Police warn witchcraft shop in rural Pa. that tarot is illegal

In honor of spooky season, Beck Lawrence talked up their new “eclectic, metaphysical shop” in a short, upbeat interview for the “Meet the Merchant” section of a local Hanover newsletter. They said they would be selling candles, crystals, and other witchy objects, as well as reading tarot cards, and encouraged everyone to “come on in!”

A few days later, the police chief of Hanover, Chad Martin, paid Lawrence a uniformed visit at the Serpent’s Key Shoppe & Sanctuary. The shop features a community altar to Hekate, the Greek goddess of witchcraft, alongside artfully arranged candles, oils, herbs, jewelry, and incense.

He told Lawrence that fortune-telling in Pennsylvania is illegal — and that any complaints against them would have to result in a police investigation. Martin did not respond to The Inquirer’s requests for comment.

Lawrence immediately posted about the experience to their nearly 200,000 followers on TikTok (wearing “all black and all of my protective jewelry, to deal with the cop”).

“It was kind of intimidating,” Lawrence, 26, said in an interview with The Inquirer. Over the last week, the police visit rallied the pagan community in their support and led to a spike in business. A practicing witch for 13 years, Lawrence has started jokingly referring to themself as Goody Proctor, the accused witch in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible.

The incident also drew attention to the fact that despite its widespread popularity, fortune-telling and related arts are indeed illegal in Pennsylvania, punishable by 6-12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. Pennsylvania statute forbids residents from “pretend[ing] for gain or lucre, to tell fortunes or predict future events, by cards, tokens, the inspection of the head or hands of any person,” and from promising “to stop bad luck, or to give good luck … or to win the affection of a person, or to make one person marry another.” Selling astrology readings and tarot readings are illegal, too.

Lawrence does tarot readings with an Ethereal Visions deck they purchased from a witchcraft shop in Salem, Mass.; prices on their website range from $10 to $100. Even before the police visit, they had posted disclaimers throughout their shop and online, informing customers that readings are “for entertainment purposes only.” Martin told them such disclaimers would not hold up in court, they said.

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On the day of the incident, the police chief defended his visit to the shop on legal grounds.

“There was never an investigation, nor was there any threat of arrest in this matter,” Martin wrote on the police department’s Facebook page. “With that being said, if a complaint was made against someone for engaging in acts qualifying as ‘fortune telling’ in the Borough of Hanover; this department would be obligated to conduct an investigation.”

The anti-fortune-telling law was recodified in 1972 but likely dates to earlier, said Matt M. McClenahen, a criminal defense lawyer based in State College who has written on the subject. It is intended to prevent scammers from duping people into giving away thousands of dollars.

“It’s just as illegal as prostitution,” McClenahen said. “It’s just a low law enforcement priority.”

That hasn’t stopped hundreds of shops from dealing in forbidden fortunes across the state. In Hanover alone, there are at least three other metaphysically-inclined stores near Serpent’s Key. Johnny White, the co-owner of the Sacred Moon Circle Apothecary two miles away, said he did not understand why only Serpent’s Key received a visit from the police chief.

“Is he popping into every bar or restaurant and just telling the staff, ‘Hey, by the way, it’s illegal to serve people under 21?’” White asked.

Though Lawrence was distressed by the visit, they have been heartened by the online and real-life support for their shop.

They said they have dealt with reactions to their witchcraft since they were 13 when, as they put it, they “started listening to Evanescence and wanted to be a vegetarian.” In response, their grandparents attempted to perform an exorcism.

“They thought I was possessed by the devil,” Lawrence said. “So I guess I just give off that vibe.”