Inspectors get an eyeful at nightclub

Adrienne Packer

Friday, July 2, 1999 | 11:16 a.m.

Tourists who hit the Las Vegas Strip believing it's Disneyland for adults and everything goes might scoff at the Clark County Commission's latest campaign to clean up the community's image.

But the county proved its was serious about cleaning things up late last year when it implemented a program that puts two Business License Department inspectors on the streets at night to duck into clubs unannounced.

It didn't take long before the duo caught a glimpse of what county officials fear is occurring more and more at popular dance clubs during Las Vegas shows and conventions: live sex acts and orgies.

In January, Club Utopia became the first business to be busted by the nighttime inspectors, then pulled before the Liquor and Gaming Licensing Board and taken to court. The county board will decide the fate of the club's license in late July or August.

"I don't know what's happening in other jurisdictions, but it seems like people have a sense any activity can take place here," said Ardel Jorgenson, the county's business license director.

Inspectors Jack Lundquist and Jon Theriault typically encounter women flashers, but what they discovered at Club Utopia during the nightclub's second annual "Nymphomaniacs Ball" appalled county board members.

Customers gawked and snapped pictures as women danced naked in cages, performed sex acts with one another and posed in raunchy positions to accommodate photographers.

"When the Club Utopia story first broke, a number of people I deal with said that during large conventions, these kinds of events are taking place," Jorgenson said.

"The commission is working diligently to improve the image of the community. It's distressful when you come up with these types of things in a public forum."

Representatives of Club Utopia declined to comment until after the liquor and gaming board meeting.

Women exposing themselves in bars is often excused as drunken buffoonery as long as management promptly intervenes. The county claims, however, that Club Utopia security guards viewing the sex show kept the agents away from the scene and prevented them from investigating it.

When events at Club Utopia were reported to the liquor and gaming board in February, commissioners opted to submit a complaint to the district attorney's office. The club was found not guilty of criminal misdemeanors related to the January party.

The business license agents and Club Utopia officials are scheduled to meet with hearing officer Bob Forbes early next month. Jorgenson said the penalties against the club could range from nothing to the revocation of its license.

While Club Utopia has a liquor license, it does not hold permits that would allow erotic dancing or adult cabaret entertainment. According to the county's complaint, seven codes were violated the night of the ball ranging from allowing people to appear naked to allowing or encouraging fondling.

After February's County Commission meeting, Club Utopia owner David Cohen said 1,800 people were at the ball after the Consumer Electronics Show -- which includes a porn video award show -- and it was impossible to monitor everybody's behavior.

Jorgenson dismissed the excuse, saying liquor licenses are a privilege and business owners are responsible for controlling patrons and protecting that license.