Tattoo artist Steven J. Martinez of Cheyenne, Wyoming has been having a tough eight months. It was eight months ago that Martinez, owner of Bad Ass Tattoos, initially had his business license application rejected by Cheyenne City Council members. At that particular time, the license was rejected because Martinez had pending felony charges of voyeurism against him.
See, what happened is that Martinez was accused of secretly filming female clients as he pierced their genitals. Martinez maintained that he had filmed the female clients as a preventative measure against any sort of allegations that could arise out of being alone with a naked woman.
Skip ahead a few months to the present, and Martinez has been acquitted of all wrongdoing with regards to his video collection. So why can’t he get his business license back and continue running Bad Ass Tattoos? I don’t know why.
Cheyenne Mayor Rick Kaysen had denied Martinez’ application for a new business license, citing Martinez and his operation as a concern for public welfare. But Martinez has been acquitted of his charges – he is not a criminal and so clearly, there is no good reason to prevent Steven J. Martinez from resuming and rebuilding his career.