Tuesday, June 22, 2004 | 9:24 a.m.
One of the four dancers facing prostitution charges over incidents at Treasures strip club was found guilty Monday of violating the city's erotic dance code while performing a lap dance at Cheetah's.
Municipal Judge Bert Brown said 26-year-old Angela Wise violated the erotic dance code Aug. 1 by allowing parts of her body to repeatedly touch the upper thigh region of a patron for whom she was performing a 10-minute lap dance in the VIP room in the back of Cheetah's.
Metro Police Detective Barry Reinink told the court he witnessed Wise giving the lap dance that evening while he was working undercover. He said he issued her a citation afterward.
Reinink said he observed the dance from outside the doorway of the VIP room. He said he saw Wise putting her left leg over the patron's lap and "simulating sex."
It was clear to Reinink that the physical contact was intentional, he said.
Reinink said Wise told him later that she believed what she was doing was legal "as long as she kept one foot on the ground" during the dance.
Wise also admitted that she had made physical contact with the patron, Reinink said.
However, the dancer told the court Monday that Reinink was not the officer who approached her at Cheetah's that evening and denied making physical contact with the patron during the lap dance.
Wise said she maintained 6 to 12 inches of space between herself and the patron and "changed positions" of her dance every five seconds.
Despite the defense's argument, Wise was found guilty of violating the city's erotic dance code and fined $250.
The stakes will be higher when Wise returns to court July 6 to face prostitution charges in the Treasures case.
In 2001 Las Vegas attorney Mark Fiorentino made a promise to the Las Vegas City Council that Treasures would surrender its liquor license without a fight if any prostitution convictions resulted from law enforcement visits.
Fiorentino told the council last week he was an idiot for making the promise.
Prostitution charges are currently pending against Wise and three other Treasures dancers. Jessica Crockett, one of the four dancers, is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday.
If just one of the four dancers is convicted, Treasures could be denied a permanent license. Treasures currently has a temporary tavern license that is set to expire in mid-September.
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