Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2003 | 11:17 a.m.
Michael Galardi, owner of two topless clubs in Clark County, has a month to voluntarily turn in his license to operate the strip bars after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud as part of a political corruption case, a county attorney said Tuesday.
Mary Miller, Clark County counsel, said the county will give Galardi 30 days to turn over his license to operate Jaguars and the Leopard Lounge.
Wire fraud is considered a crime of "moral turpitude," she said, a crime that would almost always disqualify a person from holding a license to operate a business involving naked woman, liquor and large sums of cash.
Commissioner Rory Reid said that a felony is something that won't be taken lightly by the county.
"If somebody's admitted to a felony and they're a private licensee, that's not something we can let stand," Reid said. "We have to discipline that licensee to the full extent of the law."
Galardi pleaded guilty Monday in San Diego after initially pleading innocent to a federal indictment released in that city on August 28. The indictment alleges that Galardi, former Clark County Commissioner Lance Malone, and the manager of a Galardi club in San Diego made illegal campaign contributions to three San Diego city councilmen in an attempt to get them to relax regulation of strip clubs.
No indictments have been released in a parallel investigation in Las Vegas.
Miller said the county wants Michael Galardi to give up ownership of his strip clubs since the licensee is usually the owner in these types of adult businesses.
The county does not want to close the businesses, Miller said. Voluntarily surrendering the license and transferring ownership could keep the businesses running.
"We will allow the business to stay open if he acts in a reasonable length of time," Miller said.
Miller said the county could not rule out a transfer of ownership to Michael Galardi's father, Jack Galardi, who runs similar strip clubs in Atlanta. She said, however, that the elder Galardi had stepped out of the licensing process for the clubs in Clark County, and the investigation into Jack Galardi's suitability to run the establishments could be lengthy.
"I think our responsibility is to make sure that the successor, whomever that may be, is suitable -- that they pass muster," Reid said. "They would have to be investigated by the Las Vegas Metro Police Department and whoever it is would have to be suitable to be a privileged license holder.
"The standard to them is the same standard to anyone who would want to be in that business."
Miller said that the county could bar Michael Galardi from setting foot in the strip clubs here to avoid a situation in which he would be running the businesses through a front man.
The nature of the offense plays a part in the process, Reid said.
"If he were arrested for something unrelated to the operation of his business, it would be a much different thing," Reid said. "If he made a mistake in his personal life unrelated to his business in the county, that may be different, but we are talking about the corrupt operation of the business which he was licensed to operate in the county.
"By whatever standard you measure his behavior, it simply doesn't measure up."
The city of Las Vegas also is looking into Galardi's licenses for Cheetahs, a strip club within the city, said Jim DiFiore, business services manager for the city. The city has a moral turpitude clause similar to the county's.
DiFiore said that the city is in the early stages of its investigation, and that the city attorney is involved in the process.
DiFiore added that while the indictment and plea agreement in San Diego will be reviewed, the city may wait and see if there are any indictments in Las Vegas before taking action.
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