The Tarot Room – Georgianna

Presently, it’s illegal to tell fortunes in St. Louis , Missouri, but that could all change soon.

According to St. Louis Today, Alderman Shane Cohn has introduced a bill to repeal his city’s rather complicated-sounding ban on divination.

As it stands now, the law forbids the

“… profession or art of fortuneteller, clairvoyant, spirit medium, necromancer, seer, astrologist, palmist, prophet or other like crafty or occult art, or art of divination, or pretended art of telling past events of another’s life or affairs; of foretelling knowledge of future events of another’s life or affairs; of in anywise revealing things of the past, the future, of a secret or hidden nature; of giving advice or assistance in matters of business or affairs of any other kind or nature by means of such art; or of purporting so to tell, foretell, reveal or give advice or assistance by means of such art.”

Back in 1994, an earlier Alderman made a similar attempt to repeal the law but was unsuccessful. Hopefully, this time round, Alderman Cohn will succeed.

comment on this post

In follow-up news from Gaithersburg, Maryland …

Last week, after months of discussion and review, the Gaithersburg City Council voted unanimously to repeal their longstanding ban on ‘fortune telling’.

According to Maryland’s Gazette.net and The Huffington Post, the city received its first application for a psychic business on January 19th.

It hasn’t been approved yet, but hopefully it will be and all goes well for everyone involved.

Good on you Gaithersburg!

comment on this post

It looks like Wednesday is the day Gaithersburg, Maryland will decide whether or not they’ll be rescinding their present ban against ‘fortune-telling’.

As I posted last September, City Council agreed that as it stands, the law against psychic businesses should be lifted.

What still needs to be decided though, is where psychic businesses will be allowed to operate, as well as the definition of ‘fortune-telling’ itself.

According to Gazette.net, the Gaithersburg Planning Commission will be recommending that City Council enact an ordinance allowing psychic businesses to locate in specific commercial and light industrial zones.

I’ll be watching to see how this turns out and will let you all know as I know more.

__________________________________________________________

And of course …. HAPPY NEW YEAR’S EVE!!!! It’s been a great year. Let’s make 2013 even better!!

comment on this post

Last Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard the case of Patricia Moore-King, a psychic reader from Chesterfield County, Virginia.

As I wrote about last year, King challenged the ‘fortune-telling’ statute in Chesterfield County after being denied a business license back in 2009.

She argued that her work constitutes free speech according to the US Constitution, and that the zoning laws and onerous license procedures necessary for her to obtain a business license inhibit her freedom of expression and discriminate against her based on her beliefs, viewpoint, and content of expression.

In October of last year, U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney Jr ruled against King’s argument claiming that her form of counseling was inherently deceptive and therefore not protected by the Constitution.

King appealed the decision, and it was this appeal that was heard by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday.

Though King’s lawyer, Roman P. Storzer argued that his client’s freedom of speech and religion were at issue, Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III commented that he thought the case was more a question of licensing and zoning regulations.

Also at issue was whether or not King’s belief in a ‘new age spirituality’ is actually a protected religious practice or simply a chosen life style or philosophy.

It might take several weeks or even months before a final ruling on the case is made.

comment on this post

In June, Gaithersburg, Maryland City Council proposed amendments to the city code that would repeal the ban on fortune-telling businesses.

They did this in order to act in accordance with the Maryland Court of Appeals decision of 2010, which struck down a similar ban in Montgomery County for being unconstitutional.

While City Council agreed that the ban needed to be rescinded, they wanted to restrict fortune-telling to specific areas of the city and asked the Planning Commission to draft new ordinances.

Last week, Council was presented with the proposed zoning text amendments.

Per the proposal, fortune-telling businesses would only be permitted ‘in the I-1 Light Industrial zone, and allowed expressly as a special exception in the C-2 General Commercial, CBD Central Business District, CD Corridor Development, and MXD Mixed Use Development zones.’

Fortune-telling would be prohibited as a home occupation.

Though Council authorized city staff to move forward with both establishing the new zoning regulations and repealing the fortune-telling prohibition, they requested a redraft of the actual definition of fortune-telling before official changes are made.

As it stands, the draft presented to Council defines ‘fortune-telling’ as:

‘Any attempt to tell fortunes or predict the future (for pay or voluntary contributions) by means of occult or psychic powers, faculties, or forces; necromancy, palmistry, psychology, psychic psychometry, spirits, mediumship, seership, prophesy, cards, talismans, sorcery, charms, potions, magnetism, tea leaves, magic, numerology, mechanical devices, handwriting analyses, phrenology, character readings, or any other similar means. Fortune telling shall not be considered a home occupation, church, or other place of worship.’

Some Council members were disturbed by the inclusion of both psychology and churches in the definition and would like those words removed. Planning staff will follow up on Council recommendations and present the changes within the next few months.

Interestingly, the Commission’s report noted that fortune-telling businesses have a negative stigma, and have historically fallen into the category of ‘urban decline use’.

Other businesses in that category include pawn shops, tattoo parlors, check cashing, and sexually oriented establishments.

comment on this post

Last month Cook County, Illinois zoning commissioners approved a zoning change that would have allowed a ‘tarot card psychic business’ to open in Maine Township. The Maine Township Zoning Board also approved.

Last week however, Cook County commissioners deferred the final decision on the question until next month.

Apparently, Commissioner Peter Silvestri, who represents the district in which the psychic business is located, received a petition signed by 50 people opposing the shop.

According to Journal On-line, the signatories gave no legal basis for their opposition. They simply don’t want a psychic business in the neighbourhood.

Until last month, the business had been operating without a license, but no other criminal complaints had been lodged against it.

The issue will likely be raised again at the county board’s next meeting on October 2nd.

comment on this post

Though the fortune-telling ban in New Smyrna Beach, Florida has been struck down, city commissioners decided last week to limit where such businesses will be allowed to locate.

The new rules will allow psychic businesses to set up shop in the highway service business district and the planned shopping center zoning areas.

They will not, however, be welcome in the beachside commercial hub.

Even in the areas where psychic businesses will be allowed, licenses will be granted only on a case-by-case basis.

According to the Daytona Beach News Journal, some business owners and councilors are concerned about the demographic that might be attracted to psychic readers, and that such businesses are not ‘family friendly.’

In my experience, people from all walks of life visit psychics and Tarot readers, so I’m a little surprised that the City is concerned about the clients a psychic business might attract.

I’m pleased though that they’ve at least repealed the ban and hope that all goes well. Other cities in the region have not had the courage to go even that far.

Psychic businesses are still illegal in the cities of Daytona Beach Shores, DeBary, Deltona, South Daytona, Oak Hill Beach, Ormond Beach, and Volusia County.

They are legal but regulated in Edgewater and DeLand.

comment on this post

Another fortune-telling ban has been struck from the municipal law books, this time in York, Nebraska.

Last week, York City Council did some house-cleaning, and according to yorknewstimes.com, they scrapped not only the fortune-telling ban that had been in place since the fifties, but also restrictions on cursing in dance halls, and bowling on Sunday mornings.

Good work York!!

comment on this post

Last August, psychic business owners Tommy and Marie Costello sued the City of Hattiesburg, Mississippi over the closure of their business – Psychic Marie.

Hattiesburg had shut their business down based on a law from 1929 banning fortune-telling within city limits.

The Costellos argued that the ban was an unconstitutional restraint on their right to free speech and due process. In their lawsuit, they asked for its repeal, and for unspecified damages.

The city of course disagreed, and responded that the ban was a legitimate regulation meant to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of Hattiesburg.

In November, U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett ruled in favour of the Costellos and issued a preliminary injunction against the fortune-telling ordinance. In early December, Hattiesburg repealed the law.

Now finally, the story is almost coming to a close for the Costellos. Just last week, the City of Hattiesburg settled the lawsuit and agreed to pay $7,500 in damages.

Given that their business was shut down for almost a year, it’s not a lot of money, but it’s still quite a victory.

comment on this post

So in a follow-up to a follow-up I did a couple of weeks ago, the ban on fortune-telling in the City of Alexandria, Louisiana has definitely been struck down.

Last week, U.S. District Judge Dee Drell concurred with the earlier opinion of U.S. Magistrate James D. Kirk that Alexandria’s ban was an unconstitutional violation of the right of free speech.

According to nola.com and the Associated Press, Drell commented in his ruling that,

“We also note with interest that the ‘art’ of fortune telling proliferates in front of St Louis Cathedral, in the City of New Orleans, apparently without incident.”

I think that Alexandria will find that they’re safe too.

comment on this post