Judge Refuses to Drop Prostitution Charges

For the second time in four weeks, a judge refused Tuesday to drop prostitution charges against a Canyon Country couple who say they have reestablished an ancient religion that includes sex acts in its rituals.

Los Angeles Municipal Court Judge Marion O. Obera rejected a motion by Will and Mary Ellen Tracy, who said a Los Angeles police investigation into their Church of the Most High Goddess violated the U.S. Constitution’s guarantees of separation of church and state. Last month, another judge refused to drop the misdemeanor charges after the Tracys argued that the First Amendment protected their religious activities.

Mary Ellen Tracy, 46, and Will Tracy, 51, have been charged with operating a house of prostitution. Mary Ellen Tracy also faces two counts of prostitution.

Police say the church, which operated out of a house in West Los Angeles, is a front for prostitution because the Tracys require men to make donations before participating in sexual rites. The Tracys say the donations are “sacrifices” and deny that they constitute an exchange of sex for money.