(S.D.) - Hookah lounge gives up fight to sell alcohol

By: John Thayer Posted at: 04/30/2012 03:00 PM
RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - A hookah lounge in Rapid City has apparently given up its fight with authorities who say it hadbeen breaking the state's smoking ban by selling alcohol.
    
Ifrit's Hookah Lounge was spot checked for compliance Monday to see if alcohol was still being sold at the lounge. If it had been, police had promised to start enforcing the state's smoking ban, which exempts retail tobacco stores only if they generate 65 percent of their income from tobacco sales and don't allow alcohol
consumption.
    
Ifrit's attorney had previously argued that smoking tobacco from a hookah pipe isn't the same as smoking cigarettes and cigars. Pennington County officials disagreed.
    
Rapid City police conducted the compliance check at 11 a.m. Monday and determined that Ifrit's is no longer selling alcohol.

    
     (Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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