LAS VEGAS — A hearing has been set for Monday morning in Dennis Hof’s most recent lawsuit against Nye County.
Hof’s latest lawsuit against the Southern Nevada county stems from the county Board of Commissioner’s decision not to renew his brothel license and the subsequent closure of his Love Ranch brothel.
Hof, who is running for state assembly, said that the board unlawfully and maliciously shut down his business in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
Hof sued the county along with Nye County Commissioners Dan Schinhofen and Butch Borasky in their professional and personal capacities, seeking a restraining order over the revocation. He has made numerous allegations against the defendants, claiming a lack of due process on the part of the county, improper recusal procedure, retaliation and more.
U.S. District Court Judge Richard Boulware on Wednesday postponed making a decision in the case so that Nye County can provide additional information as well as call witnesses, such as Nye County Commissioner Lorinda Wichman.
Boulware noted that based on information in the record there was a significant possibility that he would order the license be reinstated and the businesses reopened at the continued hearing.
Just prior to a hearing on Wednesday, Hof’s attorneys from the Randazza Legal Group submitted a deposition of Callie Stark, an administrative technician for the Nye County Sheriff’s Office who was knowledgeable about business license procedures.
Stark’s deposition illuminated how the county manages business license documents and related payments to the county. County commissioners earlier voted in favor of revoking Hof’s licenses because of a late-filed renewal slip and late payment for his brothel license.
At deposition, Stark stated that renewal slips that the county stated must be submitted by a certain deadline was considered by the sheriff’s office to be “irrelevant.” Stark continued in the deposition noting that the county never tracked by date each of the license payments.
Industry attorney Mark Randazza told Boulware that he may want to query Schinhofen at Monday’s hearing. The jurist considered the notation, remarking that as a defendant in a federal lawsuit it would be prudent for Schinhofen to be there.
The case continues Monday at 9:30 a.m. at Lloyd D. George U.S. Courthouse in downtown Las Vegas.
Earlier this week, some of the Love Ranch’s workers took to task the Nye County’s Board of Commissioners at its biweekly meeting over the brothel’s closure. Several Love Ranch workers said that they were ready to file a class-action lawsuit against the county for putting them out of work.