Judge Tosses Mango Café Suit Against Mount Kisco

A suit filed by Mango Café against Mount Kisco, claiming that a full cabaret license was denied in retaliation for the owner's criticism of the village, was dismissed with a summary judgment granted to the defendant.

Writing in her Jan. 20 decision, U.S. Magistrate Judge Lisa Margaret Smith stated that Mango—filing suit was Los Mangos, LLC—lacked sufficient standing based on First Amendment grounds to bring the suit in response to the matter involving owner Mauricio Arriaga.

In the suit, Mango Café argued that it was denied in its application for a full cabaret license for 2008 under local rules that regulate serving alcohol while having music and dancing in reaction to actions that Arriaga took in voicing his grievances about the village.

Among his actions were a 2007 interview given to The Journal News, in which he spoke out against its landlord registry law, as well as supporting a civil suit filed against Mount Kisco by the estate of Rene Perez.

Perez was a Guatemalan immigrant whose death on April 28, 2007 led to a second-degree manslaughter charge against then-Mount Kisco police officer George Bubaris, who was accused of inflicting physical harm on Perez, according to The New York Times. The paper also reported his acquittal in June 2008.

Mango, which had previously held a full cabaret license for 2003-06, did not renew in 2007, but stated that it attempted to for 2008. The restaurant applied for one in November 2007, and was subsequently informed by Village Manager James Palmer—named in the suit as a co-defendant—that its location near an elementary school and a residential zone were issues. A written denial was not issued, the suit contended. Mango argued in its suit that it is not adjacent to a residential zone.

The suit attracted controversy last year when members of American Legion Post 136 were called for a deposition by Mango's attorney Jonathan Lovett, as live music at the Post was an issue, The Examiner reported at the time.

The court records were provided to Patch through a request to Mount Kisco and Palmer. Attempts to contact Lovett and Arriaga were unsucessful.