Strip-club owners glum as dancers cover up; Judge lets [Ohio] law stand for now

Strip-club owners glum as dancers cover up Judge lets law stand for now Thursday, October 18, 2007 10:41 PM By Alan Johnson The Columbus Dispatch A federal judge denied a request late today to temporarily shelve Ohio's new law tightening restrictions on strip clubs and stores that sell adult movies and books. U.S. District Judge Solomon Oliver Jr. in Cleveland refused to grant a temporary restraining order sought by the Buckeye Association of Club Executives and other adult businesses. Oliver set a Nov. 16 hearing on the club owners' request for a preliminary injunction. Luke Liakos, president of the association and owner of Diamond's Cabaret in a Dayton suburb, said, "We are obviously disappointed by the judge's decision, but we will continue our efforts to fight this new law on the grounds that it tramples on the right to free expression guaranteed by the First Amendment. "Our organization believes that restrictions on free speech are the most dangerous of all subversions." The impact of the law, which took effect Wednesday, was being felt in clubs across the state, club owners said. By late this afternoon, Angela Bates de Gongora was sitting in the nearly empty Hustler Club she manages in Cleveland and fretting about how bad business might be. With the new law in effect, Hustler and other adult entertainment clubs made swift changes in their operations. "We're following all the new rules. The girls are wearing bikinis and they're not having any contact with customers," she said. "It's had a huge impact on our business. … There are fewer customers and they're not tipping or buying drinks for the girls. "Just last night, I had several girls tell me they might quit. They're not making any money. All my dancers are terrified," she said. "They're afraid to come to work." De Gongora said she had hoped that customers would come in after the Cleveland Indians-Boston Red Sox game to see their featured performer, Stormy Daniels, an adult-film star. Instead, the club probably would lose money tonight. The law enacted a no-touch rule for nude or semi-nude dancers and clamped a midnight closing time on all adult-oriented businesses. Club owners and operators of adult book and video stores across the state joined together to file a federal lawsuit against 68 city attorneys and county prosecutors. They say the law is an unconstitutional infringement on free expression and that dancers should be considered in the same protected category as risque literature, stage plays and art. Another lawsuit filed by the club and bookstore owners will not be considered until next week by the Ohio Supreme Court. That suit challenges how Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner handled the unsuccessful referendum petition to put the strip-club law up on the Nov. 6 ballot. Opponents of the law tried two times to gather enough signatures to place the strip-club law on the ballot, but they fell short by about 60,000 names.