Law and Magic Blog

Want That Weight Off? Take This Pill

From the August 27, 2011 New York Times, an article  that discusses those unregulated drugs, marketed as supplements, that can cause serious health problems for the unwary user. These drugs seem to be available in many places that customers shop for magical cures for everyday ailments and problems: overweight, fatigue, and that bugaboo: impotency. U.S. Customs agents and the F.D.A. try to stay on the alert for products that shouldn't be coming into the country and shouldn't be sold, but some wares sneak in, and manufacturers of legal products say their wares and problem products look almost the same to the consumer. Meanwhile, some consumers risk their health by taking dangerous pills and potions, often without telling their physicians. What to do?

Sedona, One Year After the Sweat Lodge Tragedy

From the New York Times, a discussion of the drop in tourism in and near Sedona, Arizona, in the year after the sweat lodge deaths at James Ray's retreat. The tragedy has led not simply to the charges against Mr. Ray, but to a civil suits against him by the Oglala Dakota Delegation of the Black Hills Sioux Nation Council. In the complaint, the Delegation alleges that Ray and the other defendants have violated the peace between the Lakota Nation and the U.S. under the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 and desecrated the lodge (in which the ceremony was held) by causing the death of three non-Indians.Some other suits are also pending against Mr. Ray, apparently filed by former participants for breach of contract.  

Ghost Hunting Tragedy In North Carolina

According to CNN, about a dozen ghost hunters investigating the legend of a "ghost train" that crosses the Bostian Bridge (more here) near Statesville, North Carolina headed from Salisbury to Asheville August 27th, 1891 encountered a real freight train headed toward the town of Statesville in the early morning hours. Most of the group made it safely off the tracks but two did not. One of them, Christopher Kaiser, pushed a companion off the tracks before she was hit by the train, but he could not save himself. Mr. Kaiser died at the scene. The woman is recovering in a Charlotte hospital.

Law enforcement officials have interviewed the people involved, one police officer telling CNN that "Many fled because they were trespassing on railroad property." (I don't quite understand the comment. Wasn't an oncoming train enough? Or is it that they also left, or tried to leave, the area because they thought they would be cited for trespassing?)

Investigating paranormal phenomena, whether on private property or public areas, involves varying degrees of risk and may involve breaking some sort of law, as it did here. It can also involve risking one's life, as it did here, quite tragically. If the ghost hunters had been carrying on their investigation during the day, perhaps the train's engineer could have seen them and stopped earlier, although perhaps not. It may depend on the geography, and I'm not suggesting that the train's engineer, crew, or the railroad is at fault here. But these ghost hunters, apparently like many I read about, and like the ones on tv, were watching for ghosts at night. At night, some of our senses are heightened, but not all, and not our vision. We mistake many things at night. And we make many mistakes of judgment and perception at night. Sometimes, in the light of morning, the results are awful to behold.

[More coverage on Mr. Kaiser's death here, here, and here].

Ray Arrested For Manslaughter In Sweat Lodge Deaths

Arizona authorities have charged James Author Ray, the self-help author, with manslaughter, after three people died at an event he was conducting at a sweat lodge in Sedona, Arizona. Mr. Ray surrendered to law enforcement at his attorney's office. Here's more from ABC News.

I can't say that I'm surprised that Mr. Ray is charged in these deaths, and I can't say that if civil suits follow I would be surprised, either.

The Prosecutor Vanishes?

Apparently, the threat of prosecution over a rape charge has vanished for magician David Copperfield. After a two year investigation, the authorities have decided not to indict him over a Seattle woman's allegation. The woman has brought a civil suit against Mr. Copperfield, whose birth name is David Kotkin. Here's more from the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Woman Falls To Her Death From University of Toronto Building's Roof

The Toronto Star (star.com) has this sad story about a ghost hunter originally from Indiana, who fell to her death from a University of Toronto building on September 10. Leah Kubik was looking for specters with her friend at 1 Spandina Crescent on the university campus and tried to follow him, apparently across the rooftop. She fell to the ground, several stories below, and died later at a hospital in the city.

University spokespeople say they do not understand why the pair was looking for ghosts at that particular location, which is not known for hauntings. "Richard Fiennes-Clinton, who leads ghost tours of the university's campus, said: `This particular college itself doesn't even really have any kind of substantial ghost stories to it. There's certainly a lot of other buildings around the university that do have stories.'"

Read more here.

Update: according to this article in the University of Toronto's college newspaper, The Strand, investigators are now saying Ms. Kubik and the man with her were not ghost-hunting. "Police reported that the couple had been ghost-hunting, but later withdrew the claim. Toxicology and autopsy results have not been released to the press. Neither the man nor the woman was a university student."

Thanks to Tiffany Rad for the tip.

Magician, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, K-Mart, Settle Suit Over Lounge Chair

Last November magician, actor, and hand model Patrick Albanese sued Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and K Mart after he moved a Martha Stewart brand lounge chair, and the chair, he says, "collapsed," injuring his right index finger. Though a surgeon reattached the finger, and Mr. Albanese has regained movement in the finger (he writes about his method here), he wanted compensation for the injury. Here's a link to the complaint; the suit was filed in Iowa state court.

As it turns out, the parties settled for an undisclosed amount in April, according to a story in Business Week. Lawyer Guy Cook, who represents Mr. Albanese, says other people claim they also have been injured by the type of furniture in question. Those cases are pending.