Message #11325 - Magicknet Date : 29-Sep-90 23:17 From : Josh Gordon To : All Subject : Oto Vs. Berkeley Police Lawsuit ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- @EID:44a1 153dba33 @ On September 12th, 1990 e.v., Ordo Templi Orientis and seven individual plaintiffs filed a suit in Federal Court against the City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, 10 named officers of BPD, two other individuals and as yet unidentified additional defendants. The suit asks $9.5 million in compensatory damages with additional special damages and remedies. All this arises out of the raid and matters prior and subsequent of one year ago. The damages arise from allegations of violation of civil rights, civil conspiracy, false arrest and imprisonment, slander, libel, conversion, assault, battery, malicious prosecution and abuse of process, as well as intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress and negligence. The complaint also claims as specific causes of action matters arising from the 1st, 4th, 5th, 8th, 9th and 14th amendments to the U.S.Constitution and matters in California constitution and statute. The case will be heard by Federal IXth District Court Judge Eugene F. Lynch, hopefully within the next year or early in the one following. Grand Lodge needs your contributions to the Legal Fund. The raid brought home to us the necessity of dealing with libel and slander before it leads to worse things. In the past the Grand Lodge of O.T.O. has taken legal action against libel at some considerable expense. We have always been successful, although not always to the point of fighting a case to ultimate decision by the courts. One of the controlling limitations has been money. At this time four additional unrelated legal actions are either in progress or in early stages against matters of libel or the result of libel against O.T.O. in addition to this present case. We have had to turn down one other case on the fringe of O.T.O., in large part from lack of adequate funding to proceed. For more information, see the "Magical Link", Summer 1990 e.v. issue. O.T.O. can proceed with the matters presently in hand, but only if contributions to the Legal Fund continue. Your generosity has enabled us to come this far, but justice is expensive. Please send what you can afford to: O.T.O. Legal Fund, P.O.Box 430, Fairfax, CA 94930 USA. Such contributions to the defense of our religious freedom to pursue the practice of the Thelemic religion are tax- deductible in the USA. Victories by O.T.O. in defense of its religious freedom redound to the benefit of all minority religions through establishment of precedent and demonstration of the rights of religious expression generally. --- * Origin: ThelemaNet San Francisco * (415) 751-9308 (Opus 1:161/93)