Dance case in Pinal proceeds to court

Attorneys for San Tan Flat restaurant owner Dale Bell filed an appeal of a Pinal County ruling that he is running a dance hall. The ruling, made by a county hearing officer and upheld by the county Board of Supervisors, stuck Bell with a $700-a-day fine for every day someone dances at the open-air restaurant in violation of county code.

The appeal is the first time the case will hit the courts, rather than being heard by a county body.

"We are definitely at a very significant step in this case," Institute for Justice attorney Jennifer Perkins said. "We have been forced to have the courts step in."

According to paperwork filed with the court, the appeal asks for a jury trial and a fresh start to the legal proceedings and that the county hold off on fining Bell until he has the chance to exhaust his appeals.

"We are saying we want to start from scratch," Perkins said. "We want to treat it like a blank slate."

She said the case is a constitutional issue and the county could not address that issue in past proceedings. Perkins also said Bell was not allowed to have a "discovery" portion of the case.

"Discovery such as taking a deposition of the officials involved in the case was forbidden," she said. "Getting them under oath and talking to them about what they did and why they did it is important."

Perkins said holding off on enforcing the fines is important. The fines — which could equate to more than $200,000 annually — would be a strain on Bell and could cause his operations to close, she said.

"This case will affect all entrepreneurs in the future," Perkins said. "The right to earn an honest living in Arizona is now on trial."