"Strip Club Loses Legal Battle"

An update on the Boobie Rock controversy from KSAT-12:

SAN ANTONIO -- A district judge on Wednesday issued a temporary injunction against a businessman who was hoping to open a strip club on the city's Northwest Side.

District Judge Andy Mireles took about 30 minutes before deciding that Boobie Rock will not be allowed to open -- at least for the moment -- off Interstate 10 and Huebner Road.

A jury will ultimately decide whether the club will open when it goes to trial Jan. 7, 2008.

This doesn't sound good for Boobie Rock. Or for any other business trying to open in this city when a sitting councilperson takes a disliking to the nature of the business.

"Man In Dress Ties Self To Bench"

KSAT-12 reports on an incident.

And all I can say is, huh?

SAN ANTONIO -- Sheriff's deputies said a man wearing a woman's dress tied himself to a bench on Sunday morning to see if he could withstand the humiliation.

Deputies said they found the man in a West Bexar County neighborhood, 13200 Solar Crest, and asked him how he got tied to the bench.

The man told them he was conducting a, "scientific experiment in humiliation."

When they asked him if he was humiliated, the man said he wasn't.

But, he should probably repeat the experiment, just to be sure. After all, this is science.

A burning pile of mulch, revisited

Remember the Helotes mulch fire that burned for three months? Now, it's being used to stabilize Helotes Creek.

From Anton Caputo of the Express-News:

Crews of Henry Zumwalt, who owns what remains of the now-famous pile, have been spreading some of the remaining debris on the banks of Helotes Creek. This has caused several residents to worry that the material could wash into the creek and pollute the Edwards Aquifer below.

Bexar County and state environmental officials have visited the site and will meet Monday to discus the situation, Bexar County Engineer Renee Green said.

Crews were apparently using the debris to stabilize roughly 200 feet of eroded creek bank and planned to seed the area when done, said Henry Karnei of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. He said the debris smells smoky but that it looked like mostly dirt and rock.

One sticking point: Zumwalt's crews are conducting the work without the required permit to operate in a flood plain, said Green, who didn't know how she would address the situation.

“Usually the remedy of the flood plain violation is to put it back the way it was, but that may not be in the best interest of the creek,” she said.

Just like last time, no one in authority seems to know how to adequately deal with the situation.

More cat killings

These days, it doesn't seem safe to be a feline in San Antonio.

Both from News 4 WOAI:

"Cat Killings Plague San Antonio, 9 Confirmed Mutilated"

"Police Say Lackland Airman Threw Kitten Off Of Bridge"

And a picture is worth a thousand words (from the second story).

People who should probably think a little more

If you're going to go around smoking in a car with a toddler aboard, and it might appear that you are smoking drugs of some kind or another, it might be a good idea to not make a video of your actions.

And, it would probably be a better idea to not post that video online.

From KSAT-12:

SAN ANTONIO -- Seguin police on Tuesday said they have identified three males, a female and an infant shown in a disturbing video that aired on the Web site, MySpace.com.

The video, which has since been pulled from the Web site, showed the trio of young men possibly smoking drugs while driving around in a vehicle.

...

"We got three calls with names of people in the vehicle," said Lt. Mike Watts of the Seguin Police Department.

Watts said that detectives are getting ready to locate the individuals, who names are not being released, and bring them in to police headquarters for questioning.

...

One of the videos showed the males smoking what appeared to be a blunt and a cigarette, with the infant unbuckled in the back seat.

A second video showed the toddler dancing and using profanity after being prompted by a female off-camera. [emphasis added]

Oh, and don't forget to buckle up.

"Traffic Stop Leads to Murder Investigation"

Sometimes, you just never know what you will find when you pull a car over.

From WOAI-TV:

Police officers pulled over a speeding car on Loop 410 between Babcock and Callaghan and made a gruesome discovery inside. One of the passengers was dead.

It all started at a party at an apartment complex on the Northwest side. Police say there was a fight, and that's when 21 year old George Victor Estrada, Jr. was stabbed several times in the upper chest and back.

"What we're gathering from the witnesses is after the assault took place they put him beside the car and they tried to take him to the hospital and that's when they were subsequently pulled over," said Joe Rios. "When they were pulled over, they told the officer he was dead already."

One wonders, why were they speeding, then?

Strange animal deaths

Some recent deaths of animals have been strange. (All from KSAT-TV)

SeaWorld Killer Whale Dies

Volleyball Team Finds Deer Carcass On Bus

Residents Urged To Prevent Cat Killings

Killing over soup

A man has been found guilty of manslaughter, because he killed a man.

Over soup.

The Express-News has the story.

Jurors took about 45 minutes Thursday to declare Miguel Angel Ruiz guilty of manslaughter for shooting a man in an altercation stemming from criticism of his fish soup.

Ruiz had told police he grew tired of the mocking by Jesus Guerrero, 45, who also made much of Ruiz's 4-foot-6 stature.

Neighbors and friends referred to Ruiz, 44, as "Shorte," a Spanish adaptation of shorty, but Guerrero mockingly called him "Enano," or dwarf.

The harassment had been habitual for years, Ruiz said, and when it started up that night, April 28, 2006, after he'd brought over the soup to the home of a mutual acquaintance, he told Guerrero in vain to leave him alone.

So he went to his nearby house and retrieved a gun, came back and showed it to Guerrero. Guerrero, he said, told him he couldn't shoot him.

That's when Ruiz fired the gun.

Who holds back the electric car?

Nobody in San Antonio! At least, not anymore.


KSAT-12 reports on a new dealership in the Alamo City:

SAN ANTONIO -- The first automotive dealership that features all-electric vehicles will open in San Antonio on Thursday.

ZAP Electric Cars, located at Loop 1604 and Stoneoak Parkway, will offer the Zebra, a three-wheel four-door compact car. There is also a two-seat pickup available.

...

The vehicles, which start selling at $11,000, can reach a maximum of 40 mph and are not intended for highway use. No air conditioning is available. [emphasis added]

Here's a screen capture from the story. Ain't they cute?















P.S.: The post title is a reference to "Homer the Great".

Car crashes into school

A man suspected of being drunk drove his minivan into the side of a building at South San High School, and he may have injured his own son.

From KSAT-12:

Three students were hospitalized, two of whom were in critical condition on Wednesday night, authorities said. Their exact condition is unknown.

A fourth student was treated and released at the scene.

One of the injured is believed to be the driver's son.

"Prior to hitting the wall (he) actually struck one of the pedestrians in the parking lot," Sgt. Gabe Trevino said. "That pedestrian we believe was the actual son of the driver of the truck."

Wow.

"Restraining Order Delays Strip Club"

Councilwoman Diane Cibrian has succeeded in temporarily blocking the opening of Boobie Rock.

From KSAT-12:

SAN ANTONIO -- A temporary restraining order was filed Tuesday against Boobie Rock, halting the gentleman's club from opening as scheduled on the city's Northwest Side.

Property owners of EOS Acquisitions, a neighboring business to the proposed site for Boobie Rock, filed the restrictive order in light of a covenant for the property that states it cannot be used for adult entertainment.

...

District 8 Councilwoman Diane Cibrian, who began crusading against the nearly nude bar, said the deed restriction is key to halting Boobie Rock since city zoning still allows the business to operate in the area.

...

Cibrian said more strip clubs in the area could increase crime and added San Antonio police have been called to Sugar's strip club 135 times this year. Cibrian pointed out that the owners of Sugar's are trying to open Boobie Rock.

I wonder how many times police have been called out to the apartment complex nearby that she is trying to save from the really bad influence of the strip club?

Oh, and Cibrian herself is really starting to sound, well, strange. Check out Joe Pagliarulo to find out how she sounded when he tried to interview her about this issue on his show. He recaps:

Finally admitting what I was asking her on Friday, San Antonio city councilwoman Diane Cibrian has now gotten a restraining order against the owners of what would be the "Boobie Rock" strip club. Cibrian told me on my show Friday that the reason she was against the club couldn't be put "in a box." She continued to avoid my questions as to whether she had a problem with the name or the type of business. Today, she has admitted that's exactly what the problem is for her. A press release from the city councilwoman's office says:

"A judge has ordered that the defendants, Boobie Rock Partners, shall cease all improvements, changes, and/or alterations on the exterior of the premises. In addition, an amendment to the original covenants was found that restricts the use of this property to an establishment with any prurient context, meaning sexual in nature."

So, the answer to my question -- 'are you against it because of the name or the type of business?' -- is a resounding 'YES!' Too bad it took four full days to get that answer. [emphasis in original]

Also read his previous entry dated Saturday, October 13. Cibrian annoyed Joe Pags so much in an interview with her that he has sworn to oppose her when she runs for re-election:

In the course of the discussion the councilwoman said something to the effect of "well joe, if you support these kinds of businesses and if you want to support strip clubs coming into neighborhoods, that's up to you." That really set me off. What a rude, disgusting political trick to try to discredit me and my thoughts -- on my very radio show. That's when I told her what I thought of this move.

I let her know how rude I thought she was. I asked her how she dared to say such disgusting things especially after knowing what I said earlier about how I don't support these kinds of establishments but, I do support capitalism and their right to exist. I went on to tell her that if she decides to run for re-election, I'd be a loud voice opposing her.

I've received a ton of phone calls and many emails since -- the vast majority agreeing that the councilwoman's tactics were -- well -- tacky and rude. Even those dead set against this business coming to that part of the I-10 frontage were taken aback by the councilwoman's lack of decorum in our discussion.

Just par for the course for San Antonio politics -- enough strangeness to go around.

""Boobie Rock" Controversy: Councilwoman Asks State to Deny License"

I haven't touched on this story, yet (here's the latest from News 4 WOAI), but it seems to be growing legs. On the surface, it's a pretty standard story: a councilwoman opposes a new strip club in her district (although there's another huge one just a mile or so down the road), and, even though the owners seem to be following all codes and regulations, she's trying to strong-arm them into not opening up. That's not so strange in and of itself, but I thought the proposed name for the club is a bit interesting: Boobie Rock.

The owner says the name comes from a place in the U.S. Virgin Islands that, I assume, is named after this booby, since the name of the island is actually Booby Rock, not Boobie Rock. And, looking at this list, it appears to be a pretty common name in the Caribbean. There are simlarly-named places in the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, as well as Turks and Caicos.

So, when councilwoman Diane Cibrian says "We will not be fooled by the owner-operator, when he tells us that the Boobie Rock is an island in the virgin islands," apparently she already has. Either that, or she has no appreciation for double entendre.

"Fraud Charge Ousts Peanut Princess"

Down in Floresville, a criminal bent has dashed the hopes of a Peanut Princess.

KSAT-12 has the story.

FLORESVILLE -- A teen girl nominated to be the next peanut queen of a Floresville festival has been denied her crown due to a charge of fraud.

Authorities charged Sarah Elizabeth Reed, 17, with credit card [fraud] in early September after they said she spent more than $20,000 on one of her employer's credit cards.

Her case is scheduled to go before a jury in November.

Reed has been expelled from Floresville High School, which disqualified her from being a member of the festival's royal court.

But, there are three other princesses. The coronation will still be held.

Car crashes into house, business

It's been a while since this has happened, but, this being San Antonio, it was bound to happen soon.

From KSAT-12:

SAN ANTONIO -- A suspected drunken driver who was driving a company vehicle crashed into two buildings early Tuesday on the city's South Side.

Police said that a man in his 20s was speeding through some railroad tracks when he lost control of a pickup truck at 2:30 a.m. at South Presa and Panama.

The vehicle crashed through a back yard fence and took out part of a dining room at a home, police said.

No one in the home was injured, police said.

The vehicle then crashed through two more fences across the street and slammed into a silk screen printing business, police said. [emphases added]

Wow. He must have been going pretty fast.

Coming ...

... soon.

















Just what's coming, though, I'm not sure.

Coyote attacks

Hollywood Park has gotten rid of its attack owl, and now the town has coyotes to worry about.

From the North Central News:

Though an owl in Hollywood Park has been neutralized and is no longer a menace to pedestrians and joggers, a pair of adolescent coyotes has filled the owl’s void to become the newest neighborhood nuisance.

At 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 26, Hollywood Park Police Lt. J. Quintero received a call from Candy Karlson; a resident in The Enclave who let her 5-pound Maltese outside while she prepared her dog’s breakfast, then heard her dog’s cries just seconds later.

“She [the dog] was screaming in the front yard,” Karlson said. “I could see two coyotes in the front yard, and they had dropped her. Then when they saw me, they took off running.”

Karlson’s 8-year-old dog underwent 48 hours of emergency surgery to repair two dislocated scapulas, broken ribs and a punctured lung. At press time, Karlson said it looked like her pet would live, but her veterinarian said the dog may not ever regain control of her hind legs.

At 7 a.m., shortly after Karlson saw the destructive duo leave her home, a Hollywood Park police officer saw the two trotting down Fleetwood Street. One of the coyotes had a cat in its mouth.

“They looked like young coyotes,” Quintero said, “and they were playing with the cat, not really eating it.”

Actually, coyotes aren't that strange along the outskirts of San Antonio. There have been several times when I've seen them scurrying along the roads at night. What I do find a bit odd is that someone spent 48 hours doing surgery on a five-pound dog! That's two whole days of surgery! I don't really want to sound insensitive, but are there even human procedures that take that long?

That's strange.

"Strange in 78250: Hood ornament?"

Dave at Silver Creek 78250 captures a creative -- but obviously quick -- automobile modification. It's for those times when opening the hood would take too much time.

"Computer Nerdz issues warning to customers"

Beware of people posing as computer nerds, especially if they don't spell it with a Z.

From KENS-5:

"I've been scammed," Bernadette Moeller said. "This guy has my computer, he has my check; he has all the information in my computer."

Last month, Moeller called information for a phone number to Computer Nerdz on Blanco Road.

The number she called turned out not to be for the business she wanted, but to a guy who investigators say is stealing computers.

Moeller managed to trace the phone number to a residence on the city's Northeast Side. The woman at the door claims to know nothing about Computer Nerds with an S.

"We're shocked and surprised," said Lee Robin with Computer Nerdz.

...

"We are very disappointed that it has been allowed to continue," Robin said. "We've spoken with our lawyers and filed some legal action, and he's ignored that and continued to go out and take advantage of the public."

Don't hand your computer over to any old nerd. Make him show you his Z.