He just posted to YouTube community section.
Channel Update: In my recent "Aftermath" video I mentioned ongoing legal action against a so-called "Magnificent Seven" (Kim Silvio, Marc and Cora Latham, Mike and Kim Brooks, Jonathan Burger and Joel Martz) who were most instrumental in starting a defamation campaign early last year that has greatly impacted my work and mental health, and ultimately contributed to the closure of my production company Ipsilon Media. When the case was initially filed last year my lawyers were working to an extremely tight timescale because there was a statute of limitation for criminal proceedings of three months from the initial criminal act (Kim Silvio's Reddit post dated January 31). They succeeded in filing an abridged lawsuit at the end of April 2022 within the deadline, but due to the overwhelming volume of evidence (mostly requiring translation into Croatian by court interpreters) in the form of YouTube videos, Reddit posts and forum threads, my lawyers' relied on the court issuing a summons for more thorough supporting documentation so that proceedings could start. We could not have known it would take 15 months for this summons to be issued, during which time the defamation campaign snowballed further both in the intensity of online hate and its damage to me and my work, with various creators sniffing blood in the water and joining the dogpile by platforming the Magnificent Seven. Earlier this month the court finally issued the summons with an 8-day deadline for a response. Yesterday my lawyers were able to file a 64-page response within the deadline detailing the lies and insinuations that were spread, specifically by which individuals, and the harm this undeniably caused. They have called for evidence to be presented to the court including not only YouTube videos, tweets (or "X" posts) and forum comments, but also financial statements showing the losses the company suffered before it was forced to close and medical records showing the impact on my health. The amended lawsuit now calls for the defendants to face criminal punishment under Croatian law for spreading 10 claims or insinuations in particular during the three months from January 31, 2022. These are: 1. Language comparing me to a rapist; 2. Claims that I exploit people; 3. Claims that I visited Thailand for sex tourism; 4. Claims that I am or was involved, connected to or otherwise permissive of sexual relations with minors, or potentially involved in sexual relations with minors or sex trafficking; 5. Claims that I was earning a "six-figure salary"; 6. Claims that I was recording all the monthly content for my YouTube channel in one day; 7. Claims that I was receiving $3,000 per livestream; 8. Claims that I lied to my subscribers and patrons; 9. Claims that I personally confirmed and admitted all allegations made by Kim Silvio in her Reddit post dated January 31, 2022; 10. Claims that I once groomed a 14-year-old girl and attempts to disseminate and promote false and forged e-mails to that effect. I don't know how long it will be before I get my day in court and see the defendants either plead guilty to or try to deny their involvement in circulating these lies. What I know for sure is that they will utterly fail to justify any of these claims and insinuations because each and every one is a total fabrication. Some of the claims are more subtle than others. The comparison to rapists and allegations about sex tourism are clearly more egregious than claims about my salary and production cycle. But all were lies aimed at smearing my character either outright or more surreptitiously by claiming I make (or made) more money through my activism work than is justified, inevitably leading to a huge and ultimately crippling drop in patron support. In addition to specifying the defamation, the lawsuit also seeks financial remedy from the defendants. I won't make public here how much money is being demanded of each defendant if the court rules in my favor. I expect soon enough the Magnificent Seven will relish using this information to play the victim card and try garnering sympathy once they get their court documents in the mail. What I will say having seen the numbers is that no amount of money can compensate me for what was taken by the twisted actions of these people. Kim Silvio and her mob pounced on one of the most traumatic and stressful events a person can go through in their life - the breakup of a marriage - and made it exponentially more unbearable for both me and my family. The tsunami of lies and hatred directed at me since January 31 last year is unquestionably the darkest chapter in my life - far worse than the loss of my mother at age 21 - and brought me closer to the abyss than anything else ever has. The defendants can make as many videos, livestreams or forum posts lamenting their predicament or blaming me for it as they wish. But they all consciously made the choice to embark on this toxic crusade of trying to destroy a fellow ex-cult member with lies and hatred, and they need to be held accountable. What they started, I intend to finish. No matter how many months or years the legal process takes, I will see this through not just because I want my two girls to grow up without having to deal with unresolved stains on their father's character, but because ex-Jehovah's Witness activism will always be hamstrung so long as activists can be cancelled or exposed to character assassination by their own side with total immunity if their platform grows to a certain size. Ray Franz endured similar attacks from Bill Bowen (of "Silentlambs") over claims he wasn't sufficiently vocal about the cover-up of child sexual abuse (Franz claimed to know little or nothing about it in the years when he was a Governing Body member, and he deserved the benefit of the doubt in my opinion). For me it's been no different. Since the very beginning of my 12-year activism career I've experienced overwhelmingly more hate, vitriol and resistance from fellow ex-JWs than from the Jehovah's Witness organization itself. This cancerous self-cannibalizing toxicity within the movement needs to be repelled if we are to make meaningful headway. Future activists should feel motivated to step forward and continue the legacy of those who went before rather than being terrified of getting hit by friendly fire if they raise their head above the trenches. It is with these motives that I push on in my resolve to clear my name and hold the Magnificent Seven legally and criminally accountable. I won't be making blow-by-blow rebuttals in the form of videos or statements as the legal proceedings unfold. I'll continue to keep my channel as drama-free as possible. But I want to sincerely thank all who have been and continue to be supportive over this incredibly challenging period. The love, compassion and understanding shown by so many of you is deeply appreciated. Lloyd
