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DOCUMENT TITLE: Gerald Armstrong Affidavit and Evidence to Officer Emmons
SUBJECT: Gerald Armstrong illegally delivers sealed evidence from his court case across the country to a Clearwater police officer, some of it privileged
PARTIES: Gerald Armstrong, thief; Lt. Ray Emmons, Clearwater police officer; Judge John L. Cole, presiding in Armstrong case, ordered documents sealed; Julie Dragojevic, Gerald Armstrong's attorney and co-counsel with Michael Flynn; Marie King, Assistant State Attorney, Florida

BACKGROUND AND NOTES

Gerald Armstrong travels to Florida in March of 1983--while his civil case concerning the 30,000 documents he stole from Hubbard archives is pending in Los Angeles--to meet with Lt. Emmons of the Clearwater Police. The documents stolen by Armstrong have been strictly sealed by Judge Cole. But as is evidenced in the accounts by Emmons below, Armstrong illegally delivers to Emmons sealed transcripts of tapes of meetings that, as Emmons admits, involve "Hubbard's lawyers." These are the infamous "Zolin Tapes," part of the sealed Armstrong contraband that would later be central to a case that went all the way to the Supreme Court.

Emmons quaintly says in his report of this shady activity he is involved in with Armstrong that the transcript of "Hubbard's lawyers" is "not privileged for several reasons." But somehow he doesn't get around to saying what those "several reasons" are.

In addition to the account of the Armstrong visit, there are several later entries by Emmons below where it appears that Assistant State Attorney of Florida Marie King was not so sanguine about the legal issues surrounding the tape transcripts and Emmons's playing footsie with Armstrong. The later entries also reveal that Emmons was in touch with Armstrong's attorney, Julie Dragojevic. She would later be central to a contempt of court ruling against Michael Flynn in the DeWolf case for "showing certain papers to Julia Dragojevic, Flynn's co-counsel" in the Armstrong case.

Here are the relevant reports from Emmons:



25 March 1983
"During the first week of my (Lt. Emmons) assignment to the State Attorney's Office investigating Scientology, I was assigned to draft questions that were to be used in the Jocelyn and Jerry Armstrong [sic: Gerry Armstrong] interview process. These interviews yielded a great deal of information concerning financial transactions and fraudulent practices. ..."
     [Gerry Armstrong provides an Affidavit to Lt. Emmons, which is used as Exhibit 1 in a recommendation by Emmons for a RICO prosecution against several Scientology organizations and L. Ron and Mary Sue Hubbard. In the affidavit, Armstrong quotes from a transcript of the two Mission Corporate Category Sort-out (MCCS) tapes--later to be known as the "Zolin tapes" in other litigation. This what leads to Emmons's next comments in his recommendation]:
     "The foregoing quote is taken from a tape recording of Hubbard's lawyers and the highest legal official of the Church at a meeting held in September 1980. See affidavit of Armstrong attached hereto as Exhibit 1. (The tape recording is not privileged for several reasons.)"



Circa 1 May 1983
"May 1983, Report NumSer SR3.1 R (J-1)
     "This report is a sumnmary of purposed [sic] investigative techniques which could be employed to monitor the activities of the Scientology organization. This report was composed by Lt. Emmons.
     "During the assignment, two witnesses were brought to Clearwater for testimony, Jocelyn and Jerry Armstrong [sic: Gerry Armstrong]. These witnesses testified to a great many financial transactions in addition to other Scientology practices which appear to be fraudulent.
     "An attempt was made by this writer to have the State Attorney's Office file a formal motion to retrieve various incriminating documents in the Church of Scientology vs. Gerald Armstrong Case in Los Angeles. The State Attorney's Office did not agree with this writer's, Lt. Emmons, assessment of how to obtain these beforementioned documents from the L.A. Court System via the motion process and the matter was dropped."



16 May 1983
"At the inception of the Scientology investigation task force operations, it became apparent if the investigators could obtain the documents contained in the Los Angeles Superior Court, the Church of Scientology vs. Gerald Armstrong Case, much of the evidence to prove fraudulent practices would be in hand. I, (Lt. Emmons), informed the Assistant State Attorney assigned to this task force, Marie King, if she could explore the possibilities of obtaining the documents through a court motion. Ms. King communicated with a Los Angeles lawyer, Julia Dragojevic, concerning a court motion.
     "Ms. King wrote this memo, SR3.1 RA-10, explaining the need for a Grand Jury proceeding underway in order to obtain the documents in the Armstrong Case. Ms. King's interpretation of Judge Cole's documents ruling."



21 September 1983
"On Sept. 21, 1983, I, (Lt. Emmons), called Julie Dragojevic, Attorney at Law, concerning the documents in the Armstrong Case. Ms. Dragojevic stated she did not believe the Judge would require the investigative steps to be inclusive as to impanel a Grand Jury as long as Mr. Armstrong's statement had been taken. Mr. Armstrong testified at the Pinellas/Pasco State Attorney's Office in Mar. 1983. I relayed this message on to Ms. King with no response."



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