Best Friend in the News Again
Posted by the Kenmore Crow | Filed under Business | 4 Comments
Gotta say, I’m surprised neither of the competing Kenmore blogs have jumped on this story…
From Tuesday’s Kenmore Reporter: Customer orders a hot chocolate, allegedly gets a bit more at Kenmore stand
King County Sheriff’s detectives are investigating an incident in which a female barista at the Best Friend coffee stand in Kenmore allegedly exposed herself to a male customer buying a hot chocolate.
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The reporting party told police he visited Best Friend after retrieving his car from the nearby Kenmore Park and Ride Lot. He stated he had no idea the coffee shop employed bikini-clad baristas. After he ordered his drink, the female barista allegedly asked him if he wanted a show. The man said he nervously responded positively, not really knowing what to expect.According to the police report, the man states the barista allegedly exposed herself from the waist up and from the waist down, reportedly fondling herself briefly. Asked by the barista if he had enjoyed himself, the man reportedly said, “No,” and drove off with his drink but no change from a 20-dollar bill.
Follow-up on KIRO 7 yesterday: Why Prosecutors Can’t Charge Baristas Who Bare It All (video)
KIRO 7 Eyewitness News morning anchor Chris Egert found that King County sheriff’s deputies have pages and pages of reports documenting questionable activities at a Kenmore espresso stand, yet so far, not a single case has made it to court.
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It is stuff too raunchy to put in this report. It is beyond the level of bikinis: private body parts put on display, all body parts, exposed to undercover deputies.“At the face of this you’d say, ‘Well, my gosh. There’s indecent exposure, or perhaps even prostitution involved here.’ But as we read the statute, and more importantly as the prosecutors read the statutes and the city ordinance in Kenmore, it does not appear that there has been any crime committed,” said Sgt. John Urquhart of the King County Sheriff’s Office.
Even though investigators saw women take off their clothes, expose their breasts, backsides and vaginas, it is not a violation of the law.
City of Kenmore prosecutors told deputies that what happened doesn’t meet filing standards for indecent exposure or prostitution.
The King County Prosecutor’s Office could, in theory, attempt to move forward with charges, but said that even if it wanted to, it doesn’t have the resources to proceed.
What would it take to have charges filed? A victim—someone who isn’t a cop—and who didn’t want the show undercover investigators said was being offered at Best Friend Espresso.
Of course, none of the victims are willing to do that, so it would seem that for now, the show must go on.
I’m not going to sit here and defend the caffeinated peep show, but I have to wonder… why are King County sheriff’s deputies spending their time making multiple “undercover” stops to Best Friend, if nothing that’s happening there is illegal enough for them to pursue criminal charges?
I’ve got one theory…
Just sayin’.
Tags: Best-Friends, bikini, Business, photo
Best Friend Blinds Banish Free Peeks for Bothell Way Drivers
Posted by the Kenmore Crow | Filed under Business | 5 Comments
A couple weeks ago, the Bothell/Kenmore Reporter ran a story that briefly mentioned the coffee stand at 73rd & Bothell Way here in Kenmore…
In Kenmore, Mayor David Baker said City Hall staffers routinely receive complaints regarding Best Friends, many coming from parents who say young children easily can see into the roadside stand. Baker said officials have discussed the issue, but declined to go into details.
“We are aware of it, we do know of it,” he said.
To me that almost sounds like some sort of veiled threat from the Mayor there. Interestingly, as I drive by Best Friend, I have noticed a slight change in the weeks since that story ran.
Pretty much since the story ran, the blinds in the windows facing Bothell Way, which used to stay open, have been closed. Coincidence? Probably not.
Looks to me like Best Friend owner Wayne Hembree caught the hidden message in Mayor Baker’s remarks to the Reporter and decided to preemptively avoid a confrontation with City Hall. Probably a good move.
Tags: Best-Friends, bikini, Business, photo
