Scientology in the United States

[5] In addition, members of the Church started filing thousands of lawsuits against the IRS, claiming that they were entitled to tax deductions for auditing and training expenses.

[5] They were finally rewarded in October 1993, when the IRS formally announced that the Church of Scientology and all its related organizations (whether for-profit or not) had been granted tax exemption again.

[5] Since then, the U.S. Department of State has formally criticized several European countries, including Germany and France, for religious discrimination against Scientologists.

[7] In a 1995 lawsuit against The Washington Post newspaper et al., Religious Technology Center (RTC), the corporation that controls L. Ron Hubbard's copyrighted materials, sued to prevent a Post reporter from describing church teachings at the center of another lawsuit, claiming copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and that the circulation of their "advanced technology" teachings would cause "devastating, cataclysmic spiritual harm" to those not prepared.

[14] 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.

Noah Lottick was an American student of Russian studies who committed suicide on May 11, 1990, by jumping from a 10th-floor hotel window, clutching his only remaining money in his hands.