Soul Quest Ayahuasca Church (Orlando, FL)
Florida-based ayahuasca church (founded 2015) at the centre of Soul Quest Church of Mother Earth Inc. v. DEA — the leading post-2018 federal-court test of religious-exemption claims for ayahuasca. 2018 in-ceremony death of Lindsey Poulson.
CLCI radar
BITE breakdown
+1 for documented participant death (Lindsey Poulson, 2018) and ongoing federal litigation over DEA exemption.
Profile facts
In context
Soul Quest, founded by Christopher Young, operates ayahuasca and kambo retreats from a campus near Orlando under the claim of religious-exemption status modelled on the Supreme Court's 2006 UDV ruling. A 2018 participant death (Lindsey Poulson, sepsis after a kambo ceremony) triggered Florida investigations and a long-running DEA denial of religious-exemption status; the case (Soul Quest v. DEA, 11th Cir.) has continued through 2023. Representative case for the documented harm patterns of unregulated US psychedelic facilitator networks.
Recovery resources
- The Dream (podcast) — Jane Marie's investigative podcast on MLM cults.
- Anti-MLM Coalition — Ex-distributor advocacy community focused on MLM exit and financial recovery.
- Truth in Advertising (TINA.org) — Consumer-protection watchdog tracking MLM income-claim and product-safety issues.
- ICSA (International Cultic Studies Association) — General referral and cult-aware therapist directory.
- Freedom of Mind Resource Center — Steven Hassan's organisation; BITE-model resources and family-side exit guidance.
See the full curated list at /resources.
This profile is in progress — history, deeper BITE evidence and survivor voices are still being added. Contributions welcome via GitHub.
Timeline
- 2015Soul Quest founded near Orlando
- 2018Lindsey Poulson dies after kambo ceremony
- 2020+DEA denies religious exemption; litigation begins
- 202311th Circuit ruling against Soul Quest
Sources
- WFTV9 reporting, Orlando (2018+) search ↗
- Soul Quest Church of Mother Earth Inc. v. DEA, 11th Cir. (2023) search ↗
We cite sources by name and outlet rather than fabricating links. Where a source includes its own URL, the open ↗ link opens it directly; otherwise search ↗ runs a Google Scholar query for the cited title — useful for verifying academic sources. For news outlets, search the outlet's own archive.
Change history
Substantive edits logged per the score-updates policy.
- 2026-05-29Phase 1 Batch J: per-group recovery resources applied via programmatic palette (closest-fit by category + subCategory + score). Palette: Wellness / MLM.
- 2026-05-20Score band scheme migrated from 4 bands to 5 (Minimal 0–5 / Low 6–12 / Moderate 13–20 / High 21–30 / Extreme 31–40). No CLCI value changed; the new Minimal band was carved out of the bottom of the previous Low band.
Relevant hubs
Curated entry points on CLCI Hub for situations connected to this group.
- Start herePick the reading path that matches your situation.
- PatternsDocumented control patterns with linked profiles.
- Financial controlCommon pattern in wellness, MLM, and coaching contexts.
- Online groupsMany wellness and coaching groups operate online-first.
- FamiliesHow families and close friends can engage with high-control members.
- RecoveryIf you have left or are preparing to leave.
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We accept correction requests from anyone — current and former members, researchers, journalists, family members, and the listed organisation. Submissions are reviewed by an editor; we do not auto-publish.