Director Accused Of Sexual Assault Is Worried About Scientology
A famous director who was accused of sexual assault has expressed concerns over Scientology and its influence.
This article is more than 2 years old
While award-winning filmmaker, Paul Haggis is standing by his innocence during an alleged count of sexual assault, he believes that the church of Scientology could be behind his alleged victim’s claims. The 69-year-old director was accused of sexually assaulting a 28-year-old British woman at his residence in southern Italy prior to dropping her at the Papola Casale airport in Brindisi two days later. The prosecution claims that during the woman’s stay with the Crash director, she was sexually assaulted by him and then ruthlessly dropped off at the airport alone, with no regard to her physical and psychological condition.
Haggis was put under house arrest for 16 days which he served in a hotel before judge Vilma Gilli decided to release him. Although the prosecution will continue to seek charges against Haggis, he believes that he’ll be able to battle them out to prove his innocence should a court date be set. In the midst of the chaos, Haggis did an interview with the Italian newspaper, La Repubblica, who asked him if he believed that his ties to Scientology may have landed him in this hot water. This seemed to get the gears turning for Haggis who said that there was no “proof” surrounding the church’s involvement in the allegations, but that he had heard horror stories about others like him who left and then publicly denounced the religion.
A longtime member of the Church of Scientology, Haggis found an out in 2009 and never looked back. In fact, he did the exact opposite – he spoke out against the religion in a slew of different ways. From penning a New Yorker article to appearing in two documentaries surrounding the church: Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief and Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, the director made it clear that he believes the church to be a dangerous cult. While speaking to La Repubblica, he acknowledged that he knew that there was a chance of retribution against him since several others who have done the same thing had had their lives torn to bits.
Leah Remini may be the most famous ex-Scientologist out there with her documentaries and books surrounding her discovery and escape from the alleged cult. But there are many other celebrities and regular people alike who have spoken out against the alleged abuse they faced during their time with the church. Many people have spoken about the bizarre happenings inside the top-secret buildings that house those practicing the religion including the mysterious story surrounding the disappearance of Shelly Miscavige, the wife of the church’s current leader, David Miscavige.
But, when it comes to the allegations against Haggis, there’s one glaring issue when bringing Scientology into the conversation. Although the allegations against Haggis are exactly that – just allegations and claims – throwing a conspiracy theory into the mix can be a dangerous thing. The law has its duty of sorting out exactly what happened during those two days at Haggis’ home and whether the claims brought forth are true or false. While Scientology could potentially be involved, it’s maybe best to examine the facts for what they are first and then move towards the church should it begin to appear that they were at fault.
