In Phoenix husbands/boyfriends as drivers have been charged with a pimping felony vs trafficking, However, it seems sex trafficking charges are getting more common around the U.S.
Sep. 7, 2017 - Reason.com (names edited for privacy)There was no trafficking victim here—just a couple attempting private sexual activity with another consenting adult. But Maryland cops don't care. A husband and wife who conspired to get her (safely) paid for sex were arrested. She was charged with a misdemeanor. He's facing a human-trafficking charge and decades in prison. The case perfectly encapsulates how harsh laws against human trafficking are used to target sex workers' families, friends, and colleagues who so much as drive them to meet a client. It also showcases the sexism at work in enforcement of prostitution and trafficking laws. While it's unjustified to punish either one of these people for this attempt at private sexual activity with another consenting adult, it's especially egregious that the man here is facing a much more severe charge. On September 1, Washington County District Court Judge RW ordered the man, 35-year-old JH, to be held without bail until the case is resolved. Neither H nor his wife H, 33, were involved in anything the average person would think of as sex trafficking; this was just an old-fashioned vice sting. Police in Hagerstown, Maryland, responded to online "escort" ads and arrested the women who showed up to meet undercover cops at a local motel. Her husband had dropped her off and was waiting in the parking lot with the couple's two young children until H texted to say she was OK. She was booked on one count of prostitution, a charge that can come with up to one year in prison or a fine of up to $500. Her trial is set for November 7. Meanwhile, JH was charged with one count of human trafficking, and two counts of neglect of a minor. Prosecutors say Hicks is guilty of "human trafficking" because he did "take or cause another to be taken to any place for prostitution." If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000. The assault and child neglect charges could cost an additional 20 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. How saddling the mother of two young boys with a criminal record and imprisoning the children's father for decades (and labeling him a sex trafficker) will help anyone is unclear here. But restoration and justice aren't the true aims of vice laws. The point is keeping cops busy, giving them a chance to play hero, and letting them seize all the assets they can.
Virtually everything to do with P4P today ends up with the catch-all charge of human trafficking.
It seems improbable that LE could have found out about this unless one of the party was way indiscreet somehow.
This information could be very valuable to us if it is known.
in some cities, like Phoenix discretion does not always save from stings. Drivers licenses fake with special DL# for LE issued for false ID, can do employment verification from fake employers used by LE, have words GFE or worse on website or ads, there is no perfect way to screen i.e. LE taking over P411 accounts to do fake verifications after arrest gal, get her phone and ID.
If they suspect a place used they will stake it out watching for customers or drivers etc. In many cities huge war against in private consenting adults, which is why the 9th Circuit challenge is so important but a long shot to win.
What if hubby didn't know she was getting paid for sex? Where is the evidence she told him? If the whole family did know, why weren't the minors in the car arrested for human trafficking? Do you have to be over 18 to be charged with this crime? Kids (16 & up in my state) can legally drive cars. Kids under 16 can still be complicit in the commission of a crime. Juvenile halls across the US are filled with under age felons.
What if she took an Uber to the meeting? Would the Uber driver be arrested and tried for human trafficking? It seems to meet the definition of some who "takes or causes another to be taken to any place for prostitution." What if the driver takes a stripper to a strip club and she gets arrested in the club for extras? Will the driver be arrested there?
What if she took a public city bus to the meeting? Would the bus driver and all bus passengers be arrested for human trafficking?
And what is a "place of prostitution"? A brothel seems obvious. But a hotel/motel with say 40 rooms where maybe 2 to 4 of them may at any time be used by prostitutes means that 90 to 95% of the "place" and it's other customers are NOT being used for or engaging in prostitution. What's the threshold? 10%, 30%, 75%? Also, what if she met clients at a private residence? If the husband of a cop has a hooker come to his house to for a session, does the house get seized as a "place of prostitution"? And does the wife/cop get arrested for human trafficking if hubby used her phone, PC, internet account to contact the hooker? What if they are in an "open relationship" and knows he bangs on the side?
Who gets to argue this one before @SCOTUS?