from www.rapidcityjournal.com – David Eliason, owner of Dick and Jane’s Naughty Spot in Sturgis, has plead not guilty to five counts of failure to comply with the location of an adult oriented business.

Eliason, who had previously been appearing before Fourth Circuit Court Judge Michelle Percy, appeared before Circuit Judge Jerome Eckrich Monday morning. According to Meade County State’s Attorney Kevin Krull, the state’s attorney’s office requested the switch in judges so that both the criminal matter and the injunction matter appear before the same judge.

The statute concerning adult oriented businesses has two parts, Krull said, which allows the state’s attorney or any citizen to file for an injunction to prevent the violation from happening again. According to Krull, each side in a case is allowed to file for a change in judge once in a case.

Eliason said he plans to hire an attorney soon and had talked with several. Eckrich set another status hearing for Eliason to appear with his attorney on Dec. 14 at 8:30 a.m.

“I need to know what your attorney is willing to do,” Eckrich said.

Eliason was arrested on five counts, one count for each day between Aug. 6 and 10, for failure to comply with the location of an adult oriented business after opening Dick and Jane’s Naughty Spot on Aug. 2. Each count is a class one misdemeanor and carries a penalty of up to one year in jail and/or a fine of up to $2,000.

Eliason appeared in court in August, where he was granted a continuance until September.

In September, Eliason requested that the court would grant a stay on the case pending federal court ruling in another case that he is involved in, though Percy denied his request upon the state’s recommendation. He was granted a continuance and had $1,500 of his bond exonerated, reducing his bond to only $500.

Eliason first attempted to open the store near Interstate 90 in July 2010, though the city of Sturgis classified the store as an adult-oriented business.