Uri Geller, a self-proclaimed psychic, has paid $ 40,000 to an Amherst-based group that seeks to discredit psychics. It is the first installment of a $ 120,000 settlement for a "frivolous" lawsuit that the Israeli-born entertainer brought against the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal.
Four years ago Geller sued the committee and James Randi for $ 15 million, alleging defamation, invasion of privacy and interference with Geller's prospects of future work. The committee, which had been sued earlier by Geller, claimed this suit was brought solely as harassment, and a U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., agreed. It awarded $ 150,000 to the committee. Geller made numerous attempts to overturn the award and was denied reconsideration, most recently in January.
Shortly before the Randi interview, Geller had sued Prometheus Books; its founder, Paul Kurtz, a University at Buffalo philosophy professor; and author Victor Stenger after Prometheus published Stenger's book "Physics and Psychics." Stenger cited an Israeli civil suit against Geller for failure to perform mental feats he had promised. Geller also lost that suit and was required to pay Prometheus another $20,000 in legal fees.
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