SATURDAY, APRIL 26, 2003
Volume 2, Issue 141
FR
EE
Santa Monica Daily Press A newspaper with issues
L O T T O
Pavilions to stand trial for overcharging
FANTASY 5 2, 5, 20, 22, 24 DAILY 3
‘Club’ members were cheated, city says in lawsuit
Afternoon picks: 6, 1, 5 Evening picks: 6, 5, 5
DAILY DERBY 1st Place: 09, Winning Spirit 2nd Place: 10, Solid Gold 3rd Place: 02, Lucky Star Race time: 1:48.38
NEWS OF THE WEIRD by Chuck Shepard
Michael J. Corbett and his wife, Sharon, were arrested in Beckley, W.Va., in March and charged with peddling copies of 53 different obscene videos on the Internet. The Corbetts’ specialty: nude women answering nature’s call. According to Justice Department and Postal Service investigators, customers bought 100 or more tapes a week (such as “Outdoor Pooping Paradise” or tapes using the Corbetts’ inventive “bowl cam”) at around $50 each.
QUOTE OF THE DAY “My brain is my second favorite organ.” — Woody Allen
INDEX Horoscopes Say yes, Leo! . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Local Henna ban remains . . . . . .3
Opinion Humor is not sexy . . . . . . .4
State CEOs faired well in 2002 . .6
National Goldfish in sling . . . . . . . .12
Classifieds $3.50 a day . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Calendar Movie listings . . . . . . . . . . .11
BY JOHN WOOD Daily Press Staff Writer
After months of judicial back-and-forth, Santa Monica’s case against Pavilions on Montana Avenue is going to trial. The city is suing the Santa Monica grocery store for allegedly charging customers more at checkout than the prices advertised on aisleway tags, according to court documents. Lawyers for Pavilions, which is owned by the Vons Company, argued for a dismissal of the lawsuit Friday, pointing to a handful of similar cases statewide that have been found in the company’s favor. But Superior Court Judge Lawrence J. Mira
“When you go to the grocery store, you assume you’ll be charged for what (the price tags show).” - EDA SUH Deputy District Attorney
denied the request. He said the facts in the current case are different and scheduled the suit for a Malibu jury trial beginning Monday. Charges were filed against Pavilions following an October 2001 inspection by the L.A. County Department of Weights and Measures. The undercover investigation showed that
the store charged full price for items that advertised discounts for “club card” carriers. Customers buying Hungry Jack Waffles, Taglio Primo Brie cheese and four other items were overcharged by as much as $2.90, inspectors said. Lawyers for the grocery store admit that discount tags are sometimes left up after offers expire, but said the price tags have dates clearly printed on them. More than 10,000 special offers are made at Pavilions each week, lawyers said. “We have human beings doing these,” said attorney Fred Dibernardo, adding that expired tags are usually pulled down immediately but sometimes stay up for as long as three days. The Vons Company recently won a jury trial in Ventura concerning similar charges. And in See TRIAL, page 5
Sales tax revenue down but news not all bad
BY JOHN WOOD Daily Press Staff Writer
Overall, 2002 sales tax revenue for Santa Monica was less than the year before, though it’s not as bad as it sounds. Consumers in Santa Monica spent more than $2.2 billion last year. That translates to $22 million — or one percent of total sales — in sales tax revenue for the cashstrapped city, said Mark Richter,
head of the city’s department of resource management. While sales tax revenue in the city as a whole dropped 2 percent compared with 2001, bright spots did emerge. Sales tax revenue from stores on the Third Street Promenade jumped 2.3 percent — and a whopping 17.5 percent in the fourth quarter alone. The jump clearly indicated a
Divorce-by-mail is quick, easy and cheap
BY JOHN K. WILEY Associated Press Writer
DAVENPORT, Wash. — Monday is Divorce Day in the Lincoln County Courthouse. In the morning, Assistant County Clerk Mary Gamble brings bins and mailbags from the Post Office full of new filings for dissolution of marriage. In his office one floor up, Superior Court Judge Philip Borst gets writer’s cramp signing final decrees in marathons that can last six hours or more. Welcome to the divorce capital of Washington, the only county in the state where marriages can be dissolved by mail without a court appearance. Paralegals and attorneys from
GOT CHILD SUPPORT PROBLEMS? Call BRAD GRIST, Esq. today. Pisarra & Grist 310 / 6 6 4 - 9 9 6 9
across the state swamp County Clerk Peggy Semprimoznik’s office each week with filings for clients anxious to be shed of spouses more quickly and inexpensively than in the counties where they live. This wheat farming county of just over 10,000 residents last year handled 4,035 domestic filings, most of them divorces. That’s more than any other county except King, home to more than 1.75 million residents in and around Seattle, which had 5,487 filings, according to state Department of Health statistics. By contrast, Skamania County in southwestern Washington state — with about as many residents See DIVORCE, page 7
bounce back in retail sales and tourism, Richter said. The figures showed that Santa Monica is doing slightly better than L.A. County at large, which was down about 3 percent overall, Richter said. Some other areas of the city also fought through the recession to post sales tax gains in 2002. Merchants along Lincoln Boulevard posted 4.3 percent
more sales tax revenue for the year and 7.8 percent more in the fourth quarter. The abundance of gas stations on the street and the rising cost of gas and may have affected those numbers, Richter said. Shops along Montana Avenue, where Richter said there are virtually no vacancies, reported a 3.6 percent gain in sales tax revenue on the year and a 6.2 percent jump See SALES, page 5
Green thumb
Del Pastrana/Daily Press
Mary Jane Shippen spent Friday afternoon tending her plot of 10 years at the City of Santa Monica’s Main St. Community Gardens on Main Street. She said she waited 4 years before she was able to have of her own space.
15% OFF
Open 24 Hours 7 Days a Week
Buy 6 eclairs, get 6 free! expires 4/17/03
INSTRUMENTS OR SUPPLIES W/COUPON
(310) 453-1928
310.829.2512 1614 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica
www.santamonicamusic.com
1901 SANTA MONICA BLVD. IN SANTA MONICA