Scientology Scandal TRIAL & ERROR

Inside the court case that could finally bring down the controversial church. A source exclusively tells all to Us

Valerie Haney says she was suicidal before fleeing the Church of Scientology in the trunk of a car in 2016. Little did she know that her nightmare was far from over. She claims the fringe religion has worked day and night ever since her escape to slander her name and ruin her life. On June 18, 2019, she announced her intention to fight back with a bombshell lawsuit accusing the church and its leader, David Miscavige, of kidnapping, stalking, human trafficking, false imprisonment, libel, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress. But Scientology isn’t taking Haney’s hit lying down. On Jan. 30, a judge granted the church’s motion to take Haney’s case to arbitration, so the lawsuit will have to play out within the organization, not a court of law. In addition, there will be no recorded transcripts of Haney’s meetings with the arbitrators, nor will her attorney be allowed to be present, according to Scientology critic and Underground Bunker blogger Tony Ortega. That means war, and Haney says she’s more determined than ever to expose — and destroy — the church. “I’m not going away,” Haney told ex- Scientologist Mike Rinder, cohost of Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, following the judge’s ruling. “I am not going to be shut down or shut up. The battle,” she continued, “has just begun.”

THEY SAID, SHE SAID