Ramtha school sues over release of inflammatory videos

The Ramtha School of Enlightenment in Yelm is suing a former student for releasing videos showing leader JZ Knight making derogatory comments about gays, Catholics, Mexicans and others.

The videos caused a furor after word surfaced Knight had donated $70,000 to the state Democratic Party and local politicians.

The lawsuit accused former student Virginia Coverdale of violating written agreements she signed forbidding the release of school related materials, according to The Seattle Times. It was filed in Thurston County Superior Court.

The videos show Knight making controversial, profanity-laced comments about a number of groups during a session in which she claims to channel “Ramtha” — a 35,000-year-old warrior.

>>>>Watch excerpts of the video here. Warning: Obscene language.

After complaints from the state Republican Party, Democrats announced they would donate half the money to the campaign to support Washington’s gay marriage law and half to the Anti-Defamation League.

Coverdale tells the Times she broke with the Ramtha school about a year ago and helped publicize the videos with the help of the Freedom Foundation, a conservative Olympia think tank.

Knight’s attorneys are seeking a temporary restraining order prohibiting Coverdale, and other unnamed former students, from distributing additional videos. A hearing on the restraining order is scheduled for Thursday.

Coverdale said she did not believe signing the documents prevented her from publicizing Knight’s presentations.

“You cannot use a waiver to sign away your [free speech] rights,” she told the Times.

But Andrea McNeely, an attorney for Knight, argues the school is a private, for-profit business and is protecting its property.

“There is no intent whatsoever to affect or in any way limit free speech. It’s just the use of the videos in that speech that we think crosses the line here,” McNeely said.