Operation Snow White
Operation Snow White was the name given internally by the
Church of Scientology to a program which included the single largest infiltration of the
United States government in history.
Under this program,
Scientology operatives committed infiltration, wiretapping, and theft of documents in government offices, most notably those of the
U.S. Internal Revenue Service. Eleven highly placed Church executives, including
Mary Sue Hubbard (wife of founder
L. Ron Hubbard and second in command of the organization), pleaded guilty or were convicted in federal court of obstructing justice, burglary of government offices, and theft of documents and government property. The case was
United States vs. Mary Sue Hubbard et al., 493 F. Supp. 209 (D.D.C. 1979).
The "Snow White Program" was written by L. Ron Hubbard (LRH)
as an attempt to reduce or eliminate unfavorable reports on
Scientology, the Church of Scientology, and LRH himself, especially those held by
Interpol and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. Critics and supporters of Scientology generally have different beliefs on whether the illegal acts committed to carry out Hubbard's orders were a misunderstanding of his directives or in fact exactly what he had ordered.
FBI raids on Scientology properties in 1977 not only turned up documentation of the group's illegal activities against the United States government, but also illegal activities against other perceived enemies of Scientology, such as "
Operation Freakout", a conspiracy to frame author
Paulette Cooper on false bomb threat charges, and conspiracies to frame
Gabe Cazares, mayor of
Clearwater, Florida, on false
hit and run charges.
Mary Sue Hubbard,
Cindy Raymond,
Gerald Bennett Wolfe,
Henning Heldt,
Duke Snider,
Gregory Willardson,
Richard Weigand,
Mitchell Herman,
Sharon Thomas,
Jane Kember, and
Mo Budlong, all high-ranking Scientologists, were convicted and sent to prison, while
Kendrick Moxon was listed as an "unindicted co-conspirator" for providing false handwriting samples to the FBI.
As of 1999 Moxon is Scientology's lead in-house attorney.[
1] L. Ron Hubbard himself was named by federal prosecutors as an "unindicted co-conspirator."
The Church has been notably reluctant to discuss the operation's details; typical statements by members and operatives are often vague comments saying that the
Guardian's Office (GO) had been "infiltrated" and "set up" to fail in its mission to protect the Church, that those involved were "purged" from the Church, without detailing what actually happened (although it has been suggested many of those involved and "purged" remained in important positions of power within the church).
[The President answers your questions: What is the Guardian's Office and does it still exist?] Church spokespersons on the Internet and elsewhere have been known to claim the operatives were convicted of "stealing photocopy paper."
[Ortega, Tony (Sept. 9, 2001). "Sympathy for the Devil". New Times Los Angeles. Convenience link at http://www.lermanet.com/scientologynews/newtimes-toryC-92701.html]Effects in Canada
As a result of documents stolen from public and private agencies in Canada and information on other covert activities found as evidence collected in the Operation Snow White case
[John Marshall, Secret Ontario documents found in U.S. cult's files, The Globe and Mail, January 22, 1980.][John Marshall, Cult harassment, spying in Canada documented, The Globe and Mail, January 23, 1980.], investigations into the
Church of Scientology in Ontario were started. This eventually resulted in the
R. v. Church of Scientology of Toronto case, seven members convicted, and two convictions of criminal Breach of the Public Trust against the church itself.
*
1977 Grand Jury Criminal Indictment, legal documents
*
Stipulation of Evidence, legal document
*
The convicted conspirator's appeal, legal document
*John Marshall,
Hubbard still gave orders, records show (archived at rickross.com),
The Globe and Mail, January 24, 1980.
