By late 2017, I was staying in Lincoln, Nebraska. I had to haul ass up to cold Minneapolis, for the district court appeal of Choice Gentlemen’s Club.

It took over a year to get that trial date, from 2016 when I represented myself in conciliation court and lost. In that time, I went through a couple of lawyers. First I hired a weasel named Ashwin Madia. Ashwin used unethical pressure when getting me to sign retainer documents, by standing over me and talking firmly while I was sitting down holding the pen that he gave me. That is what shitty men do when they can’t make a sale on merit alone. I really hate Ashwin Madia and regretted hiring him, so I decided to stop working with him early on in the appeal process.

I called a few more lawyers around Minneapolis, none of whom were interested in strip club litigation at that point in time, including lawyers who had past experiences suing strip clubs and did press about it. That is, until I got into contact with Tim Phillips. Tim is an SJW who has generously given his time and energy to people such as environmental activists, Bay Area Starbucks thieves, and Black Lives Matter protesters. A veteran to social justice causes and willing to help those in need, Tim represented me in the Choice matter. Even though we lost the Choice case, I do not blame him whatsoever and would recommend him to others in need, without hesitation.

The jury selection process in late 2017 was interesting and enjoyable. I had never participated in one of those before, and was glad to have experienced the minutiae of picking them. I liked the jury members and was feeling hopeful about trial.

When it was my time to testify, I was asked questions about Choice owner Tom Hoskamer’s treatment of me. I mentioned that while I had to follow certain rules that would legally classify me as an employee, Tom Hoskamer hired other dancers who did not have to follow those same rules, because they cuddled and flirted with him. I used the term “sexual harassment” to describe the situation at Choice. After that, Choice’s lawyer called for a mistrial. The judge granted the mistrial, giving the reason that “that bell cannot be unrung.” The judge expressed that my describing the sexual harassment at Choice would give the jury a bias that they could not escape from when determining the outcome. The case was strictly misclassification, and while Tom Hoskamer gave special privileges to dancers who gave in to his advances, I was not supposed to discuss any of that on the witness stand.

Judge Klein is a republican-leaning man who has a history of bias in favor of businesses.

I drove back to Nebraska after wasting my time, energy and money. A new trial date was eventually set for early 2018.