If you live in the vicinity of Everett, Washington, you may be pleased to learn that somebody is out there fighting for your rights. Or at least your right to have your coffee handed to you by an attractive woman in a bikini. When the city passed a law banning so-called bikini baristas, some shop owners and baristas took the municipal government to court, demanding a repeal of the law and significant financial damages. The battle dragged on for years, but this week a settlement was announced. The plaintiffs will be given half a million dollars and will be able to continue serving while dressed in bathing suits. Ain’t democracy grand? (Associated Press)

A legal battle over a dress code for bikini baristas at coffee stands is ending after a city north of Seattle agreed to pay $500,000 to the owner and employees who sued over it six years ago.

The Everett City Council voted unanimously this week to authorize Mayor Cassie Franklin to sign the settlement agreement with Jovanna Edge and employees, The Daily Herald reported.

Plaintiffs had been seeking more than $3 million in damages and attorney fees.

The city seemed to be willing to continue fighting this, but in the end, it came down to their budget. Everett had already sunk $400,000 into the legal fees coming from the case and feared that the final judgment would be far higher than the settlement they eventually reached.

The origins of this case had a lot more involved than a simple matter of how baristas dressed on the job. That part of the question always seemed silly to me. How and why would the government ban someone from wearing the same thing that many people wear at the beach or by a public pool, provided the employer didn’t object?

But as I said, there were more serious allegations brought up when this entire affair started back in 2009. Police investigated reports that some of the baristas were selling a lot more than coffee if you know what I mean. There were several arrests when workers were found to be performing sex shows for extra money and some were putting sex acts on the menu. In one case, one of the baristas was found to be doing this at the behest of her employer when she was underage.

Local law enforcement was caught up in the corruption. A county sheriff’s sergeant was found to be tipping off some of the workers about undercover sting operations in exchange for sexual favors. He later resigned and the owner of the coffee shop was arrested.

All of that activity was, of course, illegal and some people went to jail over it. But the underlying question of the dress code remained. Last year, a District Court found the dress code ordinance unconstitutional. At that point, the writing was on the wall and the city began negotiating a settlement in earnest, leading to this week’s agreement. So if you’re in Everett and you’re in the mood for some hot coffee and cleavage, help yourself. Just don’t ask for any “extras” because the cops are probably still watching.