The Queen v. The Church of Scientology of Toronto, et al, appeal Date: 1996/09/08 Message-Id: <50v6ev$7ik_001@ppp7.ietc.ca> Organization: nocturnal aviation Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology Summary of article by Stephen Bindman, Southam Newspapers, 96/09/08 WHO'S TO JUDGE? SCIENTOLOGY QUESTIONS JURY ELIGIBILITY When one of Canada's longest-running criminal cases resumes in the Ontario Court of Appeal tomorrow the composition of a criminal jury will be one of the legal issues in dispute. The Church of Scientology of Toronto and one of its members are appealing their 1992 convictions for breach of trust for planting spies in the Ontario Provincial Police and Attorney-General's ministry in the 1970's. It is believed to be the only time a church has been charged in Canada with a criminal offense. The church, which has already spent more than $7 million on its defence, argues the exclusion of non-citizens makes the jury less representative of the community and exclusion of minority groups means there's a greater opportunity for prejudice to affect what goes on in the jury room ... of particular importance when the accused itself is a minority religion with a greater acceptance in other countries than it has in this one said its written brief. The investigation of Scientology, named Project 20, began in 1980 after a Toronto newspaper reported that confidential Ontario Government documents were found in a police raid on the church's California headquarters. As part of the OPP probe, two undercover officers infiltrated the church. Three years later more than 100 officers raided Scientology's Toronto headquarters, seizing more than 2 million pages of church documents in a massive, two-day search. Charges against the church and five of its members were laid in 1984. The massive search was eventually ruled unconstitutional because police did not act in good faith and all the documents ruled inadmissible. It also produced the largest libel award in Canadian history - $1.6 million plus interest and legal costs to a former crown attorney. Casey Hill, now a judge, was libeled by the church and one of its lawyers, Morris Manning. The actual criminal trial did not begin until April 1992. The church and three members were found guilty of breach of trust but acquitted of several other charges. The church was fined $250,000, an amount it now says is crushing and a violation of its constitutionally protected freedom of religion. spbill Your SP Declare is waiting for you at the end of the Bridge. Sign up now for your next step.