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BARRY VAN SICKLE - BAR NO. 986451079 Sunrise AvenueSuite B-315Roseville, CA 95661Telephone: (916) 549-8784E-Mail: bvansickle@surewest.netAttorney for PlaintiffLAURA ANN DeCRESCENZO

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF LOS ANGELESLAURA ANN DeCRESCENZO

akaLAURA A. DIECKMAN,

Plaintiff,vs.

CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGYINTERNATIONAL, a corporateentity, AND DOES 1 - 20

Defendants)))))))))))))))))))))

CASE NO. BC411018PLAINTIFF’S FIRST AMENDEDCOMPLAINT FOR:1)

RECISSION OF UNLAWFUL,FRAUDULENT INSTRUMENTS2)

UNPAID WAGES RECOVERABLEUNDER B&P §17200 ET. SEQ3)

DISCRIMINATION & INVASIONOF PRIVACY4)

FORCED LABOR aka HUMANTRAFFICKING5)

INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OFEMOTIONAL DISTRESS6)

OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE7)

FRAUD AND DECEIT ASSIGNED TO THE HONORABLERONALD M SOHIGIAN, DEPT. 41OVERVIEW

There are two very different versions of Scientology.There is the Scientology as presented to the outside world andthere is a different Scientology in which Plaintiff lived andworked for approximately thirteen years. In the Scientologyworld Plaintiff experienced, twelve year old children are taken

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from their homes, asked to sign employment contracts and put towork. Pregnant women are coerced to have abortions. Employeeswork 100 hour weeks in secular activities for wages far belowminimum wage. There are no contributions to Social Security oremployee pensions, although there is plenty of money to payScientology’s Chairman of the Board, private investigators andlawyers. Personal freedoms are restricted and severe punishmentsare used to keep employees in line. Passports are taken fromforeign workers and the infirm are discarded if they cannotperform. For reasons obvious to those who know the realScientology, it fears the truth and works hard to suppress anddeny it at almost any cost. That is the context of thislitigation.2)

The gist of the case is to recover past due wages,interest, other economic damages and attorney’s fees forDefendant Church of Scientology International’s (CSI) many yearsof continuing labor and human trafficking violations. (See,Watson v. Department of Rehabilitation (1989) 212 Cal.App.3d1271, 1290 re the “continuing violations” doctrine.) In relatedcauses of action, Plaintiff also complains that she was coercedto have an abortion, was the victim of intentional infliction ofemotional distress and that Defendant is attempting to silenceother employees who are potential witnesses and co-plaintiffs inthis case. Illustrative of Plaintiff’s experiences while workingfor Defendant is the fact that she displayed suicidal tendenciesand swallowed bleach to expedite her quest for freedom.3)

Plaintiff’s First Cause of Action seeks to rescind,cancel, void, negate and confirm unenforceability of the

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purported waivers, confidentiality agreements and penalty clausesshe was forced to sign by Defendant and/or its agents. As shownbelow, most, if not all, of the rights in question cannot bewaived. After addressing various purported waivers and relateddocuments which are unlawful and unenforceable on numerousgrounds, including coercion and duress, Plaintiff seeks torecover compensation, with interest, due her for her years ofwork for Defendant CSI at below minimum wage and for forced andcoerced labor under the Human Trafficking laws. Labor Code§218.6 expressly provides for interest on unpaid wages from thedate payment was due.4)

The right to minimum wage is not waivable. The LaborCode expressly provides that an employee may recover minimum wagein a civil action even if there was an agreement to the contrary(Labor Code §1194). It is unlawful for an employer to seek awaiver of wage claims (Labor code §206.5). Unlawful contractsare invalid (C.C. 1667, 1668 & 1689); violations of law cannot beexcused by exculpatory clauses (C.C. 1668); and contracts taintedby fraud, duress, coercion, mistake or unconscionable terms areinvalid and subject to rescission. See, e.g. Civil Code §§1565et. seq. and Civil Code 1688 et. seq.) The statute oflimitations applicable to this case is four years from discoveryof grounds for rescission or for an action under B&P §17000; andfive years for human trafficking. Plaintiff has timely filedthis action. (See e.g. CCP 337 & 338.)5)

Plaintiff started working for a Scientologyorganization in her hometown at the age of nine. She obtained awork permit and became effectively a full-time employee of