A Lawrence couple fighting the state’s effort to shut down their two Cork & Barrel liquor stores won a partial victory this week – but so did the state.

A Douglas County judge found that the state’s Division of Alcoholic Beverages was within its rights to revoke Dan Blomgren’s license for the Cork & Barrel store at Ninth and Mississippi streets because of a hidden ownership scheme. But the judge, Stephen Six, found the state went too far in its efforts to punish Blomgren’s wife, Jill, by revoking her license for the store at 23rd and Iowa streets.

Six found that the decision to pull Jill Blomgren’s license for a list of minor violations was “arbitrary and capricious.”

“It appears from a review of the record that the agency’s apparent animosity toward Mr. Blomgren carried over to the imposition of penalties in her case,” Six wrote.

The decision will allow the Cork & Barrel at 23rd and Iowa streets to remain open but could spell the closure of the store at Ninth and Mississippi streets. The store will remain open for at least 10 days, giving Dan Blomgren a chance to appeal the decision.

State law prohibits people from having an ownership interest in more than one liquor store, with the exception that a married couple can each own one.

The state alleged that Dan Blomgren illegally concealed an ownership interest in another store, Parkway Liquors, when he applied for a license for the Cork & Barrel store in 2002. Six found that the action was supported by liquor laws and by the evidence, which included a memo written by Dan Blomgren stating, “I will still control every aspect” of Parkway Liquors.

Jill Blomgren’s list of alleged violations included delivering alcohol to unlicensed venues and selling nonalcohol products.

The Blomgrens could not be reached for comment Friday.

ABC director Thomas Groneman said he was still reviewing the decision Friday and did not know whether the state would appeal the finding in Jill Blomgren’s case.