Opinion ID: 1311766
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Conversion Is the Immediate Cause of Damages

Text: Reversal of summary judgment is improper for the additional reason that the immediate cause of damages was not the incipient fraud, i.e., heavenly deception, but rather the ensuing indoctrination effected by brainwashing which ultimately resulted in appellants' conversion. That the gist of appellants' fraud complaint was that the conversion was achieved by actionable brainwashing is manifest. Indeed, the majority so defines the issue ( ante, at p. 1109): Molko and Leal therefore contend that a triable issue of fact remains as to whether the Church brainwashed them prior to disclosing its identity. If the answer is affirmative, they urge, they have established justifiable reliance. Again, the majority declares that appellants' statements are consistent with the contention that they were deceived into a situation in which they were then brainwashed and summary judgment on the fraud count must be overturned because the brainwashing theory advanced in appellants' declarations presented a triable issue of fact. This same notion not unsurprisingly has its genesis in appellants' briefs. For example, Molko asserts in his opening brief that By means of deceits and deceptions utilized in order to place plaintiff in Boonville, plaintiff was abruptly thrust into an environment directed entirely toward the conversion of plaintiff's allegiance to accept Sun Myung Moon as the Messiah and to become a member of the Unification Church.... The conversion of plaintiff occurred in an unusual place. (Italics partially added.) Amici curiae likewise emphasize that the immediate cause of damages was the process of conversion which has been known by many labels  brainwashing, thought reform, coercive persuasion, etc. Identification of the indoctrination (i.e., brainwashing) and the conversion as the critical issues for determining the applicability of summary judgment carries far-reaching legal significance. For under settled law the indoctrination methods employed in obtaining conversion (including coercive persuasion, mind control and/or brainwashing) are not actionable per se; religious conversion is not subject to judicial scrutiny regardless of the methods used because such scrutiny necessarily entails the questioning of religious faith  scrutiny that is absolutely forbidden by the First Amendment. Moreover, even if judicial scrutiny were permitted, governmental interference in this case is not warranted.
The primary cases holding that religious indoctrination, even if achieved by brainwashing, is not tortious if unaccompanied by physical force or threat are Lewis v. Holy Spirit Ass'n for Unification (D.Mass. 1983) 589 F. Supp. 10; Meroni v. Holy Spirit Ass'n for Unification (1986) 119 App.Div.2d 200 [506 N.Y.S.2d 174]; and Application of Conversion Center (1957) 388 Pa. 239 [130 A.2d 107]. The Lewis plaintiff, a former member of the Unification Church, brought a tort action against the Church alleging, inter alia, that he was subjected to brainwashing and that as a result thereof he suffered psychiatric disorders. In dismissing plaintiff's tort claims, the court stated: Both of the plaintiff's claims in tort are seriously flawed. Indoctrination and initiation procedures and conditions of membership in a religious organization are generally not subject to judicial review [citations]. Similarly, the plaintiff has not indicated any precedent for recognition of the tort of brainwashing, and my own research has revealed none. ( Lewis v. Holy Spirit Ass'n for Unification, supra, 589 F. Supp. at p. 12.) In Meroni, the plaintiff's son entered the training and indoctrination program of the Unification Church; after one month he left the program and committed suicide. In an action against the Church plaintiff purported to state causes of action in tort contending that the decedent, an emotionally disturbed youth, was subjected to highly programmed behavior techniques (such as intensive physical exercises, isolation, lectures, confession, strict work and study schedules) as a result of which he was brainwashed. In dismissing the action the court opined that the indoctrination methods of the Church were not tortious. The conduct of the defendant Unification Church ... which the plaintiff seeks to classify as tortious, constitutes common and accepted religious proselytizing practices, e.g., fasting, chanting, physical exercises, cloistered living, confessions, lectures, and a highly structured work and study schedule. To the extent that the plaintiff alleges that the decedent was `brainwashed' as a result of the church's program, this claim must be viewed in the context of the situation as a whole, i.e., as a method of religious indoctrination that is neither extreme nor outrageous.... ( Meroni v. Holy Spirit Ass'n for Unification, supra, 506 N.Y.S.2d at p. 177.) In finding the brainwashing nontortious in the absence of physical violence or mental torture, the court remarked: It is important to note that no facts are set forth which would warrant the conclusion that the plaintiff's decedent was falsely imprisoned by the appellant or that he was subjected to any form of violence, or physical or mental torture, as such. The claim of brainwashing is based upon the activities heretofore described, which, as previously noted, are commonly used by religious and other groups, and are accepted by society as legitimate means of indoctrination. They are not classifiable as so extreme or outrageous, or offensive to society, as to incur liability therefor.  ( Id., at pp. 177-178, italics added.) In Application of Conversion Center, supra, 130 A.2d 107, the court recognized that persuasion is an integral part of many religious organizations and a positively protected aspect of the free exercise of religion: The 14th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States which incorporates the 1st Amendment, guarantees the free exercise of religion.... Not only is a citizen of this country entitled to the free expression of his religious beliefs, but he may by peaceful persuasion endeavor to convert others thereto, and we are aware of no bar to individuals organizing to effectuate their guaranteed rights in this regard.... `... Propagation of belief  or even of disbelief in the supernatural  is protected whether in church or chapel, mosque or synagogue, tabernacle or meetinghouse....' ( Id., at p. 110, italics added.)
The majority concedes that the free exercise clause of the First Amendment provides absolute protection for religious beliefs ( Cantwell v. Connecticut (1940) 310 U.S. 296, 303-304 [84 L.Ed. 1213, 1217-1218, 60 S.Ct. 900, 128 A.L.R. 1352]); that the government cannot discriminate against individuals or groups because they hold views abhorrent to the authorities ( Fowler v. Rhode Island (1952) 345 U.S. 67, 70 [97 L.Ed. 828, 831, 73 S.Ct. 526]); and that while the court can inquire into the sincerity of an individual's beliefs, it may not judge the truth or falsity of those beliefs ( United States v. Ballard (1944) 322 U.S. 78, 86-88 [88 L.Ed. 1148, 1153-1155, 64 S.Ct. 882]). However, the majority concludes that while religious belief is absolutely protected, religious conduct is not ( Sherbert v. Verner (1963) 374 U.S. 398, 402-403 [10 L.Ed.2d 965, 969-970, 83 S.Ct. 1790]; People v. Woody (1964) 61 Cal.2d 716, 718 [40 Cal. Rptr. 69, 24, 28-36, 394 P.2d 813]); that conduct even if religiously motivated is subject to regulation for the protection of society ( Cantwell v. Connecticut, supra, 310 U.S. at p. 304 [84 L.Ed. at p. 1218]); and that the Church's initial fraud which led to the brainwashing of appellants was conduct which, under the balancing test required by the First Amendment, can be penalized with tort sanctions based upon a compelling state interest ( Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) 406 U.S. 205, 214, 221-235 [32 L.Ed.2d 15, 92 S.Ct. 1526]). I respectfully submit that this reasoning is flawed. To begin with, the conduct which according to the majority constitutes a triable issue of fact is not only the initial fraud (an act clearly subject to proof), but also the subsequent brainwashing and conversion  matters comprising not only sociological or psychological phenomena, but also involving intangible elements of religious belief. It follows that brainwashing and conversion are so inextricably intertwined with religious faith that they cannot be scrutinized, much less proven, without questioning the authenticity of the religious teachings of the Church. (See detailed discussion, infra. ) Such inquiry is absolutely proscribed by the free exercise clause of the First Amendment. The proposition that the act or conduct of a religious organization or its members is immune from judicial scrutiny if the proof thereof calls into question the truth or falsity of religious faith is well established in case law as well as in legal commentary. United States v. Ballard, supra, 322 U.S. 78, the leading case defining the parameters of the constitutional protection of religious faith, dealt with prosecution of religious fraud. Therein it was alleged that respondents, founders of the I am movement, fraudulently represented that they were divine messengers; that they had miraculous powers to heal all diseases and, in fact, had cured hundreds of afflicted people; and that as a result of these misrepresentations, they obtained money from the public through the mail. The trial court excluded from jury consideration the issue of the truth or falsity of respondents' claim of divine designation and miraculous powers, and the case was submitted on the sole issue of whether respondents made those claims in good faith. In approving the trial court's ruling, the Supreme Court reasoned: Freedom of thought, which includes freedom of religious belief, is basic in a society of free men. [Citation.] It embraces the right to maintain theories of life and of death and of the hereafter which are rank heresy to followers of the orthodox faiths. Heresy trials are foreign to our Constitution. Men may believe what they cannot prove. They may not be put to the proof of their religious doctrines or beliefs. Religious experiences which are as real as life to some may be incomprehensible to others. Yet the fact that they may be beyond the ken of mortals does not mean that they can be made suspect before the law. Many take their gospel from the New Testament. But it would hardly be supposed that they could be tried before a jury charged with the duty of determining whether those teachings contained false representations. The miracles of the New Testament, the Divinity of Christ, life after death, the power of prayer are deep in the religious convictions of many. If one could be sent to jail because a jury in a hostile environment found those teachings false, little indeed would be left of religious freedom. The Fathers of the Constitution were not unaware of the varied and extreme views of religious sects, of the violence of disagreement among them, and of the lack of any one religious creed on which all men would agree. They fashioned a charter of government which envisaged the widest possible toleration of conflicting views. Man's relation to his God was made no concern of the state. He was granted the right to worship as he pleased and to answer to no man for the verity of his religious views. The religious views espoused by respondents might seem incredible, if not preposterous, to most people. But if those doctrines are subject to trial before a jury charged with finding their truth or falsity, then the same can be done with the religious beliefs of any sect. When the triers of fact undertake that task, they enter a forbidden domain.  ( Id., at pp. 86-87 [88 L.Ed. at p. 1154], italics added.) Another analogous case involving religiously motivated fraud is Founding Church of Scientology v. United States (D.C. Cir.1969) 409 F.2d 1146 [133 App.D.C. 229, 13 A.L.R.Fed. 721]. In Founding Church, appellants (Church of Scientology and its adherents) were charged with false and misleading labeling under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. § 301 et seq.), based upon their representation that the Hubbard Electrometer (E meter) can cure both bodily and mental ailments. [1] The government seized the electric instruments and religious literature describing church doctrine and alleged that they were the instrumentalities by which the fraud was committed. At trial the government introduced expert evidence showing that the E meter was of no use in the diagnosis and treatment of any disease or mental disorder (i.e., that the church's representations were false), and it also introduced thousands of pages of scientology literature relevant to the issue of mislabeling. Based thereon, the jury found appellants guilty of false and misleading labeling. The Court of Appeal reversed in concluding that under Ballard expert testimony was not admissible to disprove appellants' representations and that the religious Scriptures of the church were not subject to courtroom evaluation. Significantly enough, the court noted: The statements concerning the powers of auditing over the ills of mind and body are not readily separable from general statements of Scientological doctrines concerning the nature of man and the relationship of his mind to his body. Many will find these doctrines, those which relate to health as well as those which do not, absurd or incoherent. But the Ballard case makes suspect the legal inquisition of such doctrines where they are held as religious tenets. ( Id., at p. 1159.) Even more analogous to this case is Katz v. Superior Court (1977) 73 Cal. App.3d 952 [141 Cal. Rptr. 234], in which the parents of Unification Church members brought an action for conservatorship: they claimed that their children were subjected to coercive persuasion and brainwashing through food and sleep deprivation, isolation, fear tactics, use of guilty feelings and indoctrination; they offered psychiatric and psychological expert evidence to establish such claims. The Katz court was unwilling to inquire into the merit of the assertions because it felt the evaluation of evidence relevant to whether the change in the individual's life style was effected by brainwashing or religious faith, necessarily requires an investigation and questioning of the validity of that faith. ( Id., at pp. 987-988.) The majority's effort to distinguish Katz from the case at bench is not persuasive. While Katz arose, indeed, in a somewhat different legal setting (i.e., the action was brought by the parents rather than ex-church members; they were seeking conservatorship orders under Prob. Code, § 1751; and their purpose was to deprogram their children, etc.), the pivotal issue was the same: were the children brainwashed by the church and was their brainwashing subject to proof in a court proceeding? I respectfully disagree with the majority's suggestion that the primary assertion here, as opposed to Katz, is the initial fraud in recruiting, and is therefore conduct which can be judicially scrutinized. From their language, however, it clearly appears that the wrongful conduct which is at the core of the controversy is the fraudulently induced brainwashing. [2] However, as the majority admits, the first part of the issue (i.e., the knowing misrepresentation of the Church's identity and the intent to induce appellants to participate in the Church's activities) is conceded by the Church. The remaining triable issue of fact is therefore limited to the alleged brainwashing which resulted in appellants' conversion and their joining the Church. What fact is it that the majority remands to be determined at trial? The same fact that Katz found immune from judicial scrutiny, i.e., was the conversion (or brainwashing) induced by coercive indoctrination or by religious persuasion? That such question is not for mortal courts to resolve is unequivocally answered by Katz: No such proof or judicial inquiry is possible without questioning the person's underlying faith  an inquiry which is absolutely forbidden by the First Amendment. The teachings of Katz that brainwashing and religious conversion are not really distinguishable; that the methods used in each are either identical or very similar; and that proof of the existence of each is virtually identical are well illustrated by the present case. The expert testimony here was offered to show that the brainwashing of appellants was achieved by a systematic manipulation of social influences which consisted mainly of the following: (1) control over the social and physical environment; (2) separation of the recruits from the outside world (including friends and family members); (3) influencing individual behavior through rewards, punishments and experiences; (4) oppression of criticism of the Church; and (5) attainment of a special uniform state of mind. However, as demonstrated below, all of these methods are used by the more widely accepted and/or tolerated churches in effecting religious conversion. The effect of conversion, generally speaking, is spiritual rebirth  that is, attainment of a new life. The first step in that direction is a separation from the previous environment to a place where one can meditate and contemplate without distraction. Our world's numerous monasteries and convents demonstrate how retreat and isolation can promote single-minded devotion to God. The separation from friends and family members may be an important step in achieving this goal. Jesus Christ is quoted as saying: He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. (Matthew, 10:34-38.) The Mennonites likewise teach that true Christians must be prepared to take upon themselves the cross of Christ, and forsake father, mother, husband, wife, children, possessions and the self, for the sake of the testimony of His Holy Word when the honor and praise of God require it. (J. Wenger, Glimpses of Mennonite History and Doctrine (2d ed. 1947).) Although transcending one's family may be traumatic and painful, it is sometimes an essential element in the pilgrimage of faith. The guilt and awareness of sin also may be an important factor leading to conversion. The promise of salvation and the threat of damnation are the very foundation of the life of the devout. Ascetic, regulated life, hard work, fasting and giving up earthly pleasures are also parts of many religious teachings aimed at spiritual purity and pleasing God. The dogmatic approach and intolerance of criticism are not uncommon with established religions which profess that divine truth is revealed in Holy Scriptures, church dogmas and in ex cathedra declarations of anointed leaders (e.g., papal infallibility in the Catholic Church) which is not to be questioned by faithful followers. Finally, the introverted view forsaking interest in the outside world necessarily flows from the religious teaching that one must separate himself or herself from the world dominated by Satan and his evil forces in order to join and serve God's kingdom. Indeed, what this expert evidence characterizes as indicia of brainwashing or mind control, might very well be equated with the more popularly accepted symptoms of genuine religious conversion. Religious behavioral change induced by the mystery of faith cannot be proved or disproved by secular science, which limits its scope of inquiry to tangible, rational and logical phenomena, comprehensible and explainable by human reasons. As Mr. Shapiro states in his essay: Religious beliefs  whether held by adherents to new sects or by `mainstream' believers  may not be dictated by societal norms. Such norms can easily encourage labels that transform religious beliefs into illnesses. `A religion becomes a cult; proselytization becomes brainwashing; persuasion becomes propaganda; missionaries become subversive agents; retreats, monasteries, and convents become prisons; holy ritual becomes bizarre conduct; religious observance becomes aberrant behavior; devotion and meditation become psychopathic trances.' (Shapiro, Of Robots, Persons, and the Protection of Religious Beliefs, supra, 56 So.Cal.L.Rev. at pp. 1316-1317, fn. omitted.) A similar analysis has been advanced by Justice Jackson: [religious] experiences, like some tones and colors, have existence for one, but none at all for another. They cannot be verified to the minds of those whose field of consciousness does not include religious insight. When one comes to trial which turns on any aspect of religious belief or representation, unbelievers among his judges are likely not to understand and are almost certain not to believe him.... Prosecutions of this character easily could degenerate into religious prosecution. ( United States v. Ballard, supra, 322 U.S. at pp. 93, 95 [88 L.Ed. at pp. 1157, 1158] [dis. opn. of Jackson, J.].) [3]
Case law teaches that overt acts or conduct connected with the exercise of religion are subject to governmental interference only if the conduct poses substantial threat to the public safety, peace or order. As the Supreme Court stated: ` only the gravest abuses, endangering paramount interest give occasion for permissible limitation.' ( Sherbert v. Verner, supra, 374 U.S. at p. 406, italics added.) This was reiterated in Wisconsin v. Yoder, supra, 406 U.S. at page 215 [32 L.Ed.2d at p. 25]: [O]nly those interests of the highest order and those not otherwise served can overbalance legitimate claims to the free exercise of religion. (Accord Thomas v. Review Bd. Ind. Empl. Sec. Div. (1981) 450 U.S. 707, 717-718 [67 L.Ed.2d 624, 633-634, 101 S.Ct. 1425], italics added.) The majority opinion rests on a theory of fraudulently induced brainwashing. However, the conduct of brainwashing itself is not actionable because that method is commonly employed by religious groups, and it fails to constitute that outrageous conduct which goes beyond the limits of social toleration. ( Meroni v. Holy Spirit Ass'n, supra, 506 N.Y.S.2d 174; see also Christofferson v. Church of Scientology (1981) 57 Ore.App. 203 [644 P.2d 577, 584, 40 A.L.R.4th 1017].) Thus, the critical issue is whether the act of brainwashing becomes tortious because it was preceded by the wrongful act of heavenly deception employed in recruiting. It bears emphasis, and indeed the majority concedes, that the claimed deceptions, although secular on the surface, are clearly rooted in religious belief. ( Wisconsin v. Yoder, supra, 406 U.S. at p. 215 [32 L.Ed.2d at p. 25].) It is settled that the Constitution guarantees not only the free exercise of religion, but also protects certain acts undertaken in furtherance of these religious beliefs. Included among these acts are the proselytizing and indoctrination activities of religious organizations. As explained in McDaniel v. Paty (1978) 435 U.S. 618, 626 [55 L.Ed.2d 593, 600, 98 S.Ct. 1322]: the right to the free exercise of religion unquestionably encompasses the right to preach, proselyte, and perform other similar religious functions. Turner v. Unification Church (D.R.I. 1978) 473 F. Supp. 367 further teaches that indoctrination and the motivation of one who joins a religious group usually cannot be judicially scrutinized and that only the `operational activities' of a religion, those activities that are not solely in the ideological or intellectual realm, [that] are subject to judicial review and may be regulated to achieve a sufficiently important state objective. [Citations.] ( Id., at pp. 371-372.) The examples listed by the majority for the permissibility of government interference with religious affairs are consistent with Turner inasmuch as they all involve operational activities of the religious organization (i.e., law against polygamy, distribution of religious literature, compulsory vaccinations, license for religious parades, denial of tax exempt status, etc.), rather than intellectual or doctrinal matters, such as proselytizing and indoctrination. Thus, a persuasive argument may be made that the principal wrong here claimed (i.e., heavenly deception in recruiting) is not subject to government intervention at all, because it includes doctrinal matters rather than operational activities. But even if we assume that such acts are purely secular in nature and may properly be regulated by government, they fail to amount to an abuse of such magnitude that would justify government interference under the strict balancing test prescribed by law. This is so because the First Amendment ensures wide protection for religious persuasion which may encompass not only exaggeration, but also outright falsehood. As stated in Cantwell v. Connecticut, supra, 310 U.S. at p. 310 [84 L.Ed. at p. 1221]:  In the realm of religious faith, and in that of political belief, sharp differences arise. In both fields the tenets of one man may seem the rankest error to his neighbor. To persuade others to his own point of view, the pleader, as we know, at times, resorts to exaggeration, to vilification of men who have been, or are, prominent in church or state, and even to false statement. But the people of this nation have ordained in the light of history, that, in spite of the probability of excesses and abuses, these liberties are, in the long view, essential to enlightened opinion and right conduct on the part of the citizens of a democracy. (Italics added.) In sum, I am firmly convinced that since heavenly deception and its ensuing brainwashing, fail to constitute those gravest abuses, this court is powerless to impose tort sanctions thereon. Finally, I find an additional reason for holding that imposition of tort sanctions is particularly inappropriate in the present instance. Case law emphasizes that only a compelling governmental interest supported by ample evidence can justify state regulation of religious practices. ( Wisconsin v. Yoder, supra, 406 U.S. at pp. 215, 224-225 [32 L.Ed.2d at pp. 25, 30-31].) In the case at bench, the State of California has made no claim that such governmental interest exists, nor has it enacted any statute or regulation purporting to restrict the practices at issue. When scrutinizing conduct which is ostensibly subject to constitutional protection and which can be regulated only by showing a compelling state interest, the judiciary should tread cautiously in independently creating such governmental interest without any prior consideration by the Legislature. The Legislature is far better equipped than this court to undertake the factual investigation and to formulate the social policies which justify restrictions on exercising religious freedoms. Indeed, in the overwhelming majority of cases courts have merely upheld state regulations curbing religious conduct rather than creating such regulation. The majority's creation of this new tort liability in such an historically heretofore sensitive area, without either legislative initiative or guidance, constitutes judicial activism of the first degree.