A legal battle between a strip club and a DeKalb city just got more costly.
Oasis Goodtime Emporium was ordered to pay a $1.89 million contempt fee to Doraville, according to a recent DeKalb County Superior Court ruling. The fine consists of nearly 200 violations of previous court orders between 2016 and 2018, the city said in a Wednesday news release.
In addition, Superior Court Judge Asha Jackson ruled earlier in June that Doraville could shut down Oasis if it continues to violate the city’s alcohol code in the future, the release said. Oasis has appealed both rulings, and even though the city’s only strip club remains open, it seems to be at a legal impasse.
“Again and again, over the last 7 years, Oasis has filed numerous frivolous appeals; and just as consistently, the appellate courts have rejected those appeals,” Mayor Joseph Geierman said in the release. “It’s time for Oasis to stop fighting this losing battle, to stop wasting everyone’s time, and to comply with City ordinances upheld years ago.”
Doraville bans sexually oriented businesses from serving alcohol, which has led to multiple lawsuits and state Supreme Court rulings. So far, those lawsuits have all gone in the city’s favor, mirroring legal battles in other metro Atlanta cities that have prompted several strip clubs to close over the past few years.
In May, Doraville police conducted an operation at Oasis, located off Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, and found the strip club was continuing to serve alcohol despite not having a license. Officers said they found dozens of bottles of alcohol being served to patrons at the club, which bills itself as “Atlanta’s best burlesque show.”
At the end of 2019, a judge ordered Oasis to cease operations, but the nightclub has openly ignored that injunction and filed a new lawsuit that claims Doraville is trying to run it out of business by targeting it with citations and fines.
Attorney Alan Begner, who represents Oasis along with several other metro Atlanta strip clubs, claims Doraville pads its budget with a disproportionate amount of code enforcement and traffic fines. Oasis had to pay a $500,000 bond as part of the most recent appeal. Eric Coffelt, a member of Begner’s law firm, declined to comment on the recent rulings.
Doraville city leaders aren’t subtle when talking about Oasis or their desire to see the nightclub close its doors for good.
“Doraville is known for a lot of great things,” Councilman Andy Yeoman said in a Facebook post. “I hope we can move beyond the image of neon palm trees and mediocre strip clubs.”
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