A Bit Much For Exotic Dancers

In Pomona, California, police are visiting exotic dancer's homes to verify if the address provided to the club is the address in which they reside. The operators of the clubs are perplexed at why police and city officials are giving their employees and entertainers so much attention.

Claims being made say that police are not only intimidating the dancers but are violating their First Amendment rights and invading their right to privacy under the state Constitution. It's a form of intimidationand as a result dancers are leaving to work in other cities.

Pomona regulations require managers, doormen, ticket takers, waitresses and other employees as well as dancers to have permits. As part of the process, workers must fill out applications, be fingerprinted, photographed and undergo background checks, said Police Chief James Lewis. Background investigations include checking for any type of criminal history. An investigator then goes to the dancers' homes to make sure they live at the addresses they list on the application.

It is being said that the visits only serve to embarrass and ostracize dancers in front of their families, neighbors and even employers who at times aren't aware of the second jobs the women have or are seeking. Many of them have day jobs and don't want their employers to know they dance at night for a little extra money.

It seems that having a drivers license address match the application should be enough and the antagonistic way that the police are conducting themselves feels like the old scenario in which a child tauntingly points a finger in the face of a sibling saying "I'm not touching you." No, but they are sure making an ass of themselves.