The troubles for self-professed New Age guru and motivational speaker James Arthur Ray are piling up faster than confetti in Times Square at 12:01am on New Year’s Day.
Because of Freedom of Information Act requests on the part of several major media outlets, investigators into the October sweat lodge deaths have released a lot of detailed eyewitness accounts of what happened that afternoon in the desert outside Sedona, Arizona.
And it is ugly.
The New York Times published a piece on their website that is simply chilling.
It details the way Ray reportedly reacted to worries that lives inside the tiny tent were in danger of being lost.
“You are not going to die,” one eyewitness quoted Ray as saying to his overheated followers. “You might think you are, but you are not going to die.”
The NYT also cites one participant as saying that Ray told those inside the sweltering tent that they “had to surrender to death to survive it.”
Ray’s lawyer has released a statement in response to the investigators’ notes saying that the documents “only tell part of the story.”
Attorney Brad Brian says the facts “will show the Sedona tragedy was a terrible accident that no one, including James Ray, could have seen coming.”
The information released by authorities seems to be quite voluminous – including photos from the scene – so expect to be hearing a lot more about the tragedy in the coming days.
Your Source for Hollywood Rumors and Show Business Gossip. 
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Okay, Rumor Rat – I gotta let you know, this really bugs me…
First of all, when, where, and well, WHEN is there going to be movement in this case? Seems like the wheels of justice have ground to a halt…:(
Secondly, that he encouraged these poor folks to stay well beyond reasonable expectations, and/or rational judgment – with that statement of “you may feel like you’re going to die” blah blah blah…seems (to me) he more than offered a suggestion for the very outcome he facilitated. Accident INDEED! That whole press release from his attorney clearly demonstrates even his OWN attorney doesn’t follow JAR’s advice…JAR has “taught” (and I say that loosely) for years now that there are NO accidents!! Pick a lane on the freeway and stay there!
Finally, if you take a look (somewhere in the middle) of the search warrant, there is a copy of a check FROM Angel Valley TO JAR for the outrageous sum of $35,000 with a note containing a promise of MORE to come. Eh-Hem, I thought he rented that facility…why is HE getting a check? SO, we add his “fee” from each of the participants to the tidy sum he receives from Angel Valley and what do we get? The plot sickens….
Thanks Rumor Rat, for staying on top of this JAR O’ Crap! (which incidentally, is the ONLY place I would be any where near it…lol)
Thanks for staying on top of this, Rumor Rat. I can’t get enough of it, for some reason.
I’m not impressed by Ray’s lawyers, at all. Guilty people always seem to say something like, “When the facts come out, I will be fully vindicated.”
Thank you Rumor Rat! Every update on JAR is much appreciated and the reason I keep coming back to your site!
Happy New Year! =D
May 2010 be your best year yet!