BOSTON — A judge granted a protective order against a warlock on Wednesday, spelling relief for the Salem witch who accused him of harassment.

The two faced off in court before a Salem District Court judge, who granted the protective order to witch priestess Lori Sforza. She had accused self-proclaimed warlock Christian Day of harassing her over the phone and on social media over the past three years.

During testimony that at times became heated, Sforza accused Day of making incessant phone calls and humiliating her on Facebook. Day’s lawyer countered that the dispute stems from a onetime business partnership that fell apart. Day and Sforza both run occult shops in Salem.

According to WBZ-TV, Sforza said she has known Day for 27 years and was a business partner with him in 2009, adding that she “treated him like a son.” Outside the courthouse, Day told reporters that trouble started in 2012 when Sforza split to open her own business.

The pair made headlines in 2011 when they cast spells together to try to heal actor Charlie Sheen, who had called himself a “Vatican assassin warlock” during an interview on national television.

During the hearing, Sforza reportedly told the judge that she can see into her own future, saying, “That’s why I’m here today.” Sforza, 75, uses the business name Lori Bruno and says she is a psychic witch who descends from a line of Italian witches. She also leads a pagan church in Salem.

Day, 45, who now lives in Louisiana, owns occult shops in Salem and New Orleans. Described on his website as the “world’s best-known warlock,” he organizes the Festival of the Dead in Salem, a series of occult-themed events every October that culminates in a Witches’ Halloween Ball.

The judge hearing the case said he was dismayed by the volume of late-night calls Day made to Sforza. After hearing the decision, Day, who didn’t testify, denied making the calls and then stormed out of the courthouse, according to The Boston Globe. He told reporters he would appeal the order.

Salem, home of the 17th-century witch trials, has a tourism industry built around the occult that reaches fever pitch in October, drawing thousands of visitors.


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