Hermosa Beach tattoo lawsuit tattooed

Hany Fangary
Hany Fangary

A judge on Tuesday dismissed the bulk of a lawsuit by City Council candidate Hany Fangary and other residents calling for stricter regulations on tattoo parlors, a number of which have sprouted in Hermosa since an appeals court overturned a citywide ban on the businesses.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision because now the city enjoys certainty,” said City Attorney Michael Jenkins. “Tattoo studios are limited to those that comply with the standards adopted by the City Council.”

Superior Court Judge James Chalfant ruled that the lawsuit was filed too late to meet legal deadlines to challenge the city ordinance regulating tattoo parlors.

The lawsuit also failed in a challenge to Easy Reader’s status as the officially recognized newspaper for the city’s legal notices, including those about the tattoo ordinance. In a footnote to the written ruling, the judge called “comical and pathetic” the plaintiffs’ contention that Easy Reader is not “a newspaper of general circulation.”

Fangary said residents pressing the lawsuit have not decided whether to continue pursuing portions that were not struck down by the judge, which claim negligence, fraud and intentional misrepresentation by city officials.

Fangary, listed on the Superior Court website as one of two attorneys representing the plaintiffs, addressed the lawsuit at a recent forum for council candidates hosted by Leadership Hermosa Beach.

Asked by moderator Sandi Pfister whether any problems have been associated with the tattoo parlors, Fangary said the City Council missed opportunities to more tightly control the parlors.

He said the city “must comply” with a state appeals court ruling that tattoo parlors are protected by the First Amendment, but he said the City Council could have imposed greater restrictions on their operations.

When the appeals court ruled against the city, Fangary said, the council should have sent the matter to the Planning Commission to help determine the parlors’ closing times and how close to homes they may be located. He pointed out that under existing regulations, Hermosa could have as many as seven tattoo parlors.

Incumbent candidate Michael DiVirgilio said there have been no significant issues with the parlors, except for one of them having a live band and a caterer, both without a permit, at its grand opening.

Candidate Steve Powers said he did not know “why the residents think they could be smarter” than the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled last year that tattoo parlors practice a form of expression protected by the First Amendment.

Powers said a parlor on Pacific Coast Highway is “acceptable” and another onHermosa Avenue, near Fangary’s home, was opened after an expensive remodel of its building and is “nothing to be ashamed of.”

Incumbent candidate Peter Tucker said he checked with the police chief and found that the tattoo parlors have not caused problems.

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