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Zorro and Darth Vader in legal battle with police and Venetian
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RALPH FOUNTAIN/LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Zorro, the alter ego of Jason Perez-Morciglio, and Darth Vader, the alter ego of Jason's younger brother, Sebastian, entertain tourists Wednesday in front of The Venetian. The brothers, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, filed a federal lawsuit Thursday in Las Vegas that alleges Venetian security officers kidnapped them and detained them for more than an hour on Jan. 15. » Buy this photo
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LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Updated: Jun. 11, 2010 | 7:46 a.m.
Zorro and Darth Vader formed an unprecedented alliance Thursday when they joined forces to take on the Metropolitan Police Department, Sheriff Doug Gillespie and a Strip megaresort.
This time the characters are doing battle with neither sword nor lightsaber, but with a legal team from the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada.
Zorro, the alter ego of Jason Perez-Morciglio, and Darth Vader, the alter ego of Jason's younger brother, Sebastian, filed a federal lawsuit Thursday in Las Vegas that alleges Venetian security officers kidnapped them and detained them for more than an hour on Jan. 15 before kicking them off the property. The lawsuit also alleges two Las Vegas police officers illegally handcuffed and searched them at the resort.
Although the brothers frequently perform on the Strip in exchange for tips, usually at the Bellagio or Paris Las Vegas, they said they were doing nothing other than standing on the sidewalk in front of The Venetian before they were confronted. Sebastian wasn't even in costume.
"There has been a long history of litigation concerning the right of the public to express themselves on the public forum of sidewalks going up and down the Las Vegas Strip," ACLU attorney Allen Lichtenstein said. "In particular, both the United States District Court and the (9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals) have explicitly stated that the sidewalk in front of The Venetian is a public forum. Unfortunately, the hotel doesn't appear to feel bound by the courts' decision."
No one at The Venetian could be reached for comment Thursday.
The brothers' lawsuit comes nearly a year after the ACLU filed a complaint on behalf of two other street performers, guitarist Suze Banasik and Elvis impersonator Bill Jablonski, who accused Las Vegas police of harassing them on the Strip. That case is pending in federal court.
Over the years, the ACLU has fought and won similar First Amendment battles for handbill distributors, political activists and street preachers on the Strip and at the Fremont Street Experience.
Jason Perez-Morciglio said he studied up on his rights after moving to Las Vegas in December with his brother and knew about the ACLU's other cases.
The pair contacted the organization shortly after their encounter with officers at The Venetian.
The brothers have diverse cultural backgrounds. Jason Perez-Morciglio, 36, was born in San Francisco but has lived in Puerto Rico and Argentina. Sebastian Perez-Morciglio, 28, was born in Puerto Rico but spent many years in Argentina. They are both American citizens but speak Spanish more comfortably than English.
Jason Perez-Morciglio, a former tango instructor who had performed as Zorro on the streets of Hollywood for several years, said he came to Las Vegas for artistic inspiration and cheaper housing. He also started a film production company here.
The Zorro impersonator said he hopes to achieve one goal with the lawsuit: "freedom."
As Buddhists, he explained, he and his brother believe in cause and effect.
They believe that good actions will have a positive effect on their environment and that bad actions will have a negative effect.
"There's no good if you don't face bad and try to make a difference," Jason Perez-Morciglio said.
He takes his Zorro performances seriously and believes his talents make Las Vegas a better place for tourists. Sebastian Perez-Morciglio said the role playing is also fun for the brothers.
"It's like every day, Halloween," he said.
According to the lawsuit, Jason Perez-Morciglio was throwing away trash in front of The Venetian on Jan. 15 when security officers "kidnapped the brothers, forced them into a small room inside the Venetian Hotel and detained them."
"These security guards handcuffed the brothers, searched their persons and belongings, demanded identification, and photographed them," the document said.
"Each of the brothers was strapped to a chair and kept by the security guards for over an hour."
The lawsuit alleges that the security officers then summoned two Las Vegas police officers who handcuffed and searched the brothers before directing them to sign misdemeanor trespass warnings. The police officers were identified only as S. Schaier and T. Scott.
"Thereafter, the brothers were escorted from the premises to the parking lot in the back of Harrah's Las Vegas Casino by the security guards and were warned not to 'trespass' on the sidewalk in front of the Venetian Hotel again or else face arrest," according to the document.
The lawsuit alleges Gillespie "has failed to train his officers to adequately protect constitutional rights on the Strip."
When contacted after hours Thursday, Gillespie declined to comment on the complaint, which he said he had not seen.
The brothers said they have avoided walking past The Venetian since the incident. They returned for the first time Wednesday to pose for a Review-Journal photographer.
Contact reporter Carri Geer Thevenot at cgeer@review journal.com or 702-384-8710.
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These guys are parasites. They dress like morons and try to make a quick buck using the backdrop of the Venetian as a set piece. I'm all for constitutional rights, but I also understand what the hotel is up against. They are nothing more than pan handlers in costume.
Why is everyone talking about these people trying to make a buck in lawsuit? The damages would be minor and any monetary settlement would be small.Metro, as the government agent, should not have participated in this search and seizure. (FYI they can't recover under this theory from the Venetian unless they bring a tort of false imprisonment, which from the article is not happening).
Also, why are we lumping them in with the porn peddlers, to me they seem pretty harmless street entertainers found in many destination cities the world over.
It's amazing that the conservative commentators who claim to stand up for the constitution and its amendments when discussing alienage refuse to cry foul when a US citizen's 4th amendment rights are violated.
Rasputin, they grabbed them off the street and physically bound them ("strapped to a chair") and held them in the basement for an hour before calling police. "Goonish" is actually an understatement.
Cynthia.Wentaway wrote on June 11, 2010 06:26 AM: "it's odd that millions of people don't know that they're innocently placing themselves at the mercy of the Venetian's goonish personnel simply by walking down the sidewalk."
Goonish? I've always found the Venetian/Palazzo security personnel to be polite, professional and helpful.
Sounds like the Venetian is in the right here; the case is about these two idiots trying to MAKE MONEY. It *is* legal to use the Venetian's private sidewalk for through traffic. What these two brothers are doing is trying to get people to PAY THEM TO TAKE A PICTURE WITH THEM. Now they're bringing the ACLU in to strong-arm the Venetian into paying them off.
Disgusting.
Nomad 84 last I checked Puetro Rico is a territory of the U.S. Guess what they speak spanish there. Not english. If you don't want them here then you we must give Puetro Rico independence or make them a state. Which guess what they will still speak spanish. Also, they are american citizens and if they want to speak swahili or any other language that is their right.
Ya, this moron said he did his research on the ACLU before coming to Vegas. This was all planned. Now he's going to get paid. He really did join the dark side...
Sounds like someone is advertising a dating service rather than an enlightened comment. Looks like the same ad in relation to Clinton Reid rally story.
Sometimes I wonder if the "speak English" crowd realizes that their rhetoric places them in the same camp as the Klan and the Nazis?
Another pair of idiots who think English is a burden to speak while in the US.
The courts have repeatedly ruled against the casinos in these cases, but I guess that arrogance of wealth knows few bounds. As for all of those commentators who are leaping to the defense of million-dollar corporations--save your breath, the corporations have plenty of over-paid lawyers to defend themselves.