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Treasures strip club can continue to operate with new limits.

Monday, September 10, 2012 | Updated: Monday, September 10, 2012 8:56pm

Treasures strip club can continue operating in the face of city and county allegations that it is a den of criminal activity, a judge ruled Monday, but it must beef up security, fire felons on its payroll, tape just about everything that goes on in the club and have its dancers completely cover their behinds.

The Houston city attorney and Harris County attorney filed a lawsuit against Treasures last May, seeking to close it down because of what they allege is a pattern of prostitution, drugs, illegal weapons and sexual assaults at the club in 5600 block of Westheimer. The club's attorneys have argued that Treasures is being unfairly targeted because it challenged the city's sexually oriented business ordinance.

Monday's ruling calls for close monitoring of the club in the three months before a December trial at which the club's future could be decided. If state District Judge Alexandra Smoots-Hogan rules in favor of the city and county and declares Treasures a public nuisance, the club would close for a year.

City Attorney David Feldman and County Attorney Vince Ryan greeted Monday's ruling as a victory.


Sound like the fun may be over at Treasures...

"What the judge has done is make sure that within a very short period of time they're complying with the law and we have evidence if they're not complying with the law," said Ryan. "If they follow the court's orders, work with us, we work with them, it can be a legal operation. We don't want to close them if they will obey the law."

Attorneys for Treasures said they will file an appeal of the temporary orders.

"The bottom line is, the judge didn't order us closed," said Al Van Huff, one of the Treasures' lawyers. "It's our position that we don't operate unlawfully anyway."

Van Huff said he considers some of the restrictions "overly burdensome," but would not specify which.

Smoots-Hogan gave the club a week to:

» use employee sign-in sheets and deliver them to government lawyers;

» check bags of all entering employees and contractors on camera;

» require employees to completely cover their behinds. "I saw far too much tokus for my liking" in a review of videotapes, Smoots-Hogan declared.

» require patrons to tuck in their shirts;

» reform background checks on its hundreds of employees and contractors;

» fire anyone on the payroll who has been convicted of a felony in the past decade;

» call police if employees witness any sex acts or drug activity;

» position four bouncers on the club's second floor, including one in a special room that has stalls;

» perform random drug testing of employees;

» and install 14 video cameras in addition to the 12 currently in operation and turn over tapes weekly to government lawyers.

Attorneys for Treasures asked for more time to install the video cameras, but Smoots-Hogan denied the request.