Girl: Suspended for Spell?

By Caitlin O'toole

07/08/1998 at 12:00 AM EDT

A 15-year-old Oklahoma high school student was suspended after being accused of casting a magic spell that caused a teacher to become sick, according to the student's lawyers. The American Civil Liberties Union said it had filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on behalf of Brandi Blackbear, accused of casting the spell at the Union Intermediate High School in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, last December. Blackbear was allegedly summoned to the assistant principal's office after a teacher fell ill, and was questioned about her interest in Wicca, a religion that dates back to pre-Christian nature worship. According to the lawsuit, Brandi Blackbear, who is now in 10th grade, had read a library book about Wicca beliefs and, under aggressive interrogation by the assistant principal, said she might be a Wiccan (Blackbear is actually a Roman Catholic). She was then suspended for 15 days. "It's hard for me to believe that in the year 2000 I am walking into court to defend my daughter against charges of witchcraft brought by her own school," said Timothy Blackbear, Brandi's father, according to Reuters.