Santa Ana : Firm Donates $25,000 in Fight to Close Theater

An anonymous Orange County corporation has donated $25,000 to help defray the city’s costs in their attempts to shut down an adult movie theater.

According to City Atty. Edward Cooper, the city has been battling for about a decade to close the Mitchell Bros. Theatre at 1565 West 17th St., which the city contends shows pornographic movies.

Cooper said the donating firm would not be identified unless the city succeeds in its litigation. Santa Ana hasn’t received any other donations for the shutdown effort, he said, adding that total legal costs now exceed $200,000.

The donation will go toward paying the fees of attorney James Clancy, who is under contract to the city specifically for the case. Clancy said he wasn’t surprised by the donation and noted that a resident of Fresno had recently offered that city $15,000 for legal costs in a similar case.

He said the city’s lawsuit seeking closure of the theater as a public nuisance would come before an Orange County Superior Court judge Sept. 5. In 1977, Santa Ana’s battle against the theater made its way to the state Supreme Court, which ruled that 11 films shown there were pornographic.

Mitchell attorney Tom Steele wasn’t available for comment. However, Vince Stanich, general manager for the four-theater chain, disputed the allegation that the theater is a public nuisance. “We have consenting adult laws and the First and Fourth Amendments on our side,” he said.