Santa Ana : Judges Face 100 Hours of Viewing 68 Films

A deal that could have eliminated the need for two judges to view about 100 hours of allegedly obscene films fell apart Tuesday as the City of Santa Ana’s long battle to close an adult theater moved closer to trial.

Superior Court Judge Harmon G. Scoville ordered the Mitchell Bros. theater case to be assigned to another judge who will screen the 68 films that city lawyers contend are a “public nuisance.”

“I sure wish you’d told me that last week,” Scoville told an attorney for the city who announced he would not accept Mitchell Bros.’s offer not to show the disputed films in its 17th Street theater.

Such an agreement would have satisfied the court in the city’s request for a preliminary injunction to close the theater. Now, one judge will have to view the films in order to rule on the injunction request, then a second judge must also view the films before a final order can be made. A single viewing will take an estimated 25 days of court time.

Last week, at Scoville’s insistence, both sides agreed to attempt to find a compromise. When the city’s attorney, James J. Clancy, said an agreement could not be reached, Scoville ordered the case assigned to another judge for the viewing.

“I don’t have time for that,” Scoville said.

In related matters, Scoville denied motions that the case be heard outside of Orange County and ordered all 18 individual cases the city has filed against Mitchell Bros. consolidated into one action.