Adult Stores, Threatened With Huge Fines, Vow to Remain Open

CNSNews.com ^ | November 19, 2001 | Rick Sarlat

[Stand Watch Listen]

Daytona Beach, Florida (CNSNews.com) - Several adult-oriented businesses are embroiled in a bitter feud with Daytona Beach, Fla. officials who have ordered them to shut down or pay a hefty price.

Three adult stores, XTC Adult Supercenter, The Banned Bookstore and House of Leather were warned to cease offering sexually explicit merchandise or they would be fined $1,000 a day. Four adult clubs have been given a harsher ultimatum -- cease and desist altogether or be fined up to $5,000 a day.

The dispute landed in federal court over the summer, with the businesses suing the city over ordinances which control where such adult-oriented businesses can be placed. Late last month, a federal judge ruled the city could not shut the businesses down, but could levy fines as it saw fit. City officials recently began issuing notices warning about the fines, which are scheduled to take effect this week.

"All they have to do is shut down to avoid the fines,'' said Mayor Baron H. Asher.

The business owners, however, are adamant in their refusal to comply. "The deadline is bogus," said Mike Piscitelli, an associate with Ellenton Video Inc., which owns the XTC. "We're aware of their ultimatum and we know that they can issue citations up to $5,000 a day. However we are absolutely never leaving this location, under any circumstances or conditions.''

Ron Krenn, owner of Molly Brown's I and Molly Brown's II, a bikini dancing club and a nude dancing club respectively, echoed those sentiments.

"We're staying open no matter what," he said. "This whole thing is a circus show. They think they're going to fine us out of business, but we're not going anywhere."

Krenn said city officials have gone as far as fabricating violations to drive him out of business. Molly Brown's I was issued a $2,500 fine for one its female entertainers showing too much skin.

But Asher denied the fine was trumped up and said the city intends to fight until the end.

"We don't intend to back off one iota," Asher said. "We are going to rigidly enforce our zoning ordinances and land-development codes. Period. Exclamation point."

Asher added that if inspectors can prove the adult clubs, which include two others named The Pink Pony and Lollipops, remained open between the time of the first fine until the code board's December meeting, each will face a $100,000 fine.

[Gumption]

Oh, you already have an agent? Then that completely ruins my next question.

[xm177e2]

Corrupting the morals of society is wrong

Our society has morals?

[All-American Medic]

"You are avoiding the point that communities have a right to set standards, and that the "intent" was never to include naking dancing women in "free speech". What if a Liberal community set a standard that zoned religious bookstores out of a community, because of some BS "hate speech" rule. Would you agree that a community has a right to set it's standard?? If you dont like the kind of food a resturant serves you dont eat there. If you dont like what they are selling dont go in. Ive seen porn stores that ID folks to make sure they are over 18 when they enter. In fact they are more strict than some bars ive seen.

[bluefish]

While I disagree with much of your thinking, thank-you for at least stating libertarians and liberals are two differnet political thought systems. You have however linked them enough to hide the fact that they may agree on an issue for two very different reasons altogether. Perhaps a subtle attempt to tie them together to confuse the self-identified conservatives on the forum who have a broad understanding of what being conservativism is with respect to personal beliefs, yet may not understand what libertarianism is with respect to philosophy of government.

Remember now, many liberals, socialists and communists will also agree with YOU on the pornography issue (feminists, Stalinist Russia, etc.), so be careful about pinning labels together and trying to suggest they are the same thing. This is what always results in the silly "Libertarians are Liberals" / "No their not, Social Conservatives are Nazis which are Socialists" tennis match that goes nowhere.

[Z-28]

This is the same zoning technique the socialists used in California during the '90s to run small federally licensed firearms dealers out of business (mine included, in San Diego).

[A.J.Armitage]

Those frescoes are cool.

[Demosthenes]

Sorry sparky, not at all. It isn't mob rule if the majority that elected the leaders are the same majority who don't want the porn within eyeshot of their kids.

[Roscoe]

Miller v. California (1973): "In our view, to equate the free and robust exchange of ideas and political debate with commercial exploitation of obscene material, demeans the grand conception of the First Amendment and its high purposes in the historic struggle for freedom."

Well said!

[HiTech RedNeck]

Bella, why aren't you very, very angry at the women's lives that have been demolished because of their husbands getting ensnared in the net of easy porn? Do you think nothing of your "fellow woman" hurt in such a way?

It is very very true that if someone really truly wants porn, he (by far most consumers are men) will get it somehow, if only by dreaming it up himself. However, keeping it from being too convenient and easy to get is a legitimate social goal. Bans, even if they are only limited local ones, have ripple effects. They do play a part in shaping social behavior through pride and shame (gak! what totally Neanderthal concepts).

[Bella_Bru]

Bella, why aren't you very, very angry at the women's lives that have been demolished because of their husbands getting ensnared in the net of easy porn? Do you think nothing of your "fellow woman" hurt in such a way?

If porn is demolishing a marriage, there is usually a lot more going on than some naked pics. The only women I have known who have had problems with porn are the frigid cow variety that think that the ring on their finger means their husbands are going to be happy with vanilla sex doled out once a month. Their problem isn't porn, but usually a much deeper breakdown in communication.

[Skywalk]

Actually it is. If a majority(or sometimes not even that, but a plurality) elects some dolt who decides along with the other handful of morons/tyrants to enact some law, then it isn't any more moral or constitutional.

As for people talking about exactly what was on the books in the late 1700s, and quoting decisions, it's not relevant to the true issue. Do we REALLY want to go back to that time? Let's see, I'd be the son of a slave, therefore a slave, or at best an oppressed minority. Hey, instead of being infinitely more moral and intelligent than you, I could be a stableboy.

This is the same country that had the Dred Scott decision, right? lol

Thanks, but the Founders and the Constitution are just helpful guides, but I wouldn't suggest we follow them as absolute moral/political exemplars.

[BlackbirdSST]

Why would you let your kids go in an adult store? Blackbird.

[BlackbirdSST]

Who appointed you, your neighbors keeper? Busybody! Blackbird.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Rotten meat draws disease carrying flies.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Guess what, it took a Constitutional Amendment to expurgate racial chattel slavery from the United States for good. Slavery is woven into the original Constitution... it's euphemized as the "peculiar institution." And it's clear from history that slavery was construed permissively by the original Constitution. That's how seriously we should take what the Constitution can -- and CAN'T -- do. One thing it CAN'T do in its current form is grant a right to ubiquitous porn. You want to put a porn amendment in the Constitution, well go right ahead and try. But our First Amendment isn't it. "Freedom of the press" was never even dreamed to be construed that way until the days of woman-abusing Hefner.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Bella, the big problem with porn is that it makes the delusionary promise to be things that the real life wife never can be. She could deck herself out every night for hubby like a circus clown, and she still would be unable to match the disposable paper, superficial appeal of a picture of a half starved harlot who sells her body to a photographer for a few dollars and who offers the "convenience" of not burdening the viewer with having to support her 24/7. Porn promotes unrealistic, warped ideals. It splits the act of sex from the responsibilities of marriage. It is unfair and misleading competition for the wife. Too many women know this sad story firsthand. If someone can get easy, unsurpassable jollies by taking a drug, why should he bother with making a real life for himself? Same thing goes for the mind drug of porn.

[slhill]

That's interesting. Who gets to decide what's obscene? What are the qualifications? How long can they do the job before they themselves are corrupted? What standards will we use? Will historical works be exempted? If not, what will happen to them? Will we engage in mass destruction of historical works? What about medical works on sexuality? Quis custodiet etc etc.

[slhill]

Absolutely no-one but no-one, and in particular no agent of the government, will force your children to enter one of these stores. I can promise you that. So they can remain filth-free if you can look after them properly.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Debate about where to draw the line between civilized inquiry and society-destroying pollution, is not an excuse for drawing no line at all. We might as well abolish laws against murder because of the O. J. Simpson trial.