LOS ANGELES : Justices Let Stand Award Against Scientologists

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let stand a $2.5-million award won by a man who said the Church of Scientology of California brainwashed him and caused permanent psychological injury.

The court, without comment Monday, turned down the church’s argument that the lawsuit should have failed because religious practices are protected by the Constitution.

Lawrence Dominic Wollersheim, who lives in Golden, Colo., was a member of the Church of Scientology of California from 1969 through 1980.

He later sued the church, contending that it used “thought reform” practices that caused him to become a manic-depressive and to consider suicide. After he left the church, members sought to destroy his photography business, he said.

A California state court jury upheld Wollersheim’s claim that the church intentionally inflicted emotional distress on him. The jury awarded him $5 million in damages to compensate for his injury and another $25 million in punitive damages.

A state appeals court upheld the verdict, saying the church had used physical restraint and psychological pressure tactics. But the court said the award was “preposterous” and reduced it to $500,000 in compensatory damages and $2 million in punitive damages. The state court reaffirmed the damage award after being ordered to restudy it by the nation’s highest court.