Blog #3 Paul Morantz's Morality, and Minor Figures

          Paul Morantz is most famously known for being bitten by a rattlesnake that was put into his mailbox by several members of Synanon.  This incident made the papers, and can be considered the event that truly began to shed a negative light on Synanon as a community.  Paul Morantz is a California lawyer who fought against Synanon several times.

            In 1974 Synanon applied to be recognized a religious entity, and therefore would become tax-exempt, making it easier for Dederich to make more money.  With the Internal Revenue Service beginning to take notice, it was some of the first trouble Synanon faced.   Although, the IRS never fully recognized Synanon as a tax-exempt community, Synanon would not lose its tax-exempt status for another decade in 1991.  Morantz was one of the lawyers in the case, which forced Synanon to pay $200,000 in tax fines back to the state of California. 

            In 1977 Dederich began to order men to receive vasectomies, and women were forced to have abortions.  Ironically, Dederich never got a vasectomy himself.  Paul Morantz was also the lawyer in the case against Synanon filed against them for unlawfully practicing medicine.  Without proper licenses, certain medical procedures are not allowed to be done.  This situation made me wonder how Betty’s life was affected.  I hypothesized in my last blog post that with the medical facilities Synanon had, it could have been possible Betty knew she was sick.  If Synanon had been treating her for several years, and then they had a lawsuit against their medical practices, is this what could have stopped her treatment and possibly killed her?

            Also in 1977, Paul Morantz took a custody case of a woman newly recruited into Synanon.  She had a history of mental illness, and Synanon welcomed her thinking they could help, but it ended up negatively affecting her.  They had shaved her head, as was custom during this time for newly recruited women, and dragged her to another building hiding her behind locked doors.  The woman’s husband wanted her back and wrote letter to several politicians and Paul Morantz who responded to his cry for help.  This case is what helped Morantz to realize Synanon was operating under a drug rehabilitation and mental health facility without licenses.  This case ended with the man getting his wife back and suing for $300,000.  In 1978 congressman Herschel Rosenthal attempted to pass a bill in Marin County, which would give Synanon exemption from all health licensing laws regardless of the condition of the person taken in.  Morantz was approached by Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein to fight the bill.  The bill failed by one vote, most likely due to the opposition provided by Morantz.   

            In 1978 Morantz issued a report attacking Synanon for the profit Dederich gained from selling weapons.  It was also reported the Federal Bureau of Investigation said Synanon had purchased from 200,000-300,000 dollars in weapons. 

            The most famous part of Morant’s life was when the rattlesnake bit him.  The members of Synanon who had put it in his mailbox had removed the rattle so it would not be as obvious that a snake was hidden inside.  After being bitten, Morantz was rushed to the hospital and nearly died.  The two men who put the snake in the mailbox were Lance Kenton, and Joseph Musico, who both received jail time.  Dederich was sentenced to five years probation and was forced to give up his control of Synanon. 

            As I did research for the people Paul Morantz represented against Synanon, I found a list of people who were victims to the violence of Synanon.  Due to Dederich’s paranoia he often wondered if there were spies among his ranks, and one of the people who was beaten because of this was Tom Cardineau.  There was also several passages I found about a farmer named Gamboninni, who was attacked for helping children to escape Synanon and return to their parents, if they were not already a part of Synanon.  Ron Eidson, after a road skirmish, with Dr. Robson of Synanon and refusing Dr. Robson’s demand for apology, was pistol whipped and hospitalized while shotguns were held on his watching family. Paul Morantz and Ed Martin represented Eidson and his family in a civil suit.  Phil Ritter was an ex member, or splitee, who was beaten by two other and ended up in a coma for a week because of it.  Jack Hurst was a former Synanon president who spoke out against them once he had left the community, and one day he came home to find his door open, and his dog hung in the living room.

            It can be argued Paul Morantz is one of the main reasons Synanon eventually fell, but it was only a matter of time before someone rose up against them.  After reading over the Paul Morantz website multiple times, and seeing how he wrote and spoke about Synanon, I can only think Paul Morantz is not as moral as he attempts to portray himself as.  The language he uses makes it seem he was trying to hard to get everyone to support him.  For instance, after the rattlesnake incident, Morantz was quoted speaking about how he was thankful Dederich “was a cheap bastard” because if he wasn’t he would have just hired a real hitman.  Finally, Morantz dedicated his book about Synanon to Dederich, and if that isn’t some kind of flaunt I truly don’t know what is.  Morantz seems to me like someone who could have led a commune in another life with his charismatic words, strong leadership, and sense of self righteousness.