A temporary restraining order was issued against Jaguars adult entertainment club Thursday at the request of Ector County District Attorney Dusty Gallivan who described the club in court documents as a “common nuisance notorious for harboring habitual criminal activity.”
Jaguars’ owners or staff will be given 14 days to modify their behavior to prevent criminal activity from occurring. After that two-week period, if an agreement can’t be worked out between Jaguars and the county, a hearing will be held before County Court at Law No. 2 Judge Christopher Clark to determine next steps.
According to Gallivan’s petition for the TRO, “defendants knowingly tolerate, and have failed to make reasonable efforts to abate, the criminal activities at Jaguars, and instead have enjoyed a steady stream of income from overly intoxicated patrons who conduct these illegal activities on the premises.”
During the three-year period from July 14, 2019 to July 14, 2022, Gallivan alleges the Odessa Police Department has been summoned to Jaguars on Cargo Road 150 times and made more than 100 arrests. Officers have responded to fights in progress, shots fire, aggravated assaults, alcohol-related crashes and drug-related calls. He further alleges acts of prostitution have taken place at Jaguars and intoxicated people have participated in “deviant behavior” there.
Messages and emails sent to the club’s owner, RCI Hospitality Holdings, RCI President Eric Langan and Jaguars’ manager, Nicolai Orcutt, weren’t immediately returned.
According to Gallivan’s petition, the criminal activities at the club present a danger to the public and cause people “of ordinary sensibilities to be substantially frightened, discomforted, annoyed and inconvenienced” in the use of any premises surrounding the property, the petition stated.
“Defendants have failed or refused to abate the nuisance and defendants are likely to continue to maintain the property as a common nuisance unless restrained by an injunctive order of the court,” the petition reads.
According to the petition, if the TRO is violated, the judge can impose a fine of $1,000 to $10,000 and/or send the violator to jail for 10-30 days. He can also order the business’ utilities be shut off, revoke its certificate of occupancy, restrict access to the business and limit its business hours.
In related news, RCI Hospitality, which also owns Rick’s Cabaret Odessa, announced it closed on a purchase agreement “that will enable subsidiaries” to open a third nightclub in Ector County. The club at 3306 NW Loop 338 will be called PT’s Showclub and will offer “quality adult entertainment with liquor service.”
According to its website, RCI has clubs in New York City, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Miami, Minneapolis, Denver, St. Louis, Charlotte, Pittsburgh, Raleigh and Louisville.
