THE TRUE STORY OF NARCONON:

ARIZONA INMATE SACRIFICES OWN FREEDOM TO BRING ADDICTION RECOVERY TO OTHER INMATES

Four decades ago, an incarcerated heroin addict named William Benitez decided that he had to try something new to save himself from his addiction as well as to help his similarly-addicted friends.

Having tried many methods of escaping his eighteen-year addiction, he continued to search for a way out. In the prison library, he came across a book written by L. Ron Hubbard, The Fundamentals of Thought, which outlined an entirely new approach toward solving the problems of life.

After a careful study of this and other books by Mr. Hubbard, Bill realized he had developed the abilities he needed to overcome his own addiction. He later said, “I knew I had to make this technology available to other addicts in the prison.” He approached Arizona state prison officials with his request to start a drug rehabilitation program for 20 addicted inmates. His request was initially denied. He persisted, and on February 19, 1966, he was finally granted permission and founded what he called Narconon, meaning NARCOtics-NONe.

Later in 1966, when Narconon had only been running for a few months, Bill researched his court conviction and discovered that he had been tried under the wrong statute and had been given a sentence longer than the one prescribed by law. Upon return to court, Bill was advised that he could conceivably be re-sentenced to the time he had already served, meaning that he could be released immediately.

At that moment, Bill had to make what he later called the “best but toughest decision” he’d ever had to make. He requested that the court re-sentence him to a shorter sentence that would allow him to return to the prison and develop the new Narconon program to its full potential. “I would have loved to walk away from that court a free man,” Bill said, but he felt that the young Narconon program would collapse if he walked away from it so early.

He was sentenced to a further sixteen months and returned to the prison to achieve his goal of a program that would allow addicted inmates to recover their abilities to live a clean and useful life.

As Bill completed the development of the Narconon program inside the prison, he began to correspond with Mr. Hubbard, telling him of this new application of the material in his books. Mr. Hubbard responded warmly and encouraged Bill to carry on with his project.

Gary W. Smith, CEO of Narconon Arrowhead in Canadian, Oklahoma worked directly with Bill Benitez from 1975 until his death in 1999. Gary stated, “I feel privileged to have known and worked with Bill. Many times, he expressed his deep appreciation for Mr. Hubbard, his research into the causes of addiction and his support. Bill told me once, ‘Mr. Hubbard not only encouraged me to continue developing the program, he also asked members of the Church of Scientology in Phoenix to help me by volunteering time and materials to get Narconon up and running.’ Mr. Hubbard believed so strongly in what Bill was doing that he authorized Narconon to use his trademarks and copyrighted works freely, as long as they were making proper use of them in the rehabilitation of addicted individuals.”

In October 1967, Bill finally completed his sentence and left the Arizona state prison system. He left behind him a program that was helping addicts and non-addicts alike to lead more productive lives, and that program had been expanded to help young offenders housed in an annex outside the prison walls.

Bill moved to California to continue bringing the Narconon program to people addicted to drugs and alcohol. Years later, he returned to Arizona as an Inmate Liaison, and then later as a Hearing Officer for inmate complaints. After many years spent bettering the condition of people in need, Bill died in 1999. Over the years, Narconon has continued to expand internationally, just as Bill knew it would when he first conceived of the program in 1965.

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