Critics find new legal language on adult store not really hot stuff

The battle over Hot Stuff Video is again leading to heated words and legal maneuvering to force the adult bookstore to close.

Las Vegas City Attorney Brad Jerbic introduced yet another proposal Wednesday aimed at rectifying flaws in zoning and licensing provisions that have left the city powerless in court.

It is the second such proposal this year aimed at addressing issues the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals raised in denying the city judicial remedies.

This measure would change city code to read: "If the licensee seeks judicial review in a timely manner, the license suspension or revocation shall be stayed until the court orders otherwise or issues a dispositive ruling."

However, the proposal was met with instant protest from an unlikely source. The leader of a grass-roots anti-pornography group filed a protest claiming the action would not do any good.

"In my opinion, it fails to even address, much less rectify the problem," Lee Haynes wrote in a letter. "The city seems to be in a no-win position with the way it is proceeding."

In February the council amended codes to specify that the city shall approve or deny an application for an adult license within 30 days after it has been filed and the applicable fees have been paid.

The time element is at the crux of the city's attempt to close the adult store on West Charleston Boulevard, just west of Decatur Boulevard.

Hot Stuff opened in March 1997 in an area zoned for commercial uses. A city audit later found that more than half of the store's material was sexually oriented, and thus, Hot Stuff violated the city's zoning code.

The store added mainstream videos to its stock in order to remain open legally until the appeals court ruled on whether the city had the right to close the store down.

The court ruled the city did not provide quick judicial ruling when an applicant such as Hot Stuff appealed the city's denial of a business license.

Last year, the city thought it corrected the problem and again attempted to close the store -- in part by issuing daily citations to the manager.

Michael Stein, who represents Hot Stuff, filed an emergency motion with the 9th Circuit, which granted an injunction prohibiting the city from using the chapter in its municipal code to close the store.

The court has continually ruled against the city.

Stein said the minor corrections to city code do not rectify all of the issues the 9th Circuit raised.

The latest amendment to city code will be discussed in a public hearing May 30 at 4 p.m. in City Hall's eighth-floor conference room.

Haynes meanwhile is circulating a petition attempting to correct the city's code problems through citizen initiative. Haynes' group is attempting to collect 7,809 signatures it claims are needed to file the petition.

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