Galardi appeals $1.1 million fine

Sito Negron

Thursday, Jan. 29, 2004 | 9:53 a.m.

Jack Galardi is appealing a record $1.1 million city fine against the strip club Cheetahs, claiming that the penalty was too large and that the city had no business taking action against his club.

Galardi's lawyer, Dominic Gentile, in filings Wednesday also claims that Councilwoman Janet Moncrief should not have voted on the issue because she had stated before the meeting that she wanted to revoke Cheetahs' liquor license.

Moncrief voted against the fine at the Jan. 7 City Council meeting, and her motion to revoke Cheetahs' license did not pass.

Neither Gentile nor Moncrief returned telephone calls for comment Wednesday.

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said Wednesday he was "disappointed" in the appeal.

"I thought we did the right thing" in fining, but not closing, Cheetahs, Goodman said. "He didn't want to be executed, and we didn't execute him," said Goodman, referring to the failed vote to revoke the license, which would have left the club shut.

The mayor said he would not comment on what action the city might take, deferring to the city attorney.

Las Vegas City Attorney Brad Jerbic would not comment on the appeal, citing ongoing litigation, and counseled business licensing director Jim DiFiore not to speak as well.

The city considered disciplinary action because Michael Galardi, Jack Galardi's son and a former 40 percent owner of Cheetahs, pleaded guilty to federal charges of corruption in San Diego. Michael Galardi was accused of bribing three San Diego council members to gain favorable treatment for his club there, also called Cheetahs.

According to Las Vegas rules, actions committed by a principal liquor license holder can subject the license to penalties, including fines of up to $1,000 a day for each day of violation and revocation of the license. The council gave Galardi 30 days, which are up next week, to pay the fine.

Gentile told the council that since Michael Galardi no longer is part of the company and that since none of the criminal complaints involved the club in Las Vegas or the company that owned it, La Fuente, it didn't make sense to hold La Fuente liable for actions committed by Michael Galardi.

However, since Michael Galardi was a principal in the company, city lawyers argued, the licensing rules applied to actions he committed during that time -- from August 2000 to May 2003.

The fine of $1.095 million was calculated based on that time frame, something Gentile also questioned in the papers filed Wednesday.

In the filing, he asks that the enforcement of the fine be halted. If a judge determines the fine was warranted, Gentile asks that it be recalculated.