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Sugar's stays open, but faces restrictions

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By Tory Brecht | Wednesday, December 6, 2006 12:13 AM CST | () comments

Sugar’s Exotic Dancers in downtown Davenport can stay open, for now.

But the strip club’s female entertainers will no longer be allowed to perform behind closed doors.

District Court Judge James Kelley issued a temporary injunction Tuesday against the owners of Sugar’s, ordering them to not permit prostitution to occur on the premises, allow closed-door dances, allow patrons to be nude or in a state of semi-nudity or allow any adult entertainer to perform in any place that cannot be observed by the club manager’s station.

Sugar’s was brought into court by the City of Davenport’s legal department, which is seeking a nuisance abatement that would shut down the business. The temporary injunction was a first step, said city corporate counsel Mary Thee. According to the city’s suit, undercover police officers and Iowa Lottery Commission members documented prostitution at Sugar’s during several sting operations over the past year.

“I think this will accomplish what the neighbors and the City Council desire at this time,” Thee said of the injunction. “It will seriously interfere with any illegal activities going on there.”

She said the hearing on the permanent abatement request has not yet been scheduled.

If the city’s lawsuit is successful, club operator Dorothy Sampson would be forced out of the premises and permanently restrained from opening another adult business in the city. In addition, building owner Dale Labath would have to close the business and leave the building vacant for one year.

Tory Brecht can be contacted at (563) 383-2329 or tbrecht@qctimes.com.