12/1/2005
Media Contact:
Justin Ohlemiller, [317] 327-6709 |
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Mayor: City will continue push to shut down illegal adult businesses
Adult shop located near child daycare closes; city takes further action against owner
INDIANAPOLIS - Under pressure from the city code inspectors and residents, an illegal adult business located a few hundred feet from a child daycare has shut its doors, Mayor Bart Peterson announced today.
The Mayor joined neighborhood leaders, daycare staff and Indianapolis Police Chief Michael Spears to discuss the closure of The Reformatory, an illegal sex shop located in the historic Chatham Arch neighborhood across the street from a youth daycare. The Reformatory sold various adult items related to masochism and erotic torture and advertised weekly sessions onsite teaching domination and masochistic practices.
"Illegal, adult businesses like the Reformatory have no place in neighborhoods, especially in and around schools, daycare centers, parks and other locations where our children play and learn," said Mayor Peterson. "The city will continue to work with the community and take action against those adult businesses that refuse to comply with the law and threaten the quality of life in our neighborhoods."
To that end, the Mayor also announced the city has filed suit against the owner of the Reformatory for operating an illegal sex business out of her Northside house on the 4100 block of Central Ave.
The case was initiated after an undercover Indianapolis Police Department investigation found that the owner was running a business in her basement where clients were paying to be take part in sexual activities, including sex-related torture. The suit calls for the owner to cease operating the illegal sex business from her home and pay a fine of up to $2,500.
Neighborhoods have long expressed concerns about the negative impacts adult entertainment establishments have on nearby residences and businesses. Studies have shown that adult entertainment businesses often attract criminal activity - especially sex related crimes.
The Reformatory is one of eight illegal adult establishments to close since 2002 under intense city scrutiny. In October, the city won another major victory when a court ordered the closure of Reel One, an illegal sex club on the city’s Westside. In 2002 and 2003 the city helped shut down six lingerie shops, which were actually operating as illegal adult entertainment businesses.
The Mayor also led the charge with the help of the City-County Council to amend local laws to prohibit a pornography shop from locating Downtown and limit the hours of adult bookstores and set other restrictions on their operation.
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