St. Petersburg Times

April 18, 1996

Deal would allow church to control police files

by Bruce Vielmetti

TAMPA- Should the city of Clearwater abdicate control of its police records to the Church of Scientology, the subject of a 15-year police investigation?

The city and the church have proposed just that to settle their federal lawsuit over the records, but the judge had some questions about the arrangement Wednesday and has not decided whether to approve the deal.

Attorneys for two area newspapers had questions, too, and on Wednesday tried to intervene in the case after learning about the proposed settlement.

Under the plan, Clearwater police would refuse to release certain files on Scientology, though they are public records. People who wanted to review them would instead have to challenge the Church of Scientology in federal court.

At a hearing Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Susan Bucklew, both parties objected to requests by the Times and the Tampa Tribune to enter the case, saying the newspapers should have asked sooner.

But Bucklew said she was inclined to let the news media be heard unless the city and church could offer a better argument. She gave each 10 days to file written objections.

Many of the records at issue already have been examined by the Times, which published stories in January 1994 about the existence of the long-term Clearwater police investigation of Scientology activities. The investigation produced voluminous files on church members but no charges.

Church officials were shocked and outraged to learn about the investigation. They contend the files include sensitive and personal information about individuals as well details of the church’s scriptures, internal affairs and finances. Release of the information, they argue, violated church members’ constitutional rights of privacy and religious association.