An article in today's Salt Lake City Weekly lays out the details of the permit flap in the Utah County rave bust of a few weeks ago. The sheriff's argument looks to be pretty thin: He anticipated (as if he had a crystal ball) the rave would exceed 12 hours which would have required an additional permit and other measures.

The promotor, on the other hand, knew his event was for less than 12 hours and planned accordingly:

[Brandon] Fullmer, who scheduled the event for a 9.5-hour period, from 9 p.m. to 6:30 a.m., secured a permit through the Utah County Health Department (UCHD). He took out a $1 million insurance policy, hired security guards, rented portable toilets, obtained a solid-waste permit and met a number of other requirements before booking out-of-state and local DJs.

Since the bust occurred only a few hours into the rave, how is the Sheriff going to establish that it would exceed 12 hours?

“I don’t think there’s any question that the sheriff misapplied the ordinance and acted improperly,” [attorney Brian] Barnard said, adding that the raid was discriminatory and an act of censorship. “If individuals break the law, punish them. But don’t assume that everyone who goes to a rap, hip-hop, or electronic music concert is a criminal.”

Barnard will be representing the promoter and the land owner in a federal civil rights lawsuit against the County.