Santa Ana Intensifies Adult Theater Battle

Santa Ana officials have stepped up their battle to close an adult movie theater in the city, three weeks after both the city attorney and city manager recommended a proposal to settle the 10-year-old legal fracas.

Private attorney James Clancy, who recently signed a $50-an-hour contract to continue to represent the city in its fight against the Mitchell Bros. Santa Ana Theatre, says he will file a lawsuit each Tuesday, alleging that that week’s showing of X-rated films violates obscenity standards. Clancy said the weekly filing of suits is an effort to pile up a record of obscenity rulings to indicate that the theater represents a public nuisance. Clancy, a Sun Valley attorney who specializes in anti-pornography litigation, said he believes that the U.S. Supreme Court will rule later this year in another case that could, in effect, expand a city’s power to close adult theaters based on public nuisance laws.

Superior Court Commissioner Jane Myers denied a request on Tuesday for a temporary restraining order that would have prevented the showing of three X-rated films at the theater this week. Instead, she set a hearing for Feb. 27 on Clancy’s last two lawsuits, each dealing with films from previous weeks.

Clancy said his weekly suits will at least force the court to swiftly rule on his attempts to prove that the theater consistently displays obscenity. “These films are illegal, period,” he said.

Mitchell Bros. attorney Tom Steel said he will request that the court prevent Clancy from continuing his suit-a-week strategy. “Obviously, it won’t close the theater, but it’s a significant form of harassment. It’s practically unheard of to file a lawsuit every week,” he said. “I don’t think the court will tolerate this very long.”

Settlement Rejected

Steel said Clancy, whom he calls an “extremist,” convinced the City Council to reject a settlement proposed by City Manager Robert C. Bobb and City Atty. Edward C. Cooper. That proposal last month was for the city to drop its lawsuits against the theater in exchange for the Mitchell Bros.’ promise not to seek legal fees--which could top $1 million--for the 10 years of litigation, a settlement that Steel said he would have accepted.

Steel said the weekly actions will cost the San Francisco-based Mitchell Bros. theater chain “thousands of dollars,” including $500 to $1,000 for a week’s rental of each film, that he said would be billed to the city if Santa Ana loses its case. He said the case has cost the Mitchell Bros. almost $1 million in legal fees during the 10 years.

Cooper said the city has spent about $225,000 in the same time. The council also allocated $200,000 to a special fund for the case when it decided Feb. 3 to continue Clancy’s contract.

In the 10 years since the city first attempted to close the 17th Street theater, the only success for Santa Ana has been an injunction granted against 10 films. One of the five suits filed prior to Clancy’s latest strategy has been dismissed.