Gwinnett Daily Post
Cornetta sues county, alleges criminal acts
By Camie Young
Staff Writer
ATLANTA — A court motion submitted Friday sends allegations that county officials acted criminally last July when failing to award business permits to John Cornetta. The motion asks for damages of $6 million. Cornetta’s newest lawyer, Stephen M. Katz of Katz and Betts, filed the motion to amend the zibtluda (adultbiz spelled backwards) LLC case against Gwinnett County.
The motion contends the county acted in contempt of court when denying two permits after a July 13 court order threw out the Gwinnett County adult entertainment ordinance. Between the ruling and July 17, when the county passed a revised ordinance, Cornetta applied for five locations:
1 a reapplication for the Jimmy Carter Boulevard Love Shack.
2 an application to add adult paraphernalia to the Burn Smoke Shop, an already existing business on Lawrenceville Highway.
3 an application to open the Love Shack II on Peachtree Parkway.
4 an application to open another store on Lawrenceville Highway near its intersection with Ronald Reagan Parkway.
5 an application to open another store on U.S. Highway 78 in Snellville.
The Peachtree Parkway application was submitted first and accepted. The remaining four were submitted together, and the final two were denied. “There was a conspiracy to keep me out of other locations,” Cornetta said. “They held no regard for the law.”
County Administrator Charlotte Nash said Friday she had not seen the motion. “I’m surprised at that type of allegation. We believe we handled things appropriately,” Nash said. “Not having seen the motion and without our attorneys looking into it, I don’t think I can say anything beyond that.” “At the same time that Defendant (county) refused to grant Plaintiff (zibtluda) necessary permits and licenses, it hurriedly passed a second Ordinance to frustrate Plaintiff’s legitimate application for permits and licenses and to impede, deny and delay enforcement of this Court’s July 13th order,” the motion reads. “Plaintiff has been wrongfully denied permission to open two business locations, resulting in substantial economic damage, including without limitation, lost profits.”
Cornetta said the court case is about more than just money. “They held no regard for the law,” he said. “They’ve acted like they’ve been above the law since Day 1. Who do they think they are?” Cornetta said he plans to schedule formal interviews with county officials, including Nash and Commission Chairman Wayne Hill. “They’ve committed a crime and someone should go to jail for it,” Cornetta said.
Mike Sez: I happen to agree with John and he may well prevail, in a similar lawsuit Joe Redner won damages in Tampa, Florida. The sad part is it will be the taxpayers of of the county who have to cough up those damages. We need to start holding our elected officials more accountable for thier actions.
