Tarot card reader files suit against the county

A tarot card reader and spiritual counselor says that her constitutional rights have been violated by Chesterfield County. She has filed a federal lawsuit that alleges that the county misclassified her business and denied her a license, according to www.richmondbizsense.com.

Sophie King, who said she offers spiritual counseling, filed the lawsuit in the belief that the county’s classification of her business as “engaged in the occupation of occult sciences” is wrong. She also said the business tax and zoning rules that come with the classification are unfair and violate her First Amendment rights.

In Chesterfield, businesses considered to be fortune-telling establishments must pay a $300 tax to get a business license, while nightclubs and adult businesses pay only a $100 tax for a license. Fortune-telling businesses must submit five references from the county to the police chief for approval. They are limited to one zoning designation – the same one reserved for adult businesses, scrap yards and pawn shops. And they must get a conditional-use permit for that zoning.

King is asking the court to declare the county’s regulation unconstitutional, and for compensatory damages.