Pubdate: Thu, 23 May 2002
Source: Commercial Appeal (TN)
Copyright: 2002 The Commercial Appeal
Contact:  http://www.gomemphis.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/95
Author: Lawrence Buser

TOPLESS CLUB RAIDED, CLOSED; DRUG SALES, ASSAULTS ALLEGED

Authorities raided and locked down a Brooks Road topless club Tuesday night 
for alleged repeated drug sales and assaults. They are seeking to have the 
club declared a permanent nuisance.

State prosecutors said Wednesday the raid on Babes Show Club at 1375 E. 
Brooks Road, however, was different from the showy, highly publicized raids 
in 1996 that briefly closed eight clubs but quickly became mired in 
controversy and ended in failure.

The Tuesday raid did not involve constitutional issues regarding lewdness 
or obscenity or whether something's an "artistic dance," said chief 
narcotics prosecutor Bobby Carter.

"This is strictly based on illegal and repeated drug sales and other 
violations. Not many people are going to come out and rally around that 
type of behavior, I don't think," Carter said.

Earlier this year, Dist. Atty. Gen. Bill Gibbons began a $25,000 anti-crime 
marketing campaign aimed at improving the public perception of Whitehaven 
and the Brooks Road area.

The campaign is funded with drug forfeitures.

Carter said the Brooks Road business community has been "very vocal" about 
wanting aggressive law enforcement action to help clean up prostitution, 
drug sales and other crimes along the commercial district. "I think it's 
safe to say that this (raid) is in part a response to those concerns," said 
Carter, director of the West Tennessee Judicial Violent Crime and Drug Task 
Force.

He said several Babes employees were charged with possession of drugs, 
including methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana. Two handguns also were 
seized and another employee was arrested on an outstanding warrant from 
Bartlett.

A hearing is set for Tuesday before General Sessions Criminal Court Judge 
Larry Potter, who will decide whether the club should remain closed pending 
the outcome of the nuisance petition.

Carter said he will ask that the club remain closed until an agreement is 
reached that will ensure that the drug sales, assaults and other violations 
are not repeated.

"I think the law is pretty clear that as long as they operate within the 
law you can't close them," he said.

The 1996 raid closed the clubs just two weeks. More than 200 prostitution, 
indecency and obscenity indictments against employees were derailed by 
court rulings that the indictments were tainted by the privately funded 
work of special prosecutor Larry Parrish.

The private attorney and former federal prosecutor was paid more than 
$500,000 by a special-interest group called Citizens for Community Values. 
Parrish said much of that money went toward expenses.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom