the District of Columbia and handle the matter himself. Soon thereafter, the defendant Heldt became more active in supervising the execution of the cover-up. To that end, on April 1, 1977, the defendant Heldt told the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard that Mr. Meisner was concerned about the delays. He told her that he was now taking a more active role in the handling of Mr. Meisner and that he was sending the defendant Weigand to speak to Mr. Meisner "to cool him off". (Government Exhibit No. 148.) (The appended handwritten letter explains the coding contained in the typewritten one.) [173] The defendant Heldt then responded to Mr. Meisner's earlier letter, stating that he was convinced that both the defendant Wolfe and Mr. Meisner should enter guilty pleas in the District of Columbia. He also told Mr. Meisner that Brian Andrus would keep in constant contact with him and inform him of all new developments and solicit his views on all future matters. Heldt also promised Mr. Meisner that within six weeks the defendant Wolfe would enter his guilty plea and pave the way for Mr. Meisner's surrender to Federal authorities in Washington, D.C. Mr. Andrus handed that letter to Mr. Meisner.

On April 6, in a letter to the defendant Heldt, Mr. Meisner reviewed the issues which were of concern to him. He complained that "the data I had been given was false, incorrect, misinformed, etc., and I caved in." He expressed relief that the defendant Heldt was now in control of the Situation. (Government Exhibit No. 149.) [174] Mr. Meisner also wrote to the defendant Weigand on April 7, 1977, suggesting that, since the defendant Heldt had indicated that Mr. Meisner would shortly be surrendering in Washington, an attorney should be chosen to handle his case. He also recommended that an "FSM" be placed in the appropriate govern- ment agency to obtain information regarding anticipated action by federal authorities. [175] Mr. Andrus and United States. Deputy Guardian for Legal Bureau Mary Rezzonico gave the defendant Heldt's letter to Mr. Meisner during a meeting they had at his apartment. At that meeting, Mr. Meisner told Mr. Andrus and Ms. Rezzonico that he did not believe it was necessary to enter a guilty plea. He preferred to return to the District of Columbia, surrender to the authorities, and go to trial putting the government to its burden as required by law. Mr. Meisner felt that in this manner he could challenge FBI Agent Hansen's identification of him as one of the two persons she had confronted in the United States Courthouse in the District of Columbia. (See alsoGovernment Exhibit No. 151.) [176] In a briefing memorandum dated April 15, Mr. Andrus stated that Mr. Meisner had thanked him for being willing to listen to his point of view. Mr. Andrus concluded that Mr. Meisner was now once again in the fold. A few days thereafter, the defendant Wolfe arrived in Los Angeles, California, where he was briefed on various aspects of the cover-up story by Mr. Andrus, Ms. Rezzonico, and Paul Pflueger, a Legal Bureau official. Mr. Andrus informed Mr. Meisner of the defendant Wolfe's presence and of the briefing sessions.

On April 20, 1977, Guardian World-Wide Jane Kember criticized the defendant Heldt for his "sloppy reporting and poor  co-ordination" of the Wolfe/Meisner District of Columbia situation. She formulated the following "strategy", whereby the defendant Wolfe would request an immediate meeting with the United States Attorney's Office, admit his guilt stating the cover-up story, waive his right to a Grand Jury indictment plead guilty, and would be "sentenced lightly" as a first offender. Meisner would then surrender and also enter a guilty plea based on the cover-up story, giving "an informal story on where he had been for the last 7 months", and also receive a suspended sentence. If the United States Attorney's Office were to insist on continuing with its Grand Jury investigation, then Wolfe would be directed to "refuse to testify". Ms. Kember also demanded an explanation for the long delay in resolving the Wolfe case. (Government Exhibit No. .152.) [177]

At the same time, the Commodore Staff Guardian, defendant Mary Sue Hubbard, directed the defendant Heldt to begin creating a Canadian cover to explain Mr. Meisner's fugitive status without connecting Mr. Meisner to the Church of Scien- tology. The defendant Heldt immediately informed Mr. Andrus of the defendant Hubbard's order and charged him with the task of putting it into effect. (See Government Exhibit No. 153.) [178]

I. The Guardian's Office Retrains and Guards Michael Meisner

On April 27, Mr. Andrus, following a meeting with Mr. Meisner, notified the defendant Weigand that Mr. Meisner was so concerned about the slowness of the Guardian’s Offices actions that Mr. Meisner intended on “leaving for either Canada or DC Saturday.” (Government Exhibit No. 154.) [179]

On April 28, Ms. Rezzonico and Mr. Andrus, together with Jim Fiducia, Mr. Meisner’s auditor, visited Mr. Meisner at his Serrano Street apartment in order to convince him that it was not in his best interest to leave Los Angeles and return to the District of Columbia on his own. Mr. Meisner, however, was adamant that he would leave by April 30 unless he received assurances that the Wolfe situation in the District of Columbia would be resolved promptly. In a 29 April letter to the defendant Heldt summarizing the April 28 meeting, Ms. Rezonico stated her conclusion, based upon additional conversations with the defendants Raymond and Weigand, that there were reasons for concern about Mr. Meisner’s situation. She also stated that she had been notified by the Assistant Guardian for the Legal bureau in the District of Columbia, Kendrick “Rick” Moxon, that the defendant Wolfe’s attorney had reported that the United States Attorney’s Office “had made ‘noises’ about the Grand Jury.” (Government Exhibit No. 156.) [180] That same day, the defendant Heldt informed the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard that “Herb [Meisner] is threatening to return to DC and handle the scene as he sees fit if the waiver is not withdrawn this week.” He told her that he was ordering the Information Bureau to “arrange to restrain Herb and prevent him from leaving, and to guard him so that he does not do so.” (Government Exhibit No. 157.) [181]   The defendant Heldt then directed the defendant Weigand and Ms. Rezzonico that “Herb is to be restrained and guarded. He is not to be permitted to leave.” He further directed that the Canadian cover be set up within ten days even if it required trips to Canada, and that the Legal Bureau should assume much closer supervision and control over the defendant Wolfe and direct him to conclude his case in the District of Columbia promptly. (See Government Exhibit No. 158.) [182] Mr. James Miller, the handwriting expert, positively concluded that the letter was handwritten by the defendant Heldt.

Or. April 29, Mr. Andrus met with Mr. Meisner at Mr. Meisner’s South Serrano Street apartment and informed him that from that day on he would be placed under guard. (Government Exhibit No. 159 at p. 4 et seq.) Mr. Meisner told Andrus that he would not accept the presence of guards. Mr. Meisner, also made it clear that if he were charged as a fugitive he would not enter a guilty plea. He complained that his whole situation had been mishandled by the Guardian’s Office and had resulted in his becoming a fugitive. He demanded that the defendant Heldt explain to him what action was being taken regarding his case. At the end of that meeting Mr. Andrus placed the guards outside Mr. Meisner’s apartment. (See 29 April letter to the defendant Weigand.) That same day, the defendant Heldt reported to the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard that Mr. Meisner was now under guard and that Mr. Meisner had “reacted violently to the arrival of persons to insure he did not blow.” He added that he had directed the Information Bureau to locate “a more isolated” apartment where Mr. Meisner could be kept under the watch of “some trustworthy . . . Body Guards”. He also stated that he was sending the defendants Weigand and Willardson to see Mr. Meisner, and “get control” over him. (Government Exhibit No. 159.) According to handwriting expert James Miller that letter was written in its entirety by the defendant Heldt. [183]

Pursuant to the defendant Heldt’s directive, the defendants Weigand and Willardson together with Southeast U.S. Secretary Brian Andrus and three guards, visited Mr. Meisner at approximately 2:15 a.m. on April 30. The defendant Weigand warned Mr. Meisner that he would no longer be permitted to make “demands and threats on the Church,” and “that he was to start becoming a decent, cooperative, contributing part of the venture and nothing else was to be tolerated.” With the guards’ assistance, the defendant Willardson searched Mr. Meisner’s apartment and personal property and removed any evidence connecting Mr. Meisner to the Church of Scientology. At approximately 6:30 a.m., the meeting concluded “with the guards in charge.” [184] On May 3, 1977, the defendant Weigand forwarded this report to Deputy Guardian for Information World-Wide Mo Budlong. Copies were sent to “DG US”, the defendant Heldt, and “CSG”, the defendant Hubbard. On May 1, Mr. Andrus gave Mr. Meisner a handwritten dispatch from the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard which explained to Mr. Meisner that she was aware that he had been placed under guard, and that it was being done for his own good and the good of Scientology. She promised Mr. Meisner that if he followed orders, the guards would be eventually removed. [185]

On May 1, at approximately 6 p.m., Brian Andrus, Peeter Alvet, Information Bureau official Chuck Reese and two bodyguards visited Mr. Meisner and told him that he was to be moved to another apartment. Mr. Meisner refused to leave, threatening to cause a commotion if forced to do so. The two guards handcuffed him behind his back, gagged him and dragged him out of the building. Outside, they forced him onto the back floor of a waiting car. In the car one of the guards held Mr. Meisner down with his feet. Mr. Meisner was taken to an apartment which he later learned was located at 3219 Descanso Drive, in Los Angeles, California. After Messrs. Andrus and Alvet left, three guards remained in the apartment with Mr. Meisner. [186] On Monday, May 2, the defendant Heldt approved the defendant Raymond’s funds requests for Mr. Meisner’s guards. (See Government Exhibit No. 163.) [187] During the ensuing three weeks, Mr. Meisner, continued to be guarded and prevented from leaving his apartment. By May 5, Mr. Meisner determined that it was in his best interest to cooperate with his captors. He corresponded with the defendant Heldt in an attempt to resolve his predicament and to have the guards removed. [188]  He also accepted auditing. [189]

On May 13, 1977, the defendant Wolfe entered a plea of guilty to a one-count information charging him with the wrongful use of a Government seal, in violation of 18 U.S. Code, Section 1017, before United States District Judge Thomas A. Flannery in Washington, D.C. The defendant Wolfe’s plea specifically involved the June 11, 1976 entrance into the United States Courthouse in that city and his use of the IRS identification card bearing the name “Thomas Blake”. A few days thereafter, Mr. Meisner was informed of this new development by Mr. Andrus. By the third week of May, in part due to Mr. Meisner’s cooperation, his watch was relaxed and his guards began to take him out of the apartment. [190] At that time, Brian Andrus showed Mr. Meisner a program written by DG I WW Mo Budlong which approved the final plan for handling the cover-up. Mr. Andrus told Mr. Meisner that Mr. Budlong had decided that Mr. Meisner could not surrender to the FBI in Washington, D.C. until the IRS had granted the Church of Scientology of California’s request for tax exempt status.

J. Michael Meisner's First Escape from his Guards

By the end of May, Mr. Meisner was guarded by just one person. On May 29, while he was out with his guard, John Matoon, Mr. Meisner escaped by jumping into a taxicab. He went to the Greyhound Bus Station, and took a bus to Las Vegas. Mr. Meisner did not have much money, but having been there previously he knew a motel which he could afford. He escaped from his guard because he wanted time to think about his predicament and to determine an appropriate course of action. At that time, Mr. Meisner was still committed to Scientology, and did not want to leave the organization precipitously.

On May 30, Mr. Meisner telephoned the defendant Raymond in Los Angeles and requested to speak to either Mr. Brian Andrus or Mr. Jim Douglass. Since Mr. Andrus was unavailable, Mr. Douglass spoke to Mr. Meisner. Mr. Meisner refused to state where he was staying in Las Vegas until he first spoke to defendant Heldt. Therefore, a telephone call was scheduled for 8:30 that evening. The defendant Heldt pleaded with Meisner to return to Los Angeles and the Guardian’s Office of the Church of Scientology. [191] While Mr. Meisner initially refused, he did agree to meet with Douglass the next day in Las Vegas.

On May 31, Mr. Meisner met with Mr. Douglass at a prearranged crowded location. They discussed Mr. Meisner’s concerns, and Mr. Douglass urged Mr. Meisner to return with him. Mr. Meisner refused. By the next morning the Guardian’s Office had learned where he had been staying, and he was confronted by information Bureau official Chuck Reese, who insisted that Mr. Meisner return with him to Los Angeles. Mr. Reese represented to Mr. Meisner that the defendant Weigand had been removed from his position as Deputy Guardian for Information in the United States, and had been temporarily replaced by Brian Andrus, who had been Mr. Meisner’s case officer. Mr. Meisner first spoke to the defendant Heldt who promised to meet with him that evening if he returned to Los Angeles. Mr. Meisner, still troubled and confused, agreed, nonetheless, to return to Los Angeles.

That same night, Mr. Meisner and the defendant Heldt met at Canter’s Restaurant in Los Angeles. The defendant Heldt assured Mr. Meisner that he understood Mr. Meisner’s feelings. He told him that both L. Ron Hubbard and the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard were working on his case and would do everything to help him. He explained that while Mr. Meisner would have to continue to be guarded, he should consider his guards his friends and not his enemies. Mr. Meisner agreed to remain with the Guardian’s Office. He was driven to his Descanso Drive apartment by the defendant Heldt and Mr. Reese. When he arrived, Mr. Meisner was met by Mr. Douglass who had been waiting to guard him. Mr. Meisner describes the then-existing situation as an “armed truce”.

In the meantime, Brian Andrus, on May 31, had ordered the defendant Raymond to find a “secured” place for Meisner to stay if and when he returned from Las Vegas. He suggested “a place where he could be locked in a room that has no or a very small window” and where he would have “no outside contact”. (Government Exhibit No. 170.) [192] On June 1, Mr. Meisner was moved by his guards to in apartment located at 327 South Verdugo in Glendale, California. During the entire month he continued to be guarded by at least one person.

K. The Defendant Wolfe's Sentencing and Subsequent Testimony Before the Grand Jury in the District of Columbia.

On June 10, the defendant Wolfe was sentenced by United States District Judge Thomas A. Flannery to a term of probation, and was required to perform one hundred hours of community service. Inasmuch as he resided in Minnesota, the case was transferred both for probation supervision and jurisdiction to that state. Immediately following his sentencing, the defendant Wolfe was served with a subpoena to appear that same afternoon before the United State Grand Jury for the District of Columbia which had been investigating the entries into the United States Courthouse there.

At approximately 1 p.m., the defendant Wolfe appeared before the October 1976 Grand Jury of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. [193] He was represented by attorney, David Schmidt, Esquire. The defendant Wolfe was sworn by Grand Jury Foreperson Mildred Chaplin. The record was transcribed by an official Grand Jury reporter, Ms. Judith Bracegirdle Warner, who states that Government Exhibit No. 215 is the complete testimony given by the defendant Wolfe on that day.

At the time of the defendant Wolfe’s appearance, the Grand Jury was conducting an investigation to determine whether violations of statutes of the United States and the District of Columbia had been committed in the District of Columbia. The Grand Jury was attempting to identify the individuals who had committed, caused the commision of, and conspired to commit such violations. lt was material to its investigation for it to determine the reasons for the presence of the defendant Wolfe and one “John M. Foster” in the United States Courthouse in the District of Columbia on May 21, 28 and June 11, 1976. The Grand Jury was seeking the reasons for the defendant Wolfe’s use on May 28 of an identification card bearing the last name “Haake”, and his use on June 11, 1976, of counterfeit IRS credentials bearing the name of “Thomas J. Blake”. It was also material for the Grand Jury to determine whether, while in the United States Courthouse, the defendant Wolfe and the individual using the name “Foster” had entered the office of any Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, and, if so, whether they had unlawfully taken any documents or files located therein. Moreover, the Grand Jury wanted to learn whether the defendant Wolfe and “Mr. Foster” had photocopied any documents which were the property of the Office of United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, and the United States of America, on photocopying machines within that office. The Grand Jury sought to learn from the defendant Wolfe the true identity of the individual who had entered the Courthouse with him and used the name “John M. Foster”. It also was inquiring into the manner in which the defendant Wolfe and “Mr. Foster” had obtained the counterfeit and forged IRS credentials which they had used to enter the Courthouse. Finally, the Grand Jury was attempting to determine whether any other individual in the District of Columbia or elsewhere had conspired with, aided and abetted, or caused the defendant Wolfe to obtain his counterfeit IRS credentials, or assisted him in entering the United States Courthouse for the District of Columbia.

During his testimony under oath before the federal Grand Jury, the defendant Wolfe knowingly made the following false declarations regarding the above-mentioned material matters which the grand jury was investigating:

Statement No. 1

Q. When did you first come to know that D.C. Bar Association had a library on the third floor of this building?

A. I don’t remember exactly the date.

Q. Why did you want to come to this library.

A. _To study._

Q. To study what?

A. _To learn how to do legal research._

Q. Why did you want to learn to do legal research?

A. Well, I was planning on going back to Minneapolis to complete or further my studies in music and I thought that in addition to clerical skills that I had that if I could learn to do some legal research that I could perhaps get a better paying, more interesting job to help pay for my school.

Q. Where would you find that job?

A. In Minneapolis, I presume.

Q. Who would hire you in Minneapolis?

A. I don’t know. A law firm, perhaps.

Q. Did you embark on this program to learn how to do legal research with the idea in mind of presenting yourself to a Minneapolis law firm and saying, “I can do legal research for you”?

A. Yeah I think so.

Q. You don’t know?

A. That’s what I had in mind.

Q. How did you propose to learn to do legal research in the D.C. Bar library?

A. _Someone was going to teach me._

Q. Who was that someone?

A. John Foster. (Govertiment Exhibit No. 215 at 15-16, 17-18) [194]

* * *

Statement No. 2

Q. Now, the first night that you were here in the courthouse, did you xerox anything?

A. I don’t think so, but I don’t recall exactly, you know, which night.

Q. How long were you here on that first occasion?

A. I don’t remember how long exactly.

Q. Approximately.

A. I don’t know. Guessing, I’d say maybe an hour.

Q. Did you go anywhere else but the library that night?

A. I don’t know. I do know that one or more of the times here I did go to the men’s room. Now, whether it was the first night or not that I couldn’t recall exactly.

Q. Did you have to leave the library to go to the men’s room?

A. Yes.

* * *

Q. Apart from going to the men’s room, did you go anywhere else in the Courthouse that night?

A. _ I don’t think so._

Q. From the first to the third floor library and back onto the first floor, and out?

A. Right. (Government Exhibit No. 215 at 173, 174.)

* * *

Statement No. 3

Q. Do you recall ever doing any xeroxing on the third floor of this building on any of the three occasions?

A Yes.

* * *

Q. What did you xerox?

A. _Case histories._

Q. Case histories? What’s a case history?

A. Well, a case out of a law book which contains cases.

* * *

Q. Did you bring the books from the library to the xerox machines?

A. Myself, _yes,_ some of then.

Q. Did Mr. Foster carry books?

A. _Yes._

Q. How many did you carry?

A. Approximately five.

Q. And how many did he carry?

A. Approximately the same.

Q. Were they the same type of books?

A. You mean the same as mine? Yes, I think so.

* * *

Q. And how long did you use the xerox machine?

A. Approximately fifteen minutes to a half hour.

Q. No longer than half an hour?

A. I don’t think so.

Q. And what did you do when you left?

A. _Brought the books back, to the library and just left._ (Government Exhibit No. 215 at 179-180, 184-185)

* * *

Statement No. 4

MR. STARK: Let me inform you, however, that the grand jury and the U.S. Attorney’s Office have a joint responsibility to investigate criminality that occurs within the District of Columbia.

Now, you may have made your plea of guilty in this case and have been sentenced today but Mr. Foster has not. Now, we are investigating Mr. Foster’s involvement in this and there may come a time when Mr. Foster is sitting either in that chair or in the defendant’s chair before a petit jury.

And your version of what happened on these three occasions will aid this grand jury in it’s determination of what if anything to charge Mr. Foster with. Do you understand that?

Q. Now, did you know Mr. Foster by any other name?

A. _No. I didn’t._

Q. You only knew him by John Foster?

A. _Right._ ( Government Exhibit No. 215 at 200-201.) [195]

The defendant Wolfe knew that the testimony he was giving to the Grand Jury of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia on June 11, 1977, was false in all material respects. He knew that the individual who had entered the Courthouse with him using the name “John M. Foster” was in fact Michael Meisner, who at the time of the entries was the Assistant Guardian for Information in the District of Columbia, He knew Mr. Meisner’s address and telephone number in Arlington, Virginia, as well as Mr. Meisner’s telephone number at the Church of Scientology offices at 2125 S Street, N.W., in Washington, D.C. The defendant Wolfe had attained employment at the Internal Revenue Service knowing that he was a covert operative for the Guardian’s Office of the Church of Scientology, and that his purpose for being at the IRS was to have access to Government documents in order to steal them for the Guardian’s Office. He was aware that the counterfeit IRS credentials had been used by himself and Mr. Meisner to make illegal entries into various Government buildings for the purpose of burglarizing offices and stealing documents and photocopies thereof located therein. He and Mr. Meisner had entered the United States Courthouse on May 21, 28 and June 11, 1976, for the purpose of burglarizing the Office Of Assistant United States Attorney Nathan Dodell and stealing documents from that office. Indeed, they had accomplished that task on May 21 and 28, 1976. The defendant Wolfe also was fully aware that he and Mr. Meisner had not gone into the United States Courthouse to use the Library of the Bar Association of the District of Columbia to do legal research, and that Mr. Meisner was not to teach him to do any legal research. He knew that they did not, at any time, photocopy law books or cases contained in law books which were taken from the library but had, in fact, photocopied, with United States Government equipment and supplies, United States Government documents taken from Mr. Dodell’s office. The defendant Wolfe further knew that the burglaries of, and thefts of documents from, the office of Assistant United States Attorney Dodell were pursuant to Guardian Program Order 158. Mr. Meisner had fully briefed him on that Guardian’s Program Order, as well as the orders which he had received from his superiors in Los Angeles, California, including the defendants Heldt, Weigand, Willardson, Snider, Raymond, Hermann, and Hubbard. The defendant Wolfe participated in the preperaton of the cover-up story in Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 1976, together with the defendants Willardson, Weigand and Mr. Meisner. He was repeatedly briefed by Guardian’s Office officials both in the District of Columbia and in Los Angeles regarding the cover-up story and his contrived statements to the United States Attorney Office for the District of Columbia, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Grand Jury of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Indeed, when the defendant Wolfe appeared before the Grand Jury on June 10, 1977, he was under specific orders from the Guardian’s Office of the Church of Scientology, including, at one time or another, the defendants Hubbard, Heldt, Snider, Weigand, Willardson, Raymond and Hermann, to make false material declarations to that Grand Jury for the purpose of derailing the Grand Jury investigation and preventing that Grand Jury from discovering the actual facts about the involvement of the above-named defendants, the Guardian’s Office of the Church of Scientology in the United States and at World-Wide, and Mr. Meisner. All of the defendant Wolfe’s testimony before the Grand Jury of the United States District Court in the District of Columbia, on June, 10, 1977, including the statements quoted above and at counts 25 through 28 of the indictment, conformed in detail to the cover-up plan and story prepared by the defendant Wolfe, the above-named defendants and Mr. Meisner. All the false declarations made by the defendant Wolfe were material to the Investigation being conducted by the October 1976 Grand Jury of the United States District Court of the District of Columbia with the assistance of the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia.

L. The Defendant Wolfe is Debriefed by the Guardian's Office After his Grand Jury appearance.

Immediately following his Grand Jury appearance the defendant Wolfe went to the office of the Church of Scientology at 2125 S Street, N.W., in Washington, D.C. where he was debriefed by Guardian’s Office officials. The next day on June 12, a transcript of that debrief was sent to the Guardian’s Office in Los Angeles, California, and excerpted by legal Bureau official Paul Klopper in a memorandum to his superior, Deputy Guardian for the Legal Bureau Mary Rezzonico. That memorandum, entitled “Silver Hearing and Grand Jury” summarizes the sentencing proceedings before Judge Flannery and the testimony or the defendant Wolfe. (Government Exhibit No. 173.) [196]  According to the routing on the June 12 letter, copies of that letter and debrief were sent to the “CSG”, defendant Mary Sue Hubbard, the “DG US”, defendant Henning Heldt, the “DGI US” Brian Andrus and the Guardian World-Wide Jane Kember. [197] Pursuant to the order of the defendant Heldt (Government Exhibit No. 171) [198] Ms. Rezzonico and Mr. Andrus gave Mr. Meisner the debrief contained in Government Exhibit No. 173 to read so that he could start adjusting his cover-up story to that given by the defendant Wolfe in the Grand Jury. Mr. Meisner read the defendant Wolfe’s Grand Jury debrief at his apartment on South Verdugo. [199]  In his directive to Ms. Rozzonico and Mr. Andrus, the defendant Heldt also ordered them to research any possible fugitive charge against Mr. Meisner and to increase security. [200]  On June 16, Mr. Andrus informed Ms. Rezzonico that “Herb [Meisner] was given the news. His reaction was mild pleasure. He uplifted his eyebrows and said something like ‘not bad’. He learned the news by reading the hearing debrief.” (Government Exhibit No. 172.) [201]

According to Mr. Andrus, Mr. Meisner complained that “he didn’t feel that anyone was concerned or really looking out for his own welfare.” Mr. Andrus assured him that he would keep him informed of all new developments and would see him again soon.

On June 13, the defendant Heldt and Mr. Andrus visited Mr. Meisner in order to show him a handwritten letter from the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard. The defendant Heldt read to him that letter in which the defendant Hubbard warned Mr. Meisner that if he escaped from his guards again he would be on his own.

On June 17, Mr. Andrus met once again with Mr. Meisner. He discussed with him the potential legal defenses prepared by the Legal Bureau, and left the meeting feeling that “Herb was again in better shape communication and duplication wise.

In Government Exhibit No. 174, Mr. Andrus informed the Temporary Deputy Guardian for Information in the United States of the meeting, which he had with Mr. Meisner. [202]

M. Michael Meisner Surrenders to the Federal Bureau of  Investigation

By mid-June, Mr. Meisner had decided that if the watch over him were ever relaxed, he would immediately leave the Guardian’s Office, surrender to the Federal authorities, plead guilty, and cooperate in the ongoing investigation. Thus, he feigned cooperation with his captors and his superiors in the Guardian’s Office in the hope that eventually his guards might be removed. As a reward for this cooperation, Mr. Meisner’s watch was relaxed. In fact, beginning on the evening of Friday, June 17, he was no longer guarded at night. His guards would leave his apartment at night and return at 9 a.m. the next morning.

On Monday, June 20 at 6 a.m. Mr. Meisner, taking a few clothes with him, left his apartment on South Verdugo in Glendale, California, for the purpose of surrendering to Federal Authorities. In order to elude any potential follower, Mr. Meisner took two buses to a bowling alley, from which he placed a collect call to Assistant United States Attorney Garey Stark in Washington D.C. Mr. Meisner identified himself to the operator as “Gerald Wolfe” because he feared that the Guardian’s Office of the Church of Scientology might have placed a covert operative in the United States Attorney’s Office. When Mr. Stark answered the telephone Mr. Meisner identified by his real name, informed Mr. Stark that he was ready to surrender, plead guilty for his participation in the criminal activities of the Guardian’s Office, and cooperate with the United States. Mr. Stark directed him to stay at the bowling alley and wait for Federal Bureau of Investigation agents. Approximately two hours later, three agents of the FBI met Mr. Meisner at the bowling alley. Mr. Meisner surrendered to the agents and was taken by them to Los Angeles airport, where he was placed on an airplane to the Baltimore-Washington International Airport Upon his arrival in Baltimore, he was met by FBI Special Agents Robert S. Tittle and James S. Kramarsic. He was kept that night in a motel and taken the next morning, June 21, to the office of Assistant United States Attorney Garey G. Stark. At the insistence of the Assistant United States Attorney assigned to the investigation, Mr. Meisner conferred with an attorney appointed to him by United States Magistrate Henry H. Kennedy, Jr. After conferring with his court- appointed attorney, Mr. Meisner agreed to enter a plea of guilty to a five-year conspiracy felony pursuant to 18 U.S. Code, Section 371, without any other condition except that he would fully cooperate with the Grand Jury investigation. Mr. Meisner was, of course, warned that any false testimony he made would be prosecuted as perjury. Mr. Meisner requested and was granted protective custody by the United States Marshall Service. He has been in the Marshal Service’s protective custody since June 2l, 1977.

From June 20 to June 22, the defendants and other officials of the Guardian’s Office notified each other of Mr. Meisner’s disappearance. On June 20, the defendant Willardson informed the defendant Heldt that “Herbert [Meisner] was found missing today.” He stated that Brian Andrus had found in Mr. Meisner’s apartment a note stating that Mr. Meisner would call in a week, that he was not going anywhere where he could be located, and that there was no purpose in discussing his motivations. The defendant Willardson informed the defendant Heldt that Mr. Meisner had last been seen by his guard on Sunday, June 18 at 6:00 p.m. He speculated that Mr. Meisner was hiding somewhere in Los Angeles, probably doing legal research in a library regarding his possible legal defenses in the District of Columbia case. He added that a Guardian’s Office official had been to Mr. Meisner’s apartment to remove any documents connecting Mr. Meisner to Scientology, and to wipe-out all possible fingerprints. (Government Exhibit No. 175.) [203]  A copy of that letter was sent to the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard (”CSG”), the defendant Raymond (”BI DC Scene Co-Ord (Natl Sec)”) and Mary Rezzonico (as “BI DC Scene Co-Ord (DG L)”) That same day Ms Rezzonico notified the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard that Mr. Meisner had escaped. Ms. Rezzonico speculated that Mr. Meisner had become concerned about additional fugitive from justice charges. She stated that the defendant Willardson had agreed to have all those individuals in Washington, D.C. who might be affected by Mr. Meisner’s appearance briefed on what to do if he should return there. She also stated that the defendant Heldt (”DG US”) had ‘’suggested the possibility of creating some confusion with some phone calls and a false arrest set-up — leading the government to believe that Patsy [Mr. Meisner's wife] would be meeting her ex-husband at some clandestined [sic] meeting — then have her and Greg Taylor [another Guardian's Office Official who resembled] Mr. Meisner meet.” Thus, the FBI would, presumably, arrest the wrong person. (Government Exhibits Nos. 176 and 177) [204]

In a letter also dated 20 June, the defendant Willardson ordered the defendant Raymond and Mr. Brian Andrus to “[c]ontinue to fully work out Herb’s [Meisner's] cover story per the program eventualities so that we are prepared”. (Government Exhibit No. 178). [205] He also directed that Mr. Meisner’s wife be ordered not to follow her husband’s instructions should he contact her. [206] Furthermore, Guardian’s Office personnel were to continue checking all libraries in Los Angeles on the assumption that Mr. Meisner was doing research. The defendant Willardson ordered the removal of all incriminating documents from the Guardians Office and their placement in the “Red Box”. (Government Exhibit No. 219.) [207]

In a letter dated June 21, 1977, the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard explained to Ms. Mary Rezzonico that she believed Mr. Meisner’s escape had resulted from a refusal on his part to recognize the need to plead guilty on the fugitive from justice charge. She felt that that charge, with its five years and/or $5,000 fine was too heavy for Mr. Meisner to bear. She speculated that Mr. Meisner had probably gone somewhere where he could do legal research to prepare his case. However, she concluded that she did not think that he would remain in the Los Angeles area but that he was more likely to go to San Francisco, or possibly Berkeley. (Government Exhibit No. 179 at P. 2.) [208] 

Following her receipt of the defendant Hubbard’s letter, Ms. Rezzonico notified “DG I US”, the defendant Willardson, and “B-1 CO-ORD US”, the defendant Raymond as well as “NAT’L CASE OFF (SEUS SEC)” Brian Andrus of the defendant Hubbard’s directive. [209] That same day, the defendant Willardson notified Ms. Rezzonico in her capacity as “DC Scene Co- Ord[inator]” that the CSG, defendant Mary Sue Hubbard, had ordered that the Information Bureau “not waste resources” looking for Mr. Meisner, since he might be anywhere. The defendant Willardson also notified Mr. Mo Budlong by telex that Mr. Meisner had “_blown_ again” and that “no real avenues [were] open to locate [him].” He told him that Mr. Meisner’s apartment was “_cleaned_out_ and _wiped_down_”, and that “all _his_GO_ associates [were] to be briefed”. He states that a “[P]lan [was] in the works to remove sensitve GO data shud [sic] It become necessary in future”. (Government Exhibit No. No. 180). [210] In a 22 June 1977 letter, the defendant Raymond updated the information which the defendant Willardson had telexed to Mr. Budlong. She informed him that “[w]e are working on a plan to create another false arrest scene type of action along ops [operations] lines”, to sidetrack the ongoing Grand Jury investigation in the District of Columbia. (Government Exhibit No. 181.) [211]  

On June 21, the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard instructed the defendant Willardson not to “waste time or resources” searching for Mr. Meisner in the Los Angeles area. She stated that she believed that he was more likely to be in a city or community such as San Francisco or Berkeley where there were good libraries available. She further informed the defendant Willardson that she had already instructed Ms. Rezzonico to prepare a program to handle the present situation. The next day, the defendant Willardson agreed with the defendant Hubbard that Mr. Meisner was “probably on the west coast somewhere” and that there were “too many possibilities to make a check worthwhile.” He pointed out that the Information Bureau’s checks of the local libraries in Los Angeles had been negative. (Government Exhibit No. 183.) [212] All the defendants and officials of the Guardian’s Office firmly believed that Mr. Meisner was still a devoted member of the Guardian’s Office and had not surrendered to the federal authorities.

On June 29 the defendant Willardson informed Ms. Rezzonico that he had met with the defendants Raymond and Mr. Andrus to “iron out some bugs on Herb’s [Meisner's] story”. He indicated that he had directed Mr. Andrus and the defendant Raymond to continue to work over the next few days on the “basic story”. He expressed concern that Mr. Meisner had not called the Guardian’s Office since his escape on June 20, and that the situation “could potentially leave us open to crossing up stories or facts to both Herb’s and our defendant.” He concluded, however, that he was convinced that Mr. Meisner had not surrendered to the authorities and was still with the Guardian’s Office. (Government Exhibit No. 184) [213] On that same day the defendant Willardson notified the defendant Heldt that he had “just got word from Herb.” The defendant Willardson had just been informed that Mr. Andrus had received a letter from Mr. Meisner postmarked San Francisco. The letter which had been sent by Mr. Meisner after his surrender to the federal authorities and after the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia had decided to obtain a search warrant for Guardian’s Office premises, stated:

Brian -

I know you don’t understand what’s going on, but I still need time to myself. I’m making enough to get by on so there’s no problems.

I’ll be in touch in a couple of weeks.

Herb.

(Government Exhibit No. 185 at p. 4.) [214]

The defendant Willardson concluded that “as CSG [the defendant Hubbard] predicted” Mr. Meisner had been doing legal research in the San Francisco area. He suggested that the Guardian’s Office send a “missionaire” to “scout the legal libraries and perhaps law schools to locate him [Meisner].” A copy of this letter was sent to the “CSG”, the defendant Mary Sue Hubbard, National Secretary, the defendant Raymond, and Southeast Secretary, Brian Andrus.

The defendant Hubbard, in a handwritten letter dated July 3, told the defendant Heldt:

I frankly wld [would] not waste Bur1 resources looking for him [Meisner] but wld instead utilize resources to figure out a way to defuse him shld [should] he turn traitor.

(Government Exhibit No. 185 at p. 3.) [215] The defendant Heldt immediately notified the defendant Willardson of the defendant Hubbard’s directive not to look for Mr. Meisner. He instructed him to “produce a plan or plans in report form early this week” to carry out the defendant Hubbard’s directive. (Government Exhibit No. 185 p. 2.) [216]

The above 262-page Stipulation of Evidence is accepted by the United States of America, the defendants, and their attorneys, as the uncontested evidence of the United States in the instant case.

CARL S. RAUH
United States Attorney

RAYMOND BANOUN
Assistant United States Attorney

TIMOTHY J. REARDON, III
Assistant United States Attorney

STEVE C. TABACKMAN
Assistant United States Attorney

HENRY F. SCHUELKE
Assistant United States Attorney

JUDITH HETHERTON
Assistant United States Attorney

Leonard B. Boudin
Counsel for Defendant Mary Sue Hubbard

MICHAEL L. HERTZBERG
Counsel for Defendant Mary Sue Hubbard

MARY SUE HUBBARD
Defendant

PHILIP J. HIRSCHKOP
Counsel for Defendants Henning Heldt, Duke Snider

HENNING HELDT
Defendant

DUKE SNIDER
Defendant

ROGER ZUCKERMAN
Counsel for Defendants Richard Weigand, Gregory Willardson

ROGER SPAEDER
Counsel for Defendants Richard Weigand

RICHARD WEIGAND
Defendant

GREGORY WILLARDSON
Defendant

MICHAEL NUSSBAUM
Counsel for defendants Cindy Raymond, Mitchell Hermann

EARL C. DUDLEY
Counsel for Defendants Cindy Raymond, Mitchell Hermann

CINDY RAYMOND
Defendant

MITCHELL HERMANN
Defendant

JOHN KENNETH ZWERLING
Counsel for Defendant Gerald Bennett Wolfe

GERALD BENNETT WOLFE
Defendant

LEONARD J. KOENICK
Counsel for Defendant Sharon Thomas

SHARON THOMAS
Defendant

Accepted by the court this ___ day of October, 1979.

CHARLES R. RICHEY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE