A judge revoked and later reinstated the 2200 Club’s probation for renting a single-occupancy room to two undercover San Diego Police officers, but turned down a request by the City Attorney’s Office to shut down the North Park bathhouse.

After hearing testimony and arguments for about four and a half hours on Sept. 6, San Diego Superior Court Judge Michael Smyth gave a tentative ruling and then offered to reinstate the 2200 Club’s probation on the same terms and conditions as determined in the club’s misdemeanor case in April.

2200 Club owner John Tennis Smith was not present during the probation revocation hearing. His attorney, John Barriage, told the judge he wanted to speak with Smith before the 2200 Club would again accept the terms of the probation. At a Sept. 13 follow-up hearing, Barriage said his client accepted the terms, probation was reinstated and the 2200 Club was fined $1,100.

In April, a court commissioner placed the 2200 Club on probation after it pleaded guilty to operating without a county health permit. They obtained the permit, paid a $1,200 fine, reimbursed the city $538 in costs and agreed to 15 terms of probation, including an agreement to rent rooms to single occupants only and to oust anyone using illegal drugs.

During the Sept. 6 hearing, Smyth heard testimony from two undercover officers as well as Kevin McCarthy, who was described by Deputy City Attorney Brian Ziegler as an informant. The only probation condition Smyth found to be violated was the single-room occupancy code.

Detective James Clark testified he went to the 2200 Club undercover on June 22 at 12:30 a.m. and paid the $19 one-day membership fee. He said he disrobed, put on a towel and saw people watching pornographic movies in a television lounge. He said he checked room doors and almost all of them were locked. Clark said he checked the pool, but no one was in the pool at that time.

Detective Timothy Norris testified he arrived about 15 minutes after Clark entered the club. Norris said he saw “one guy’s head in the lap of another guy” in a common area.

Both officers said they witnessed no drug or narcotic activities.

Mark Carter, the club’s manager, was identified by the officers as the person they paid the membership fee to. Norris asked to rent a room, but Carter told him one was not yet available.

“We made it clear we would be renting the room together,” Clark said.

A room became available 15 minutes later. Norris testified Clark paid Carter for the room rental.

The officers said they stayed in the 8-by-10-foot room for 20 minutes. Both said no one knocked on their door.

Charlie Sharples Jr., the 2200 Club’s general manager, testified the club does enforce single occupancy. “If we see two people in a room and the door [is] open, we tell them [to separate],” Sharples said. “Everyone must have a locker or a room. They cannot share a locker or a room, [and] there are never two keys issued.”

Ziegler said the officers’ testimonies show “the management knows … that people are using the rooms for double occupancy – a violation.”

“They’re operating a sex club,” he said.

The judge said the club was using a “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach by having employee monitors who would tell management of violations or problems.

“The monitors are doing a lousy job, and there’s a question whether they have any monitors at all,” Smyth said.

McCarthy told the judge he visited the 2200 Club twice at the request of the prosecutor. He claimed he smelled marijuana smoke, witnessed men have unsafe sex openly and described “moans and groans” from locked rooms, which he took to mean there were two men in one room.

McCarthy also claimed he saw people “tweaking,” which he said included “people under the influence of crystal methamphetamine.” He said he knew they were tweaking because “it shows [in] how they masturbate.”

He produced two club receipts, which were tagged as evidence.

McCarthy claimed amyl nitrite and other head cleaners were abused at the 2200 Club, but could not describe an incident in which he witnessed it. He said he never saw someone get kicked out of the club and that club workers “know what’s going on.”

Barriage told the judge McCarthy has “an axe to grind and is not a very reliable witness.” He said McCarthy “has an agenda” against the 2200 Club and urged the judge to reject his allegations.

McCarthy, who has written a number of letters to the Gay & Lesbian Times about the 2200 Club, testified he was “horrified by the blatant sexual activities” which he considered unsafe sex. He said he saw “oral sex [in] what they call the orgy room” and sex acts “without a rubber.”

“My agenda is to promote safe sex in the community,” McCarthy said. “I’m not against bathhouses. I’m against irresponsible management of them…. I used to visit the club frequently when it was the Mustang [Spa].”

Ziegler sought to close the bathhouse on the basis of allegations of drug use, but the judge noted that McCarthy, as well as the two police officers, could not say they saw anyone using illegal drugs. Smyth said he was not persuaded by McCarthy’s testimony about hearing sex sounds coming from rooms, which would indicate double occupancy, because of the presence of pornographic movies constantly playing on televisions in most rooms.

The defense requested the testimony of the county’s sole inspector, Ricardo Encarnacion, who testified he saw no violations at the 2200 Club.

Sharples testified that anyone who is caught using illegal drugs or even mentions using drugs is automatically kicked out of the club.

“We have a list of people who are no longer [allowed] in the club. We added one name last night. We have under 300 names,” said Sharples. “There is no forgiveness. They can’t go to [drug] rehab and come back.” Sharples added that “noticeably intoxicated” patrons are not admitted.

Sharples refuted McCarthy’s testimony about smelling marijuana smoke, saying there is no smoking of any kind allowed in any of the 37 rooms.