An inspector for the Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) says he will cite the Eagle, a gay bar on the west side of Capitol Hill, for allowing “lewd conduct” at the bar last month. On Saturday, October 23, agents conducting an inspection reportedly saw footage from a Guys Gone Wild video, which enforcement officer Lorn Richey said in an email to the bar would result in an “administrative violation” next week.

But Eagle owner Keith Christensen says he was trying to comply with rules from liquor enforcement officers. His customers routinely ask bartenders to show hardcore porn, as was common practice at gay bars circa 2005, which later led to a crackdown. Since then, Christensen says state agents have told him he may show nude images, but not penetration or masturbation. So instead of the hardcore they want, customers get show still slideshows of nude men and softcore videos like Guys Gone Wild.

“We haven’t been showing porn,” Christensen says. “I don’t want that kind of attention. I don’t need that kind of hassle.” Unluckily for him, agents happened to walk in on a scene that contained masturbation. Christensen, who was not there at the time, says, “At the very end [of the video], they have a guy jacking off. They didn’t used to put that on their videos.” None of the previous videos from the franchise shown at the Eagle featured masturbation, Christensen says, so employees were just as surprised as liquor agents to see the footage.

Guys Gone Wild is unquestionably softcore—out of 26 videos for sale on their site (NSFW), only one makes so much as an allusion to masturbation.

Christensen’s employees told him the agents joked they had never even heard of Guys Gone Wild, just Girls Gone Wild. He retorts, “For them to come in and ridicule the behavior of gay men is completely ridiculous. I feel like this is an insult. They can do whatever they want, nobody is policing them.”

But the instructions from liquor agents to allow naked stills appear to directly contradict state law that prohibits liquor licensees from displaying pictures or videos depicting “pornography, or a sexual act prohibited by law.” It seems that the law is so draconian that state agents have half-invited him to violate it.

Under vague state rules, agents have authority to enforce violations for anything from the aforementioned images of “pornography, or a sexual act” to employees baring their butt cracks.

Susan Reams, spokeswoman for the WSLCB, likes this degree of discretion. She says, “It’s a good thing. All situations are not just cut and dry.” Asked a follow-up question about whether discretion benefits law enforcement or licensees, she did not wish to respond but did say, “An officer is going to be trained to make the best and fairest decision possible in the situation. You’re dealing with alcohol, a controlled substance.”

To get a sense of how common this enforcement is (and which sort of bars are being cited), The Stranger has filed a records request for all lewd-conduct violations issued by the WSLCB within the last year. Reams wasn’t familiar with details of the case at the Eagle and the inspector was off work today and could not be reached for comment.

More after the jump.

This incident is not the first time the Eagle and other gay bars have come under fire from law enforcement. We reported on an SPD anti-porn crackdown in 2008; the Eagle and Capitol Hill’s R Place were both targeted. The Eagle was last and most infamously cited by the WSLCB for a dick-showing incident in September 2008 that took until this year to resolve (PDF), during which time Dan Savage launched a photo campaign against dicks in bars.

To get a sense of how broad the discretion is, take a look at some more aspects of the relevant state code. According to the first section, licensees “may not allow, permit, or encourage employees” to expose all sorts of private parts, including the “cleft of the buttocks.” Next time you are in a bar and the owner does not tell the barback with his butt crack showing to cover it up, you should call the WSLCB, they just broke the law.

According to the second section, licensees “may not allow, permit, or encourage any person… on the licensed premises” to touch, caress, or fondle the “breast, buttocks, anus or genitals.” Next time you are in a bar and the owner does not stop a guy from fondling his girlfriend’s ass, call the WSLCB, they just broke the law.

And according to the third section, licensees may not encourage anyone on the premises to “Wear or use any device or covering that is exposed to view which simulates the breast, genitals, anus, pubic hair, or any portion thereof.” So next time someone draw boobs on their shirt with a sharpie and the bar owner does not stop them, call the WSLCB, they just broke the law.

Christensen is frustrated. Based on what his employees told him, he expected a warning, not a full violation, which can result in a $500 fine or a five-day suspension of the liquor license. During the recession, business has declined by 80 percent and is only slowly recovering. He says, “I am barely keeping this thing afloat… it’s not a business that shows profit. I’m just trying to keep people employed until the economy turns around.”

43 replies on “Liquor Inspectors Issue Violation to Gay Bar for Showing “Guys Gone Wild” Video”

  3. So let’s see. The state cuts healthcare and education but pays for this kind of absolute BULLSHIT?!? No fucking wonder Tim Eyman succeeds!
    Cut these motherfuckers!

  5. Now this is something that presumably Intern & I can find common ground on.

    We have zoning that can dictate where a bar can be. Some of it is really stupid, like the case of the bar that is trying to open in Hillman City, but is being held up because of some storefront church (a tax-exempt entity with dubious social benefit that occupies what should be commercial space in a neighborhood that desparately needs it) being within a certain amount of feet from the proposed bar.

    We have country health inspectors who make sure a food & beverage establishment is abiding by the health code rules (right, intern? 😉

    We have laws regarding who can be served (adults who aren’t obviously drunk)

    We have police who can enforce the law regarding those bars.

    Then we have the WSLCB. An agency with a long history of targeting gay and minority owned bars for harrassment. The SPD bribery scandal of the 1970’s would not have been possible without the (presumably) passive participation of the WSLCB.

    This part of the agency should be eliminated, along with the stupid morality rules. An adult walking into a gay bar knows what he/she is getting into – or will know in very short time.

    And while we’re at it, let’s get rid of the incredibly stupid rule about strippers and booze. If a person wants to have a drink while another person takes their clothes off, and it’s in a location that doesn’t allow minors, why do we care?

    The money wasted on redundant selective enforcement could be used for much better purposes. It’s time that this puritanical relic be eliminated.

  8. @5 Your right.

    I walk into a gay bar as an over 21 adult who has been looking at porn for years and the eagle is there for sex. This is the morality police at work.

  10. Amen Catalina. People walking into the eagle know what to expect, and even if there’s hardcore porn on the t.v. what exactly is the harm? This is America and you’re in the eagle, if you don’t want to see something softcore maybe walk back out the door and go to victrola.

    The actions of the lcb are discriminatory and shameful in a “progressive” city like Seattle. Can the inspectors seriously argue that this, and not endemic violence and ceaseless “grinding,” (in the parlence of our times) going down in belltown is worth their time? They ought to be ashamed for singling out a group they know the general public won’t jump to defend.

  11. I think you people are forgetting the good people like my sainted grandmother, who can’t so much as set foot in the Eagle for a nice luncheon without being assaulted by pornographic images everywhere. She says that even her Monte Cristo had a bulging erection.

    Why do you people hate my grandmother so?

  13. It would be splendid to organize a calling campaign. I would love to give them an earful about their odious art gallery crackdown also. I mean how exactly do you live with yourself when you are a vice cop? Cretins.

  14. It’s hard to call it discriminatory unless straight bars that show porn aren’t being busted. Not even the skankiest of straight meat markets shows porn.

  16. A few months ago I was at a gay bar in San Francisco that was showing footage of collegiate wrestling matches, which was a way sexier soft-porn backdrop than any “Guys Gone Wild” video.

    I don’t like porn on the teevee in bars because it’s, um, kind of distracting when you’re trying to have a conversation with someone (but on the other hand it’s useful as a straight knucklehead repellent).

  20. Fnarf Dear, is our fault your dear Grandmother can’t tell the difference between The Eagle and The Sunset Club? Granted, they’re fairly close to each other, and a lot of the waiters and Valet boys hang out at The Eagle during their off hours, but really – she should be able to tell the difference.

    And, for the record, in many circles, The Eagle is a perfectly acceptable Tea Room. Grandmama may just be what they call an outlier.

  21. Christensen’s employees told him the agents joked they had never even heard of Guys Gone Wild, just Girls Gone Wild

    Uh yea right. Hey, what’s this? Guys Gone Wild…hey, Sarge, look at this…no, I’ve never seen this before…nope, not me…I’ve only seen “Girls Gone Wild”….tits…that’s what I like….I’ll just be taking this in for evidence….no, I’ll drive alone….be back after lunch….

  22. This is fucking bullshit. Look at the titty bars with completely naked, shaved women slobbering over drunken pigs who think they’re “real men.” Sounds like the booze “inspectors” had better pull their heads out of their assholes.

  23. And just exactly where might those titty bars be, jerkoff? The ones with the “shaved” women and “drunken pigs.” Or maybe you’re the one with your head up your ass.

  24. Charles, what I think 5280 is trying to say is that there is no such thing as a “titty bar with completely naked, shaved women slobbering over drunken pigs who think they’re real men” in Washington state.

    Boobies (not to mention other ladies parts, shaved or otherwise) and liquor simply Do Not Mix here in Washington state. Male nipples are sort of OK, but that’s about it.

  29. @3 — And don’t forget, some people voted against 1100 because they thought it would be better for enforcement. This kind of enforcement, I guess.

    @Catalina — “An adult walking into a gay bar knows what he/she is getting into – or will know in very short time.” Ding ding ding! No one was being hurt in this bar. No one was there against their will. Leave innocent people alone seems like such a simple rule.

    @12 — Really, taking action is a great idea. Just Google WSLCB. They’ve got a contacts page, you can even get the info for this officer. I don’t want to publish the details without editorial approval. Maybe we can stop the penalty at least.

    @19 — At least now you can look out for public safety!

    @22 — Heh.

  30. Wow, I thought the state was trying to save money. But I guess it is important to look out for the morals of gay men who have obviously never seen porn before.

  31. Just because the officer said he had never heard of the video, that does not constitute “ridiculing the behavior of gay men.” This is not a gay rights issue, and it’s not fair for you (Christensen) to paint the officer that way. The bar has certain responsibilities that come with the right to serve alcohol. You got busted for breaking the law, and it’s not fair for you to try to play the “gay card” and possibly hurt the reputation of a person who was enforcing a law that we all agree should be enforced. Alcohol and porn don’t mix in a public setting.

  32. “Christensen’s employees told him the agents joked they had never even heard of Guys Gone Wild, just Girls Gone Wild. He retorts, “For them to come in and ridicule the behavior of gay men is completely ridiculous. I feel like this is an insult.”

    Sorry, but just how are these poor gay men being insulted here? What am I missing? Or is this just another case of manufactured outrage?

  33. To all of you people who are bashing the wslcb as the “morality police,” I have a question for you. Do you know any gay men who have been the victim of a sexual assault? Thought so. This is why the law exists.

  34. Man, if only we could have eliminated the power of this ‘enforcement agency’ (morals police) with some kind of referendum offered to the people that would break the state monopoly on liquor and it’s ability to allow individuals to interpret the law without a court giving them de facto power over anyone in business that deals with alcohol..

    Of wait we did but you stupid fucks voted it down.

    I used to work at (undisclosed major gay bar) and these LCB pricks would come in WITH FUCKING DATES. (hetero) and then proceed to party. For free. Have a problem with that? How about a random citation I just pulled out of my ass?

    Way to go Washington – way to keep us in a fucking fascist liquor state.

  38. This is so appaling! We have got to get liguor out of the control of the state! Although I do believe they are targeting “gay bars” they are also targeting any “gay” or “queer” event at ANY bar. There have been issues at chop suey, the war room (rest in piece) and baltic room to name a few. They are so scared to lose control and ultimetly lose “revenue” that liquor brings the state that they are doing whatever they can to maintain this control! Stand up Seattle and say NO!

  39. Yes Nark,
    We all agree. Well ok, you don’t but, I guess by we I meant people with a social conscience. I don’t see your grassroots campaign to change the law to allow porn in bars getting anywhere, do you? Why? it’s a bad idea for everyone.

  40. Pssst. You called me an asswhip, ha! I thought that was kinda funny, but then said you wanted to whip my ass in a grocery store? which is it? You are very confusing/confused.

  42. @41-43 get over it old farts. if you don’t like strippers, then don’t go into strip joints.

    **IF** we could drink in strip bars (like many other places in the world), then why not show porn in bars?

    these laws are archaic + being enforced for boring people who can’t stand seeing something they don’t like made available for others.

    **IF** porn was ever allowed in bars, don’t worry- your Applebee’s won’t be affected

    …. AND bands can’t even drink on stage?

    we’re still living in the age of Puritanical Morality.

    this will change, it’s just a matter of when + how

    hey fifty-two-eighty, way to be a homophobic, throw-them-all-into-one-bucket blinded bigot

  43. Hey RT–you’re the only person here siding with the morality police. Who are these other people “with a social conscience” who all agree with you? They’re not posting here, unless you count that homophobic asshat, fifty-two-eighty.

    What exactly is your point anyway. Is there going to be an epidemic of male-on-male rape if the Eagle shows porn? Um, ok.

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