Last March, TCR Holdings LLC sued Nye County over the failure to issue the company a brothel license to purchase the Chicken Ranch.

Now the owner of the Chicken Ranch Western Best Ltd. partnership, the president and sole shareholder Kenneth Green and director Debbie Rivenburgh, have sued Nye County commissioners and Sheriff Tony DeMeo over the same application.

"It is plaintiff's belief, based on statements made by Nye County officials, that defendants are operating under the incorrect assumption that because legal prostitution involves a privileged license, that governmental officials have virtual, unfettered discretion in all licensing matters concerning legal brothels and are using such assumed, unfettered discretion to attempt to rid the county of its legal brothels by attrition," the suit claims.

The Chicken Ranch, represented by attorney Allen Lichtenstein -- better known as the lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union -- filed suit against Commissioners Joni Eastley, Butch Borasky, Lorinda Wichman, Gary Hollis and Fely Quitevis as well as DeMeo.

The suit said Green has attempted to sell the Chicken Ranch for the last several years. By denying the license, the county commission on June 19, 2007, effectively voided a contract to sell the Chicken Ranch to Bruce Kahn, of Dallas, sole member and manager of TCR Holdings. The county commission and the sheriff, meeting as the licensing and liquor board, rejected Kahn's application because he had not been a Nevada resident for six months.

The suit said county officials told represntatives of the Chicken Ranch it would be a waste of time and money to attempt to add Rivenburgh to the existing Chicken Ranch license, though she's responsible for day-to-day operations.

"Because she did not have enough personal funds to operate the Chicken Ranch on her own, she could not be added to the license, even with the financial backing and guarantees that already exist under the current structure," the lawsuit said, "creating a situation that if anything were to happen to plaintiff Kenneth R. Green, the license to the Chicken Ranch would be in jeopardy."

The suit claims violations of the plaintiffs' rights under the 14th Amendment, the plaintiff's rights under the privileges and immunities clause of the Constitution and their rights under the commerce clause.

"Without injunctive relief, plaintiff's existing license to the Chicken Ranch may become vulnerable. Plaintiffs thereby request injunctive relief to allow plaintiffs to sell the Chicken Ranch without regard to the domicile of purchaser and also to allow plaintiff Rivenburgh to be placed on the existing license," the suit said

The plaintiffs also seek monetary damages due to the diminished value of the property since the failed sale in 2007.

During the June, 2007 hearing, investigator Lt. Jack Grimauld listed a number of shortcomings where Kahn's application didn't comply with all the requirements of the county brothel ordinance, besides the requirement to have been a bona fide resident of Nevada for six months referenced in the lawsuits.

Grimauld said Kahn didn't list whether he had ever been refused a gaming, liquor or brothel license in Nevada. There wasn't a complete answer to whether he had ever been arrested. He didn't list 10 references and their phone numbers or give a complete list of his assets. The application didn't identify who took his fingerprints. There also wasn't a complete list of addresses for the past 10 years.

DeMeo denied the county was trying to eliminate the brothels through attrition. He said the county licensing and liquor board is reviewing a request by Mack Moore to reopen Angel's Ladies Brothel just north of Beatty.

In his application Kahn listed a $3.6 million loan to invest in the brothel, but the purchase price was $5.25 million. There was also a past bankruptcy, Grimauld said, adding there were federal tax liens against Kahn.

The TCR Holdings suit claimed the prospective buyer lost at least $80,000 to process the application. TCR Holdings, represented by attorney Clyde DeWitt in a suit filed March 5, claimed Western Best has been unable to sell the Chicken Ranch since the transaction with TCR Holdings fell out of escrow because it is clear to any potential buyer the county licensing and liquor board won't issue a license to any applicant, by using the same tactics employed against Kahn.

TCR Holdings expressed a desire to either purchase another brothel or construct one from scratch in Nye County if an agreement cannot be reached for the Chicken Ranch.

TCR Holdings complained the clause on absentee ownership was construed to mean the premises couldn't be issued to a domicile of another state, even if the applicant will be physically present in Nye County or will relocate to Nye County if the license is approved.