Saturday, April 21, 2007 | 7:08 a.m.
When the Founding Fathers included freedom of speech in the First Amendment, they probably weren't thinking about Las Vegas fortune teller Debbie Marks.
But Clark County officials are.
Commissioners decided to put off a decision this week about whether to grant Marks a psychic arts business license after Metro Police raised questions about her history.
Attorneys for Marks are calling the delay unconstitutional. Telling the future, they say, is a First Amendment right.
Marks, 37, owns Goddess Spa, Nails and Skin, a small store on Desert Inn Road several blocks east of the Strip. Blue and green beads dangle in the doorway and a sign in the window lists the establishment's niche services: tarot card readings and astrology.
Marks, a Gypsy, believes women have unique spiritual powers and religious responsibilities that include fortune telling.
The county, however, regulates the trade by requiring fortune tellers to obtain a psychic arts license. As part of that process, county law says Metro Police can require any information about the applicant's identity "to properly investigate the applicant's character and reputation, and arrest and conviction, and any pending litigation, record."
As Marks sat cross-legged on a couch in her salon Friday, she said her astrological charts revealed before Tuesday's commission meeting that there would be trouble .
"I knew there would be problems at this hearing," she said. "I would have a challenge with authority."
She did.
Metro had several areas of concern about Marks. Detectives said they found that she has used different names in the past, has used three Social Security numbers and has never paid federal income taxes.
Officers also said Marks would not make herself available to address their questions.
Marks and her attorneys say there is an explanation for everything. One of the Social Security numbers that shows up on her financial record was the result of a one-digit mistake she made, and Marks said she knows nothing about the other.
The confusion over different names is a result of her ethnic, although not legal, marriage, according to one of her attorneys. And she hasn't filed income taxes because her wealthy grandfather supports her, Marks said. As for making herself available to police, she said her attorney advised her not to .
But they also say none of that should matter because the county's code gives public officials too much discretion in regulating a First Amendment activity.
Although government is allowed to require discretionary permits or licenses under some circumstances, it is not allowed to do so when regulating free speech, said Barry Fisher, one of Marks' attorneys.
Allen Lichtenstein, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, agreed. Including the word "reputation" in the county's ordinance is problematic when it comes to free speech, he said.
"If they want to say she's a criminal, they have to prove a crime," he said. "If they just feel like she is a bad person, that is insufficient to trump First Amendment concerns."
While commissioners delayed a decision on the license, Deputy District Attorney Robert Gower said the county's legal team is reviewing the law based on the concerns raised by Marks' attorneys.
Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani, who led the charge to put off a vote because of Metro's concerns, said that after looking over a letter from Marks' attorneys, there might be constitutional issues that commissioners need to address.
"There are some pretty good clear-cut legal arguments," she said.
Although Marks supports background checks for those in her line of work, she objects to officials holding up her license.
"It all boils down to our humanistic rights and our rights as an American citizen," she said.
So, what does she see happening with her business license application?
"Something should happen in two weeks," she predicted.
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