Smoking Ban Information
We are planning to fight this legislation as long as we can financially afford to. If you are interested in supporting our cause, we are accepting donations.
You can make a check out to:
Below is a little background:
What is this new law?
The state of North Carolina passed a law, back in July 2009, that bans smoking in all "Public" bars and restaurants as of Jan 2nd 2010. However they did have a few exclusions to this law, one of which excludes "Private Clubs".
Why should we care?
This stand that we are taking is about more than smoking. It is about legislation that goes way beyond the scope of fairness. When we applied for an ABC permit with the State of
How is this fair? When they want to impose restrictions on Private Clubs, we are one, but when they exclude Private Clubs from a restriction, we are not one.
On top of that, they claim the purpose of this law is to protect the employees from the danger of second-hand smoke. Why are the employees of non-profit organizations not entitled to the same protection under the law?
What is our legal defense?
Journal:
August 2009
Legally changed our name to Gate City Billiards Country Club, LLC
March 2010
Received two fines from the Health Department of $200 each.
Filed an appeal with the Health Department for the 1st fine on the basis of our being a Country Club and that Country Clubs are exempt from this law.
Lost the hearing but committed to appeal that decision in the District Courts.
April 2010
Met with Bob Bentson of Bentson & Brown. He expressed interest in taking the case at his usual fee. He feels we have a good case both on the ground of being a Country Club and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Ammendment
Issued letter to the Owners of all Private Clubs in large NC counties
Filed an appeal with the Health Department for the 2nd fine this time based on the law's constitutionality. Our claim is that it violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
Met with the Head of the Guilford County Libritarian Party. He created a petition that he is distributing in area bars and restaurants along with collection boxes to help fund the fight.
May 2010
Our 2nd hearing is scheduled for May 5th at 6:30pm at the Guilford County Health Department. Come show your support (1203 Maple Street, Greensboro)
We appealed our 2nd fine in front of the Guilford Count Health Department on May 5th arguing that the law is unconstitutional based on the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. We lost the appeal but fully plan to challenge their decision in the District Courts.
Met with Seth Cohen and David James of the law firm Smith, James, Rowlett & Cohen, LLP.. We have decided to hire them to pursue this case in the courts. While this will be an expensive battle, it is one that we feel must be fought.
Johnnie Michaels, the owner of 3 Thirty 3 Sports Bar in Alamance County has offered to help fund this fight. He will be providing one half of the cost of the Attorney fees. Thank you Johnnie.
June 2010
The date has been set for the District Court Appeal. It will be July 14th at 2:00 in courtroom 3A of the High Point District Court (505 East Green Dr). The judge will be Susan Bray. Come support us.
July 2010
Due to unforseen circumstances, the hearring has been temporarily delayed. At this point we don't know the new date or location.
The new date has been set for the District Court Appeal. It will be July 23rd at 2:00 in courtroom 3A of the High Point District Court (505 East Green Dr). The judge will be Jan Samet. Come support us.
Unfortunately Judge Samet did not rule in our favor. However, we are taking this to the Appellate courts. While we proceed, we will continue to allow smoking in our facility.
August 2010
Our Attorney has filed the appeal and we are awaiting a court date.
January 2011
The NC Court of Appeals has agreed to hear oral arguement. The court date has been set for Tuesday February 8th at 9:30am in Raleigh. Anyone interested in attending the address is:
1 West Morgan St
Raleigh, NC 27601
February 2011
The case was heard by the NC Court of Appeals and we are now waiting for their decision. If 2 or more Judges rule in our favor, we win. If 1 rules in our favor we are permitted an automatic appeal to the NC Supreme Court. If they all rule against us, then we would have to petition the court to have the case heard.
April 2011
We presented our position in front of a panel of State Senators and Assembly Persons during their Regulatory Reform Listening Tour. We presented in both Flat Rock and then again in Raleigh. Frank Tullos (owner of two Breaktime Billiards in Winston-Salem) joined us in the Raleigh meeting to help present our case.
July 2011
Unfortunately we lost our case in the NC Court of Appeals. However, we have decided to bring our case to the NC Supreme Court. We must submitt a "petition" to the court, and then the Justices will decide if they choose to hear the case. This fight continues to be suppored by Johnnie Michaels, the owner of the 3 Thirty 3 Sports Bar in Burlington. And now Doug Adkins, the owner of the Copa Rocka in Greensboro has joined in the fight.
November 2011
The NC Supreme Court decided not to hear the case. Now our only option is the US Supreme Court. We have not yet decided if we will attempt to bring it forward.
December 2011
We have decided not to petition the US Supreme Court. We thank everyone for your support, and would appreciate your continued business support as we work our way through this. Hopefully, we can survive.
January 2012
We have had to go completely non-smoking. We will continue to try to get the law changed, but for now, we can no longer afford the fines. I would like to thank everyone for your support.