Law and Magic Blog

Psychics and Discrimination

Psychics say they face discrimination in some unexpected ways. Among them--sometimes the requirement that they pay "up front" for things like ads in the telephone book. Read more here.

Fortuneteller Challenges Maryland County Ban

A Bethesda, Maryland fortuneteller is suing the county to try to have a provision of the county's code declared unconstitutional. Nick Nefedro says he can't open a business as he had planned because he can't get a license, and he can't get a license because his business is foretelling the future, and that's illegal in Montgomery County. Fortunetellers have challenged such bans before, and have been successful, as in Louisiana.

[Thanks to Ken Trombly for the tip].

The History of the Paranormal in France

I just purchased two interesting books by Nicole Edelman from Amazon France: Voyantes, guerisseuses et visionnaires en France 1785-1914 (Albin Michel) and Histoire de la voyance & du paranormal du XIIIIe siecle a nos jours (Seuil). The first translates roughly as Female Clairvoyants, Healers, and Seers in France from 1785-1914 and the second as History of Clairvoyance and of the Paranormal from the Eighteenth Century to the Present. Neither has been translated into English as far as I can tell. The content is unusual, at least for English-speaking readers, so maybe some publisher will be tempted.

Jesus's Image in Rock?

Here's another story about the discovery of what some people think is the image of a holy figure in an unexpected place (remember the grilled cheese sandwich? the leg burn? the kitchen cabinet?) Now John Ganster, the co-owner of the Verona Marble Company, says he hopes to donate a piece of granite to a Catholic church somewhere in Oklahoma, after the company has gotten lots of offers to buy the stone.  Apparently a lot of people think they see an image of Christ in the stone, an image that apparently matches the images of Jesus they've seen elsewhere, created by humans. Here's video of an interview discussing the discovery of the image. Here's another story about the "Jesus slab."

Ghosts, Reincarnation, Spiritualism: New Books To Read

Some new acquisitions for that unread pile of books (and I've actually started reading these):

Owen Davies, Haunted: A Social History of Ghosts (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007). Really entertaining and thorough.

John Warne Monroe, Laboratories of Faith: Mesmerism, Spiritism and Faith in Modern France (Cornell University Press, 2008). For the specialist; has a chapter on the spirit photography trial of Emile Buguet.

Lynn Sharp, Secular Spirituality: Reincarnation and Spiritism in Nineteenth-Century France (Rowman & Littlefield, 2006).

Melvyn Willin, Ghosts Caught on Film (F&W, 2007). Provocative photos of "ghosts" and "spirits" on film, some well-known and some not. I admit I'm not close to being an expert in photography. But since the author speculates, and invites his readers to do so, here are my speculations. I suspect that a lot of the phantoms in the photos are more likely to be tricks of the light or errors on the part of the photographer (or the camera) than documentation of visitors from beyond the grave. Still, food for thought. Compare with The Perfect Medium: Photography and the Occult (Yale University Press, 2005), a much more elaborate book prepared for a recent exhibition.

Texas Supreme Court Reverses Lower Court In Exorcism Case

The Texas Supreme Court has ruled that a church can't be held liable for the injuries that a teen alleged she suffered during the course of an exorcism. A jury had previously awarded her $300,000, but that award was  later reduced to less than $200,000. The justices, in a 6-3 decision, decided that holding the church accountable would have a "chilling effect" on religious matters protected by the First Amendment. In particular, the majority held that it could not determine "matters of religious doctrine."

"Although the Free Exercise Clause does not categorically insulate religious conduct from judicial scrutiny, it prohibits courts from deciding issues of religious doctrine.... Chief Justice Jefferson asserts, however, that we go too far in protecting religious doctrine in this case, and, in effect, eliminate mental anguish as an element of damage against tortfeasors who allege their conduct was motivated by religious conviction. ___ S.W.3d at ___ (Jefferson, C.J., dissenting). That, of course, is not our intent. We do not mean to imply that “under the cloak of religion, persons may, with impunity,” commit intentional torts upon their religious adherents....Freedom to believe may be absolute, but freedom of conduct is not, and “conduct even under religious guise remains subject to regulation for the protection of society.”... Moreover, religious practices that threaten the public’s health, safety, or general welfare cannot be tolerated as protected religious belief....But religious practices that might offend the rights or sensibilities of a non-believer outside the church are entitled to greater latitude when applied to an adherent within the church. ...Particularly, when the adherent’s claim, as here, involves only intangible, emotional damages allegedly caused by a sincerely held religious belief, courts must carefully scrutinize the circumstances so as not to become entangled in a religious dispute.... And while we can imagine circumstances under which an adherent might have a claim for compensable emotional damages as a consequence of religiously motivated conduct, this is not such a case.

"The “laying of hands” and the presence of demons are part of the church’s belief system and accepted as such by its adherents. These practices are not normally dangerous or unusual and apparently arise in the church with some regularity. They are thus to be expected and are accepted by those in the church. That a particular member may find the practice emotionally disturbing and non-consensual when applied to her does not transform the dispute into a secular matter. “Courts are not arbiters of religious interpretation,” and the First Amendment does not cease to apply when parishioners disagree over church doctrine or practices because “it is not within the judicial function and judicial competence to inquire whether the petitioner or his fellow worker more correctly perceived the commands of their common faith.” ...Because determining the circumstances of Laura’s emotional injuries would, by its very nature, draw the Court into forbidden religious terrain, we conclude that Laura has failed to state a cognizable, secular claim in this case.... The Free Exercise Clause prohibits courts from deciding issues of religious doctrine. Here, the psychological effect of church belief in demons and the appropriateness of its belief in “laying hands” are at issue. Because providing a remedy for the very real, but religiously motivated emotional distress in this case would require us to take sides in what is essentially a religious controversy, we cannot resolve that dispute. Accordingly, we reverse the court of appeals’ judgment and dismiss the case."

Read the entire opinion via this link.

Suing Satan

In the interests of fun for a Friday, here's one of my favorite cases. Lawyers and law students will already be familiar with it.

________________________________________________________________________________________

UNITED STATES ex rel. Gerald MAYO v. SATAN AND HIS STAFF

United States District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 54 F.R.D. 282, December 3, 1971


Gerald Mayo, pro se.

MEMORANDUM ORDER

Weber, District Judge.

Plaintiff, alleging jurisdiction under 18 U.S.C. [Sec.] 241, 28 U.S.C. [Sec] 1343, and 42 U.S.C. [Sec.] 1983 prays for leave to proceed in forma pauperis. He alleges that Satan has on numerous occasions caused plaintiff misery and unwarranted threats, against the will of the plaintiff, that Satan has placed deliberate obstacles in plaintiff's path and has caused plaintiff's downfall.

Plaintiff alleges that by reason of these acts Satan has deprived him of his constitutional rights.

We feel that the application to file and proceed in forma pauperis must be denied. Even if plaintiff's complaint reveals a prima facie recital of the infringement of the civil rights of a citizen of the United States, the Court has serious doubts that the complaint reveals a cause of action upon which relief can be granted by the court. We question whether plaintiff may obtain personal jurisdiction over the defendant in this judicial district. The complaint contains no allegation of residence in this district. While the official records disclose no case where this defendant has appeared as defendant there is an unofficial account of a trial in New Hampshire where this defendant filed an action of mortgage foreclosure as plaintiff. The defendant in that action was represented by the preeminent advocate of that day, and raised the defense that the plaintiff was a foreign prince with no standing to sue in an American Court. This defense was overcome by overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Whether this would raise an estoppel in the present case we are unable to determine at this time.

If such action were to be allowed we would also face the question of whether it may be maintained as a class action. It appears to meet the requirements of Fed.R. of Civ.P. 23 that the class is so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable, there are questions of law and fact common to the class, and the claims of the representative party is typical of the claims of the class. We cannot now determine if the representative party will fairly protect the interests of the class.

We note that the plaintiff has failed to include with his complaint the required form of instructions for the United States Marshal for directions as to service of process.

For the foregoing reasons we must exercise our discretion to refuse the prayer of plaintiff to proceed in forma pauperis.

It is ordered that the complaint be given a miscellaneous docket number and leave to proceed in forma pauperis be denied.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Briefly stated, the judge points out that even if Mr. Mayo had a case against Satan, how would he haul the fellow into court? How could he explain to the U.S. Marshal where to find him? [And even if the U.S. Marshal and his/her staff could find him, how could they control him? We are, after all, talking about a supernatural being, and the federal agent in question here is not the character played by Tommy Lee Jones in Men in Black]. In addition, is Mr. Mayo a good representative of the vast number of people who have a beef with Satan? That's a whole lot of angry, angry folks. Case dismissed.

In my humble opinion, Article III judges earn their salaries, just for being patient enough to wade through and take seriously complaints like this one.

 

Pet Whisperers

If Pet Psychics aren't enough excitement for you, try out Pet Whisperers. These folks will come to your house if need be, but also communicate long distance with your animal companion to figure out what's amiss with Fluffy, Fido, or Thumper, and pass on the news to you. They even have their own magazine. I must admit it never occurred to me to go to a third party (except a vet) to find out what my felines needed to tell me; they seem to let me know pretty successfully on their own what they need or what they're thinking (including "I really detest this peaked hat and cape. I do not celebrate Halloween. Are you dwelling in some alternate universe?") Check out the comments on Pet Whisperers here on an MSNBC.com discussion board webpage. Consider some of them: one cat was sensitive to an upcoming trip planned, and the owner was impressed because the pet whisperer cottoned to that. Well, Kitty might have seen the suitcases, and cats (and dogs) are sensitive to changes in routine. I don't see any big surprise there. The same cat likes to get up at 4 a.m. LOTS of cats are active in the early morning, particularly younger cats. One of mine gets up regularly to make certain the sanitation workers are doing their jobs correctly. I'm joking, of course. Cats are hunters. My cat hears the activity outside--not just the trucks, but people going to work early, school buses, birdies, all that jazz. For the same reason, he and his sisters "know" my usual time to get up, and they are ready when I do so, hop out of bed, accompany me to the kitchen to make coffee, crowd around to demand breakfast, rush back to "help" run the bath, assist with the choice of wardrobe, and all sorts of other ablutions. Weekend routines are different, as are days when I have guests.

To me, the kind of "hit" that the owner described on this discussion board is not evidence that the whisperer and the cat are exchanging information about concern over an upcoming human vacation or preference for a 4 a.m. wake-up call. It means that the pet whisperer knows how to observe cats and report back. That may bring comfort to the owner, but to me it's not evidence that the pet whisperer is actually in telepathic communication with the animal. I need more proof for the claim. 

As an example of pet whispering wares and services, check out this pet whisperer website and note what the practitioner guarantees and doesn't guarantee the client. She notes that her services are not a substitute for veterinary services, which I think a good point for her. On the page marked "pet tips", she discusses how to read a cat's face, but actually discusses the cat's tail more than the face. Cat tails are indeed expressive. None of the information here should be unfamiliar to anyone who has been around a cat more than a few days. (We'll skip the errors in grammar and spelling, which don't themselves mean much about someone's abilities, although I think they're unfortunate). On this page she describes the services and costs. Note what she guarantees. She offers help, particularly for owners who sense that their pets are close to death, although she also poses this question: "How can I get your help?" which I really do not understand. She says she practices "Psychometry"--reading photos. My understanding of the term "psychometry" is that it means the reading of objects normally associated with an individual (or an animal) through paranormal means. Thus, if someone were missing, a psychic would handle that person's car keys, for example, to get clues to the person's whereabouts. If a cat were upset, one would handle that cat's favorite catnip mousie or some other favored object. See also the The Skeptic's Dictionary. Reading photos might be helpful, but I don't understand how it fits within the meaning of "psychometry."

I'm also not trying to pick on this woman in particular; rather, I'm using her as an example of pet whisperer practitioners to show what kinds of services they offer and what they will warranty and what they won't to the general public. This next pet whisperer is a vet (warning--loud whale song), and this one is a vet tech. Services all seem standard.

Another currently popular whisperer is Cesar Millan. Read this article about an alternative philosopher of dog training, Ian Dunbar. As the author writes,

""Jean Donaldson, director of dog training at the SFSPCA and author of "Culture Clash," a book about the human-dog relationship, views the history of dog training in pre- and post-Dunbar eras. "Ian is the man," she says. "He revolutionized the field." She, too, thinks Millan is tapping into something deeper in the current culture -- and his machismo is only part of it. "It's a backlash against political correctness," she says. "People are angry and life is frustrating and [when] someone tells them it's all about dominating something smaller and weaker? They'll go for that."

""Dunbar puts training in the owner's hands," says Aishe Berger, co-owner of SF Puppy Prep, a puppy day care facility that promotes Dunbar's theory of early socialization. "His methods are based on science and learning theory, not the kind of 'magic' touted by the gurulike Millan."

"But if the magic works, who wouldn't want magic?

"There's the catch: Since Millan's program has gained popularity, Donaldson reports, the SPCA has been flooded with calls from confused and frustrated owners who want her to decipher -- and give them the scoop -- on Millan's "mysterious pinch."

"Dr. Patricia McConnell, author of "For the Love of a Dog: Understanding Emotion in Your Best Friend" and the animal behaviorist on Animal Planet's "Petline," goes as far as to say that Millan has put dog training back 20 years. "Dunbar is a world authority," she says, "and he should be the one with the celebrity.""

[I apologize for the weird formatting. Typepad (the blogging software I use) is into some kind of upgrade, and I've lost the ability to indent. I just don't have the energy to take out all those double quotation marks. I've written to Typepad to inquire about when the "indent" function will be operational.]

New Acquisitions

Just added to my ever-increasing pile of books to read: Jim Steinmeyer's Charles Fort: The Man Who Invented the Supernatural (Penguin, 2008). I really do need to make that pile diminish, by magical or other means. The felines keep knocking it over.

It's Only a Game, Isn't It? Not Any More...

It had to happen, what with all the interest in the paranormal making its way to the big screen. Michael Bay of Platinum Dunes, which has remade several horror flicks including The Amityville Horror and Nightmare on Elm Street, and writer David Berenbaum (Elf) are bringing the Ouija board, well, to life. They haven't revealed the plot line yet, and it could be anything at all, but it's bound to be spooky. Read more here.