Police: Texas woman crashed car into Scientology church because it is 'evil'

Erin McMurtry, a 31-year-old woman, has been charged with criminal mischief at a place of worship, a state jail felony, in the incident, after admitting to crashing her car into the Church of Scientology building near the University of Texas at Austin. less Erin McMurtry, a 31-year-old woman, has been charged with criminal mischief at a place of worship, a state jail felony, in the incident, after admitting to crashing her car into the Church of Scientology ... more Photo: Austin Police Department Photo: Austin Police Department Image 1 of / 36 Caption Close Police: Texas woman crashed car into Scientology church because it is 'evil' 1 / 36 Back to Gallery

A 31-year-old Austin woman who admitted to crashing her car into the Church of Scientology building near the University of Texas at Austin told police that she believes the church is "evil."

Erin McMurtry has been charged with criminal mischief at a place of worship — a state jail felony punishable by a maximum two-year prison sentence — in the incident, which took place just before 9 p.m. Monday.

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Witnesses inside of the building told police that they saw a silver sedan parked in the bike lane for about 10 minutes before it drove slowly onto the sidewalk and accelerated through the building's glass front doors into the couches in the reception area before crashing through the doors of a nursery, according to an arrest affidavit.

One witness said the driver was “shooting him a bird” while driving through the building, the affidavit reads.

Another witnesses wrote down the car's license plate number before it pulled out of the building.

Officers responding to another call found a vehicle matching the description of the car, including the license plate number, used in the church crash, according to the affidavit.

Police noted damage to the vehicle and a "large amount of broken glass on the front windshield and back window."

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Detectives asked McMurtry about the church crash, to which she initially said, "No comment." Officers placed McMurtry in handcuffs.

McMurtry asked if anyone had been hurt in the crash, according to police. When a detective asked her why she would be concerned, she said,"I confess, I did it."

The 31-year-old woman told police she did not want to hurt anyone. A detective told her that she drove through the reception area into the nursery, to which she said, "That's too bad."

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McMurtry told police that she believes Scientology is evil "because they blackmail people," the affidavit says.

The suspect told a detective that she "lost it" and "they are a terrible organization disguised as a church.

McMurtry said she opted to drive through the building when she couldn't find a rock to throw through the window, according to the affidavit.

"This was not the best way to get my message across," McMurtry wrote in a statement about the incident.

McMurtry was booked into Travis County Jail, but is no longer in custody as of Wednesday, according to online jail records.

jfechter@mySA.com

Twitter: @JFreports