Lucky Petersen

The main strategy police use to control street prostitution is enforcing laws prohibiting soliciting, patronizing, and loitering for the purposes of prostitution. Street prostitutes can be valuable informants to police about other crimes, and the threat of enforcement gives the police leverage for information. In some jurisdictions, controlling street prostitution is left to the vice squad. Limiting patrol officers' involvement is intended to reduce corruption, but it can give the public the impression that only corrupt officers would ignore the problem. Historically, the police have arrested far more prostitutes than clients, although some police agencies have shifted toward a more balanced enforcement strategy, targeting clients as well as prostitutes. To promote a consistent response and improve the chances for successful prosecutions, police agencies should prepare written guidelines to govern how and under what circumstances they will enforce prostitution laws.

Enforcement strategies are expensive; each arrest costs thousands of dollars to process. By themselves, they are ineffective at either controlling street prostitution or protecting prostitutes from harm. Increased police enforcement temporarily reduces the number of prostitutes on the street, but they usually reappear in new areas. This may actually increase street prostitution in the long term by creating new opportunities for prostitutes and potential clients to meet. While the severity of the penalties against prostitutes does appear to affect the volume of prostitution, modest fines against prostitutes may actually force them to commit more prostitution to pay the fines. Prostitutes who are prosecuted are usually convicted, but many of them fail to show up for court hearings. Most prostitutes consider the costs of being arrested a business expense and an inconvenience, but not a significant deterrent.

As noted previously, street prostitution markets depend on other businesses to support them. The police and other enforcement agencies can exert pressure on those businesses to discourage their support of street prostitution by enforcing civil laws and business regulations. Some communities prohibit motels and hotels from renting rooms for short periods (i.e., at hourly rates), and require them to record guests' identities through positive proof of identification, thus discouraging their use by prostitutes and clients. Zoning regulations that restrict the sorts of businesses that support street prostitution, such as adult entertainment, can be effective. Zoning restrictions have been key in the major redevelopment of Times Square in New York City, where street prostitution has significantly declined. The police and private parties can file nuisance abatement actions against businesses that support prostitution. You should get advice and support from legal counsel to pursue these options.

Not all complaints that are reported justify an official action.

Many property owners unwittingly support street prostitution because they do not appreciate how their business practices enable it to flourish. You can remind them of their legal obligations and provide them and their employees with specific training to help them prevent their properties from being used for prostitution.