New Idaho liquor laws prompts lawsuit from bar owners

Bar owners in southwest Idaho say the state owes them a reimbursement now that lawmakers have tweaked rules surrounding serving alcohol at explicit live performances.

Shannon Fairchild and Levi Burden, owners of The Intersection in New Meadows, sued the Idaho State Police earlier this year hoping to recoup the fines they paid for violating the state’s strict liquor laws.

In 2015, state police fined Fairchild and Burden for serving alcohol during a burlesque show. The owners say the state’s laws have since changed and they deserve assurance they won’t be punished again for holding a similar performance in the future.

Idaho law currently bans serving alcohol during nude or sexual explicit live performances. However, that law was amended this year to exempt certain businesses that do not primarily derive its business from explicit live adult entertainment.