Leah Remini Says Accused Rapist Paul Haggis Is a Great Guy

Scientology whistleblower Leah Remini testified at Crash writer Paul Haggis’ civil rape trial Monday morning, in what amounted to a last-ditch effort to establish a connection, however tenuous, between the Church of Scientology and the allegations against him.

Remini, 52, who appeared via live video stream on a television screen at a New York courthouse shortly after 9:40 a.m., testified as a character witness in defense of the embattled Hollywood director. Haggis is accused of raping publicist Haleigh Breest at his SoHo loft in January 2013.

The Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology podcast host opened her testimony by describing herself as an advocate for former Scientologists who left the church.

“I consider myself a voice for victims of Scientology and abusive organizations,” Remini, who sported a white blazer, told jurors from her Beverly Hills home Monday morning. What appeared to be an Emmy Award was positioned next to Remini in the bottom right-hand portion of the screen as she addressed the court.

Haggis, a former Scientologist who publicly resigned from the church in 2009, has argued at trial that the Church of Scientology has surreptitiously manufactured the case as retribution for his defection. His defense has, of course, been vastly complicated by allegations from several other women at the trial of sexual abuse and misconduct. Haggis also faced a separate criminal allegation of rape in Italy, until a judge ruled the investigation should not proceed.

On Monday, Remini spoke of actor Tom Cruise’s “deity” status in Scientology, as well as Haggis’ reputation in the Church and its inner circle of Hollywood stars. Remini, who joined the Church at the age of seven, testified she was active for 40 years before leaving in 2013.

Paul Haggis’ Lawyers Grill Rape Accuser on ‘Flirtatious Emails’

Echoing former Scientology spokesperson Mike Rinder’s earlier court testimony, Remini told the court that she, Rinder, and Haggis comprised the top-three enemies of the Church.

“Are you aware of where you’re ranked in the church?” Haggis’ attorney Priya Chaudhry asked the former sitcom actress.

“As far as enemies are concerned, probably at the top,” Remini said.

Remini testified that since leaving the church roughly half a decade ago, she’s been subjected to “constant harassment” and “stalking,” at the behest of church members, who have shown up at her and family members’ homes in the past.

“It’s a constant threat—it’s not something that has ended,” Remini said.

She also touched on Scientology’s litigious nature, claiming the Church wielded lawsuits to “financially ruin” her—and other ex-Scientologists—through a series of bogus lawsuits.

“They gather anything they can to hurt you,” Remini added, her voice breaking slightly, as she appeared to get emotional speaking about the Church’s controversial alleged practices of “disconnection”—requiring adherents cast out family members who are not backers of their faith—and “fair game,” the targeting of perceived enemies or ex-members for retaliation.

Haggis, meanwhile, previously testified that the current civil rape case, which was filed in 2017, has blown up his finances.

The director has long maintained that his encounter with Breest was consensual. The Million Dollar Baby writer is also accused of sexually assaulting or attempting to assault four Canadian women during incidents that occurred between 1996 and 2004. He denied those allegations on the stand last week, as well.

Remini told the court she’d known Haggis “on and off” for 30 years and that Haggis’ daughters and the TV actress’ children attended a Scientology-affiliated school together. She cast Haggis as a “caring,” “warm,” and “funny,” individual who “cares deeply about the underdog.”

Remini repeatedly insisted under oath that she’d never witnessed Haggis act sexually inappropriately or violently towards women.

“In this case, Haleigh Breest claims Mr. Haggis forced himself on her sexually,” Chaudhry stated. “Is that consistent with your knowledge of Mr. Haggis?”

“Not at all,” Remini replied.

“Does her claim change your opinion of him?”

“No,” Remini firmly stated.

“In this case Haleigh Breest claims Paul Haggis violently raped her. Is that consistent with your knowledge of Mr. Haggis?” Chaudhry later asked.

“It isn’t,” Remini said.

Breest’s lawyer, Zoe Salzman, began her cross-examination of Remini shortly before 11 a.m. by asking if Haggis had ever “made a pass” at Remini—and later grilled her over her knowledge of the filmmaker’s infidelity during his second marriage.

The King of Queens actress struggled on Monday to make any connection tying the church directly to the sexual assault allegations the 69-year-old Canadian screenwriter is facing.

“You agree, Ms. Remini, that a person can both be both a former Scientologist and a rapist, right?

Chaudhry, who initially objected to the question, was ultimately overruled by the presiding judge, Hon. Sabrina Kraus.

“Yes,” Remini stated.

“Now, you were not in Mr. Haggis’ apartment on Jan. 13, 2013, correct?” Salzman said.

“Correct,” Remini said.

“You have no personal knowledge of what happened to Haleigh Breest there that night?” Salzman said.

“No, just what Paul told me,” Remini said, who noted that Haggis had told her the encounter had been consensual.

Last week, Haggis, who testified over three days, appeared to struggle to definitively recall whether he had vaginal intercourse with Breest under cross-examination by her attorneys. He claimed that Breest sent him “mixed signals” inside his apartment after leaving a film premiere afterparty together following months of exchanging “flirtatious” work-related emails.

Breest’s legal team has characterized Haggis’ Scientology strategy as a sham defense intended to distract jurors from the case’s allegations.

“It’s more nonsense from the defense,” Breest’s lawyer, Ilann Maazel, told The Daily Beast outside court on Monday following Remini’s testimony. “We’ve seen this one hundred times. They have zero evidence of a connection to Scientology. They know it. We know it. They’ve wasted our time.”

“We are not on retainer for the Church of Scientology," Salzman added. “Never have been, never will be.”

The Church of Scientology has also pushed back on Haggis’ allegations connecting the controversial religion to the civil rape case.

“The Church has nothing to do with the claims against Haggis, nor does it have any relation to the attorneys behind the case of the accusers,” Karin Pouw, a Scientology spokesperson, previously told The Daily Beast in a statement. “The Church has nothing to do with the claims against Haggis, nor does it have any relation to his accusers.”

Breest, 36, who is seeking unspecified damages, testified earlier at trial about how Haggis looked like “the devil” as he allegedly forced her to perform oral sex before forcibly raping her at his Manhattan penthouse nearly a decade ago.

“He’s trying to pull my tights down and I’m trying to pull them up,” Breest told jurors last month. “He looked like the devil.”

Remini’s testimony wrapped up Monday morning, and trial proceedings were expected to conclude Monday afternoon ahead of closing arguments on Wednesday.

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