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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., April 9 (UPI) -- Lawyers representing a Florida family of psychics charged with fraud and conspiracy says the family is protected by freedom of religion and free speech.
Nine members of a fortune-telling Fort Lauderdale family of Roma decent led by Rose Marks were arrested in August on federal fraud conspiracy charges and accused of defrauding their clients of $40 million, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported Sunday.
The nine family members are free on bail, but are barred from fortune telling or working as spiritual healers while they await trial.
Now, in an effort to get the charges dismissed before the proposed November trial date, defense lawyers argued the family members had a constitutional right to practice fortune telling and spiritual healing because it is a part of their religious beliefs and that fortune telling is protected by freedom of speech.
"Nancy Marks' conduct is rooted in her religion and spirituality," attorney Michael Gottlieb wrote in a 24-page legal document about religious rights. "Based upon this prosecution, the defendant has lost her livelihood and has been unable to make a living using her historical religious and spiritual gifts."
In his request to have the family's charges dismissed, Gottlieb compared their actions to "religious teachers, preachers, and healers and demon chasers," evangelists and the Psychic Friends Network, who have televised shows that often ask for donations.
"Yet none of these individuals... endure the constant derogatory label of being called a Gypsy for simply exercising their faith or practicing their chosen profession. Nor are they vilified and persecuted and prosecuted for espousing their beliefs and profiting ... even when their predictions fall short, miss the mark or are at odds with other genuinely accepted beliefs," Gottlieb wrote.
Prosecutors have not yet responded to the request and the judge is expected to rule on the matter in the next several weeks after hearing from both sides.
