SAN DIEGO -- Two San Diego councilmen accused of taking bribes from a strip club owner in return for help in repealing the city's "no-touch" ordinance will stand trial with a Las Vegas lobbyist, a judge ruled Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Miller denied a defense motion to sever the trials of Michael Zucchet and Ralph Inzunza from that of lobbyist Lance Malone.

Inzunza, Zucchet and the late Councilman Charles Lewis were indicted on Aug. 28, 2003, on charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Zucchet, Inzunza, Cheetah's strip club owner Michael Galardi and Malone were also charged with extortion.

Galardi and a former night manager at the Kearny Mesa Cheetah's, John D'Intino, pleaded guilty and cooperated with federal prosecutors.

Galardi is expected to testify as the government's star witness at a trial scheduled to begin May 3.

Miller took under submission a motion by former Lewis aide David Cowan -- who is charged with making a false statement to the FBI -- to sever his trial from that of the other defendants.

A superseding indictment handed up last October alleges that public officials took more than $70,000 in bribes to undo San Diego's "no-touch" nude dancing ordinance.

The superseding indictment accuses Inzunza of organizing the alleged conspiracy.

"I'm very anxious to get this in front of the jury," Inzunza said outside the federal courthouse. "It's something that we are looking forward to."

The councilman told reporters it was important to clear his name, as well as the names of Zucchet and Lewis, who died suddenly last Aug. 8.

The judge told attorneys for Zucchet and Inzunza that he would not bar the use of the words "bribes" or "bribery" from the trial, so long as prosecution witnesses such as Galardi did not put their own spin on what the words meant.

Miller granted a defense motion to exclude statements made by FBI informant Tony Montagna that Malone had been "kicked out of office" in Las Vegas and that D'Intino wouldn't make a good politician because he had too much integrity.

The judge took under submission a request to allow the defense to cross-examine Galardi about his allegations that a Las Vegas prosecutor twice went into his strip club and accepted free drinks and lap dances.

The federal prosecutor, Eric Johnson, denied Galardi's allegations but was removed from the investigation in Las Vegas.

Miller denied a defense motion to exclude statements by former Zucchet aide Anthony Wagner that there was some element of "organized crime" in the federal investigation into the councilmen.

Court documents quoting FBI interviews with Zucchet and Wagner showed that Zucchet did an Internet search after receiving campaign contributions from Galardi and found that the case had alleged "mob-related associations."

Zucchet asked for security for his family because he thought they might be in danger, Wagner told authorities.

Wagner resigned after the offices of City Hall were searched.