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Searchable database: See how police agencies and counties rank in DUI arrests
RELATED: MLive analysis: After steep drop statewide, are drunken driving arrests headed up?
Select a county or type in a specific police agency in the search form below to see drunken driving trends, police manpower changes, and how each department ranks.
Results show total arrests, whether arrests rose or fell since 2006, the number of "super-drunk" blood-alcohol concentrations (BAC) and other details.
Results also rank the state's 421 police agencies and 83 sheriff's offices by DUI arrests per officer, as well as the largest 50 police agencies in Michigan.
Michigan bars to offer alcohol and fully nude dancers
Michigan bars are now allowed to offer alcohol and fully nude dancers ... but do they want to?
Michigan once prohibited combining alcohol and full nudity in clubs, but a federal court struck down the law. (The Associated Press)
By Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on November 24, 2013 at 7:07 AM, updated November 24, 2013 at 7:21 AM
LANSING -- For 26 years, Michigan law prohibited fully nude dancers in establishments serving alcohol. That changed in 2007 when a federal court ruled the ban was unconstitutional.
Still, most bars and clubs haven't changed to adopt fully nude dancers, partly because many are unaware of the ruling. Others are in cities that might prohibit full nudity.
And then there's this:
"People aren't really into that," said Adam Parsons, manager of Omar's Show Bar, located about three blocks east of the state Capitol building in Lansing. "We talked about it a few years ago, but my entertainers said no.
"And maybe 5 percent of customers are into that. Most people like some mystery."
Michigan legislation enacted in 1981 prohibited establishments licensed to serve alcohol from allowing people to expose their genitals or to perform and simulate sex acts, either in person or on film.
Years later, Hamilton's Bogarts Inc., which operated a strip club in Inkster, sued the state, challenging the constitutionality of its statute against full nudity and sexual acts at establishments with alcohol. In 2007, the Cincinnati-based U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a portion of Michigan's law, ruling that full nudity and sex acts are "expressive conduct" protected by the First Amendment.
Instead of challenging that ruling and fighting it at the U.S. Supreme Court, the state of Michigan relented, rescinding its statute against fully nude dancing and sex acts at alcohol-serving establishments.
And even though that "news" is six years old, it remains unknown to many, according to Ronalee Polad, liquor regulations consultant for the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association.
"The Liquor Control Commission rescinded those rules. They didn't announce that they rescinded them, so there's a lot of places that aren't aware," Polad said, noting that the federal ruling also means venues predicated on fully nude dancing, like the national strip club chain Deja Vu, can now obtain liquor licenses.
Deja Vu could not be reached for comment on whether they'll seek liquor licenses for their clubs in Kalamazoo, Flint, Saginaw, Ypsilanti, Highland Park and Lansing.
The law came to light when Spiral Video and Dance Bar, a popular gay bar in Lansing's Old Town, started investigating whether it could host a seminar on sexual fetishes, an informational session that, for example, would teach spectators how to properly and safely bind a sex partner.
A Michigan Liquor Control Commission representative misinformed Spiral it could not host such an event as it violated the commission's statute prohibiting sex acts. But Spiral General Manager Daniel Young conferred with the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association, whose legal counsel pointed to the 2007 federal court ruling.
"We really just found out on accident," Young said.
As a result, Spiral featured four fully nude dancers--three men and one woman--on Nov. 9 during a special evening celebrating its 15th anniversary.
Lansing allows full nudity in clubs, but requires a $350 cabaret license. But cities have the right to pass ordinances to prohibit fully nude dancers.
For example, in Grand Rapids, only semi-nudity is allowed, meaning dancers must wear bottoms covering the genitals, rear, nipples and areolas. And a 2004 city ordinance bans full nudity in strip clubs in Kalamazoo, but allows topless dancing.
Scott Ellis, executive director of the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association, said it's true that many bars and clubs aren't aware of the change in law from 2007, including some of his association's members.
"We had a couple people call to get clarification on it because they were shocked," Ellis said, referencing some of his colleagues' reaction to a Nov. 13 MLive article on Spiral's taking advantage of the law.
Ellis said there does not appear to be much appetite for fully nude dancers or sex acts.
"There's just not a super big want or need for it," he said. "Really, we have never heard much from anybody. In fact, I have not heard anything at all from any of our members, besides Spiral, that they're going to move forward on this."
Ellis said for some, it may be a "moral decision."
"I don't mind either way what people do," he said, "but I don't know if my members necessarily want that in their establishment."
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