Judge dismisses suit filed by Dream Nite Club creditor

The suit attempted to stop the non-renewal of the club’s liquor license. By continuing to operate, Kasham hoped the nightclub could pay him back.

“There was no factual, legal merit for the lawsuit,” said City Attorney Stephan Postema. “It never should have been filed.”

On May 18, a federal court judge denied a similar liquor license request made by V.R. Entertainment - comprised of Vickash Mangray, Jeff Mangray and Moonie Mangray - the group that owned the erstwhile nightclub.

The motion to dismiss Kasham’s suit - one of many in the ongoing drama between the city and the Dream Nite Club - referred to V.R. Entertainment as “the operator of a long-standing nuisance bar.”

“(Kasham) evidently unwisely loaned money to owners of the Dream Nite Club & Lounge and has now filed this meritless lawsuit naming as defendants the city of Ann Arbor, the Ann Arbor Police Department (and) the Ann Arbor City Council,” read the city’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit. The motion was filed on April 25.

Kasham and his attorney, Roger Farinha, who is also representing V.R. Entertainment in a nuisance case brought against them by the city, did not file a response to the city’s motion in this lawsuit.

“Plaintiff has not provided any timely response to the defendant’s motion,” court records said, “and has failed to provide any substantively admissible evidence to refute defendants’ motion.”

A hearing is scheduled June 6 in the Washtenaw County Trial Court before Judge Melida Morris in yet another lawsuit filed by V.R. Entertainment. This state lawsuit essentially seeks to do what the federal judge and Connors dismissed in the other cases - get the nightclub its liquor license back.

Dream Nite Club was evicted from its former location on South Fourth Avenue May 9 for not paying its rent.

When reached by telephone, Farinha said a response to the city’s motion in Kasham’s case wasn’t filed because the attorney intends to deal with the situation at the June 6 hearing.

“It is the exact same situation,” he said. “We’re going to deal with that exact same situation next week.”

There will be more happening even before that.

The $3 million lawsuit Dream Nite Club filed against the city that claims the nightclub’s customers were harassed because of their racial diversity is expected to come before a federal court judge Wednesday afternoon. The judge will hear oral arguments and may not immediately issue a ruling, but the case could possibly be dismissed.