CHARGES against a senior member of the Church of Scientology accused of coaching a child to lie about sex abuse have been dropped in a Sydney court.
Janice Meyer, an Australian citizen who lives in the US, had been charged with two counts of an act intending to pervert the course of justice in 1985 in Sydney.
She also goes by the name of Jan Eastgate.
The allegation involved threatening and intimidating an 11-year-old girl, causing her to give false information about being abused by a Scientologist to investigating police, the court has previously heard.
In Downing Centre Local Court today, the charges against Ms Meyer were withdrawn, a courts spokeswoman said.
Ms Meyer had been due to face a committal hearing in Sydney on May 15, but that date has now been vacated.
The allegation came to light in an ABC TV show in May last year, when Ms Meyer was living in California.
Ms Meyer said she had voluntarily returned to Australia to clear her "good name".
"I have always maintained my innocence, having had an exemplary career for more than 30 years dedicated to serving the community and families as well as championing human rights," Ms Meyer said in a statement today.
"This outcome means I can concentrate on my work to assist people in need of help both in Australia and overseas through the Citizens Commission on Human Rights," she said.
Ms Meyer said the group investigated "psychiatric-pharmaceutical conflicts of interest and human rights abuse".
