Judge delays Arizona sweat lodge trial
Most people don’t understand that many of the self appointed self help gurus in Landmark, EST, and similar groups that use extreme techniques to program members are really just “scientology lite” — the pop psychology pseudoscience stripped of the scientology cloak of religion.
he trial of a self-help author charged with manslaughter in the deaths of three people following an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony has been postponed until next week while the defense seeks out new evidence.
Attorneys for James Arthur Ray argued for the continuance Thursday so they could conduct interviews related to the construction of the sweat lodge Ray used during a 2009 retreat he led near Sedona. The three people who died were overcome in the sweltering structure.
Ray has pleaded not guilty to three counts of manslaughter.
The continuance came a day after a judge refused to grant a defense request for a mistrial despite finding that prosecutors violated legal rules when they did not turn over an email from an environmental scientist who pointed to the construction as a contributing factor in the deaths.