i thought that balboa7 had great advice when he said to go read the arrest reports at the courthouse however, i'm not going to the courthouse without a summons and even then, it's iffy.

besides that, vice arrest reports are generally about 50% fiction.

so i am in the process of creating a website which has a "sting survey" for busted escorts to fill out and submit anonymously.   then, i'm going to publish the results.  so it's like the arrest report except it's the escort's side of the story.  

i've broken into 4 separate sections.

what do you think i should ask on the survey ?

the first 2 sections are done and fully functional but i can still add things if needed.

Frightful indeed

I think letting others know about experiences that can, are and have happened is always inlightening and it can't be bad thing. Good looking out

it could be interesting to read & I like how you put into categories.

My scary concern is it can be a legal can of worms
as you ask for folks to upload "actual reports"

You would need an attorney to make sure everything is done properly(disclaimers & such) to protect yourself.

I hate to see you get hurt.

will by published" ?

i have to hire an attorney for that ?

legal can of worms where and how ?
can you specify what you're talking about ?

arrest reports are public info.
these are not x-files .
if an escort gets her arrest report, there's no secrecy clause on it.
what reports do you think i'm talking about ?

so i should tell them to black out their name and identifying info if they're going to upload reports ?

i see no legal issues here really, i dont even feel like i need the agreement to have the info published since any reasonable person could see that the submitted reports will be published, that is notice in itself.

so what other questions should be asked on the survey ?

i wont be consulting an attorney because:
a. no criminal laws are being broken
b. if there's a civil issue, they have to notify me at which point, i might consult an attorney.
c. i dont always listen to attorneys.. for just about every case thats ever gone to court, 1 attorney has been wrong.
they dont exactly spout the gospel.

I think the personal information should be blacked out, but my understanding is these reports are public record, so not a legal issue there and requiring sn official record is the only way to validate their story/experience...

Very interesting and ingenious!


(not an attorney or an attorney's spokesperson, etc)

I would also suggest that a similar survey of guys busted would be valuable as well.

I would also not limit this to actual arrests.  Incidents of harassment or "close calls" would be interesting, especially since it may provide insight into how an arrest was avoided.  In my case, we both kept our wits about us as they tried to get both of us to turn on the other. No arrest made because of no evidence and luckily no drugs found when they did an "in plain-view search of her living rm.

Just politely standing up for your right to remain silent can be the most effective tool at our disposal.

Once LE gets the idea that you aren't going to spill the beans, they will toss you back in the ocean and go after the other fish.

in 4 pieces.

partially because its just too damn long.

the girls who had close calls, can still fill out the survey if they werent actually arrested but just had police contact.

i need to add a question to "the appointment" survey to indicate if the girl was just hassled and let go, or continue to "arrest"

i am happy to make one up for the guys but i honestly dont know what they go through so its hard to ask questions about a subject if you have no knowledge of the subject.

if you want to make up some questions, i'll slap it up there.

im also working on an intro page. i'm only 3 days into this project so it is still in the early development stage.

i did pull a little file i had collected of news stories about the "good boys" of law enforcement.

review the federal statute that generally gives immunity to internet publishers so long as they are not "content providers."

   You will want to make sure you structure the web site so you are not a "content provider."

   I can't remember the name of the act now but you can find it on this board in connection with the suit against Craigslist. Go to that post under Marikod and you should find the name and probably the cite.

I was thinking same thing ...Marikod said It much better.

Anna, You did a nice job designing the 4 categories and your questions are good.

I see what you are saying about public record but most folks arrested want  personal info "buried" regardless of the outcome.

A bit of a stretch, but there is some law against interference of a police investigation. You want to make sure you don't cross that line.

please, Just make sure you are legally safe, you don't need cost of a civil case.

and if they presume their private info will not be published & then it is published .....then they could claim damages.

So ,yes, I would black out personal info.

Just because something is public record does not give a blank check to spread personal info and that nobody cares how & where it is distributed.

Try to heed good judgment & care.

an escort wants to say what happened to her when she was busted and i want to publish it.

this is the kind of thing the 1st amendment was created for.

would no longer be in use, would they?

      Escort 1 says "Sheriff Joe made me have sex with him before he locked me up." You publish this report on your web site. Sheriff Joe disputes the charge and considers it false and defamatory.

      When you are served with a defamation lawsuit by Sheriff Joe, you will have an opportunity to test your First Amendment theory.

     Congress apparently had a different view and that's why they passed that internet provider immunity statute. If you are interested in whether the First Amendment protects false statements even in political speech, there is a good debate on this on the P & R board between Phil and myself.

they'd have to notify me and give me a certain period of time to remove it.

if i didnt remove it, they'd have to prove it was false, that i knew it was false or i failed to make any attempt to validate it, and that it was published maliciously or recklessly and that it somehow harmed them or their reputation.

then if they won, they'd get a judgement.

that'll make him quite a fancy piece of toilet paper.

for now, i've taken the option to upload files out.

i may put it back in.

im not interested in publishing any of the escorts info. even if they failed to black out their name, i would do it for them.

not because i have to, but because i would want to.

but if someone wanted to go get a copy of your arrest records and slip it under your boss's face just to be mean and get you fired, you can claim damages, but you wont get any.  its mean but that doesnt mean its illegal.

im not trying to be mean to anyone.

obstruction charges do concern me and i will be consulting some legal resources regarding that issue, however my concern here is small and only because i'm not familiar with obstruction laws.

ive heard of escorts getting threatened to have obstruction charges against them if they told anyone about the sting but i have never seen anyone actually being charged for it and i think thats because they cant.. i think it only applies if the escort getting busted is part of a bigger investigation and she talks, then its obstructing.  but if her case is just hers, then her investigation is over so she cant obstruct her own investigation.

i wasnt really concerned about the legality of the site, im not new to website administration... i can addresss legal concerns as they arise and so far, nothing controversial has been submitted so i'd rather not spend alot of time and energy worrying about something that may or may not be a future issue.

i actually just posted looking for suggestions about what to ask on the surveys.

lol

despite your effort to sidetrack me, they're done

That is like someone being injured in a car wreck due to the other driver's "faulty brakes"....

Then the brakes get fixed and thinking they are off the hook.

The damage is already done.

I really like your survey, very nice & can't wait to read it.

As long as you "black out" the "personal info" of "either party". Then I don't see how you can get into any trouble.  That would be the main thing. The disclaimer you added was good.  The logo was cute and you have done a good job with the over all design.
I am very impressed you put so much work & creativity into your idea.  
You have a lot of guts to pull off that sort of project. Best of luck & good for you.

I look forward to seeing it in action. A few comments and suggestions:

1) In the first section, the drop down boxes should have an 'other' category with a text box visitors can fill in if 'other' is selected. This would cover any deviations from the scenarios you've given. For example, under the references section, what if two references were given and both responded?

2) I think some of the questions should be phrased more neutrally, particularly in the section entitled "The Arrest". "In what ways were they being jerks to you?" is pretty leading and looks amateurish, in my honest opinion. I feel the same way about the questions "If what way do you feel your rights were violated?" [sic] and "What comments did they make to scare or emabarass you about your job?". I think these could be better phrased along the lines of, "If you felt your rights were violated, please give details."

3) You might also ask about the escort's hourly rate, nationality and any prior history of trouble with the law.

...links to legal information from reputable sources might be a useful and interesting addition to the site.

#2.  you're right -that section definitely needs help.  thanks for your suggestion, i changed it to "describe their attitude towards you"


#3. i'm adding rate and nationality..those are definitely important...

but the prior history i think is covered enough  

specifically on the setup page,  i ask -- if it is their first time, 2nd time, etc busted

then later i ask if
other factors, such as outstanding warrants,  played a role

questions beyond that i feel would be intrusive, unnecessary and used to unfairly judge the escort.

yes im planning to add links to helpful resources.  

thanks again, your suggestions were exactly what i was looking for.

I,ve away,s thought of doing something like that, I,m taking a degree in CJustise so I can learn about what my rights are & also to spy on cops better,I,ve been in a few close calls myself. so a survey would be real good for everybody.

This is a great idea ...share and learn.