also in the frame, two high-ranking officials -- marty rathbun, and mike rinder.twin firebrands of the ant anti-scientology movement. >> it's fine that you leave, don't complain about it. >> reporter: mike rinder was head of the office of special affairs, dealing with public relations and legal affairs. he left in 2007 after what he calls a crisis of faith, fueled, he says, by multiple instances in which david miscavige himself punched or struck him. >> david miscavige has two personas. he has this public persona where he's all -- like a politician, glad-handing, shaking hands, smiling, happy. and then he becomes very cruel, very controlling, very vicious. >> i'll tell you, from my per speck ty, the person getting harassed is myself and the church. >> reporter: rathbun, who served as miscavige's number two, worked extensively with top ranking celebrity scientologists during difficult times, such as tom cruise's divorce from nicole kidman. >> i did little else but work to recover tom to scientology, and help him get through the divorce. >> reporter: but rathbun tol

marty began to isolate himself. you know, something happened. >> reporter: he says rathbun's blog suddenly changed direction. >> at one to david miscavige and the existence of the church of scientology. a year later, there's not a word criticizing david miscavikacavm. >> reporter: bathbun was now attacking the anti-scientology movement, calling it a cult of its own, more zealous and coercive than anything it accuses scientology of. he told abc news that his former compadres were cultivating a "vicious victim complex" and operating a "lucrative cottage industry" that he wants to avoid. and then last january, the rathbun lawsuit was dropped. >> it was stunning. i mean, you know, it's bizarre. >> the church was as surprised as anybody else when the -- when the lawsuit was dismissed. >> reporter: in court filings, rathbun's wife said the suit was dropped only because she lacked "the resources, the time and the motivation" to litigate against "scientology's army of lawyers." this week, marty rathbun declined our request for an interview. >> it's about as much of a 180 degree as you're can -- you're going to see. >> reporte