The recent Board shut-down, along with P411, was mentioned in USA today, eliciting some discussion and wide-spread concern on other TER Regional Boards.

Ugh....this is all SOOO dumb and annoying! Two consenting adultS compensating each others needs, wants and desires that's all! Why do these folks have to come and mess with our happiness!

Because law enforcers are pussies.  They're too pussy to go after the big time mafias that'll put bullet holes all over the law enforcers bodies.  Providers are easy job for them.  All cops are scared of hardcore gangsters.

I think a percentage of those that criminalize this industry feel or believe that sex between consenting adults should only happen after marriage and sex at any other time between them is morally and legally wrong. Then the same people with that view get caught in a sting and look like they didn't practice what they felt or believe.

Oh, so much juicy talk of the feds and law enforcement in these articles.  It makes it all seems so seedy and shocking. Of course the media just eats that up.  The biggest charges are from the IRS regarding money laundering.. not as exciting to read about.  I just hate the way this all went down.

100% spot on and I second this!

When that article was first posted, it called P411 "Preferred911.com." LMAO... nothing screams "I could not be any LESS familiar with the subject matter I'm reporting on" like an asinine mistake like that.

testing-testing
in case anyone else wanted to red a different opinion of the shake down, CNN posted its own article yesterday and included several interesting clips including an older one related to silicon valley's booming sex and tech industry.
Youre gonna have to search on cnn's website since this forum mod deleted my previous post.

I tried to link to the CNN story but my post was disallowed by the moderator because, "Reason: Your post contains personal, private information of an individual which is not allowed per TER posting guidelines."

There was some guy in the defunct group who was always erroneously citing some law to make it sound like prostitution is legal.

Federal Law 2257 requires anybody who prints or reprints explicit photographs , movies etc. to keep two forms of ID (one must be a state or federal ID with a photo) of the models. The American adult movie industry is very familiar with it. It's to prevent underage people from being in explicit photos and porn movies. The penalty is a stiff 5 years per offense. I'm shocked the former owner did not have an adult lawyer on retainer. Ignorance of the law is no excuse. So far, they have not charged him with that.

Exactly....this isn't about the act itself, the services we provide and joy gained mutually, this is about $ and the irs not getting paid. If Mr. Red was paying his taxes and not laundering hundreds and thousands of dollars the site would still be just fine. Total bs!

I am going to go luck but I have not seen any articles or news stories that are particularly compelling.

Then WE as PROVIDERS need to fight for the right to work instead of just talking and bitching about how its wrong. Martin Luther King didn't just complain about how its wrong for his people to be treated the way the did, he DID some thing about it. If we want things to happen then we need to go do them. My 2 cents.

No it is YOU who are wrong and full of BS. I'm a charter member of that board and for years patronizing the "affordable" providers with their "affordable" quickies and half-hour dates. The reason they're "affordable" is because most also work the street as streetwalker. Thanks to the Net and that site they also had an extra option to find clientele. Over the years I've had hundreds of encounters and I can tell you less than 10% is pimped. And not all pimped cases are bad, many girls willingly do so because their pimps are also their BF and/or protector. And the arguments about under-age girls are sketchy at best without any proof whatsoever.

I look at this in a positive way, just for my for my own personal reasons, I thank the media for reporting this issues and gives us some kind of advanced warning or shot on the bow kind of way. As soon this article or report got out in public it suddenly gives us/we all of us doing this activities, suddenly we went to a cautious mode, real observant, suspicious to anybody soliciting you, your info, ID, etc,etc, unless you are absolutely sure you verify them yourself that they are NOT Uncle LEO.

My knowledge came from talking to providers over 25 who knew what was going on there. The pimped girls were not all street girls. I can't prove 90% any more than you can prove 10%. I am not interested in so called "STREET-CRED." You are right. I don't see 100's of them. QUALITY is not just everything with me. It's the ONLY thing.

"Lack of street-cred" because he chooses to frequent women you can't afford (or are probably too cheap to see.) WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?  I mean seriously...

The only reason Red got busted by the feds is because he did not pay his taxes.   His website was the best.  It was a fun place for discussions and finding providers.   If there was anything bad going on, it was rooted out.    If he only paid his taxes, this would have never happened.

The racketeering section mentioned in some recent news reports which shall remain nameless is "(a) Whoever travels in interstate or foreign commerce or uses the mail or any facility in interstate or foreign commerce, with intent to—(1) distribute the proceeds of any unlawful activity..." (http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1952). 5 yrs.  

My take is,
   I'm just going have to agree it was about taxes.
 Red  had a functionally nicely well put together site in many of  the forum sections.
Many nice photography posting forums were there.
xoxo
Alysha_Tulipgfe

If only the Puritans had been allowed to set up camp in the Netherlands, and the USA had been established by Native Americans and the Vikings....IF ONLY!  

Well I think I'm a fucking master hobbyist who has mastered the game with shitload of street cred.  

The proceed/earning/profit that R earned was nothing illegal or unlawful. He was charging for membership to his web site as well as advertising spaces. Isn't that what all web sites do to make money? It's not like he was getting a cut from the providers' earning (i.e. pimps) or from clients. He wasn't extorting money from either providers or clients a la old-school Mafia. There goes the racketeering charge...

Exactly...THIS is the ONLY reason...thank you thank you-Well said

The violations...if any... Are on the persons posting the ads...not the site on which they were posted.

I heard from credible sources that he allowed "thousands" of private forums, that were largely unchecked: anyone with a near pulse could ask to start a private forum, and he would give it to them.  

The indictment that was released says nothing about evasion or non-payment of taxes. The charges are money laundering, and the violations charged specifically does not require any intent to evade taxes - it's any transfer of $10,000 or more derived from an illegal activity. At least according to the published info, nothing illegal was done with the money - if the business it came from was legal. I put references in my reply above about reading the indictment. There's a separate section on money laundering that requires intent to evade taxes (and carries a higher penalty). They specifically did not charge under that section.  

You obviously know NOTHING about what you are talking about. Being charged with a crime is entirely DIFFERENT from being found guilty by a jury of such crime. The board was set up to provide a posting space for the general public. The court has found in many similar cases before that if the owner of the board does not do any kind of editing/controlling of the contents on the board he's not liable for whatever is posted.  

"... it's any transfer of $10,000 or more derived from an illegal activity."

thanks for chiming in man...

Link he referenced contain real names,  these types of articles have never been allowed on ter. We are not tightening up just doing what we have done for  14 years

While I am grateful too Dreu, there are a lot of things I don't like here, like the ratings are only high if a provider does unsafe practices. However, I realize its what we have to work with, so I will adapt and overcome. Yes America is ridiculously puritanical but don't hate the cops! They are only responding to a public demand to stop sex trafficking of minors. They don't write the laws, they only enforce them.  

Posted By: DreuHartCMT

If only the Puritans had been allowed to set up camp in the Netherlands, and the USA had been established by Native Americans and the Vikings....IF ONLY!  
   
 All in all, we are the low hanging fruit, that makes us easy to point at and exclaim "THERE'S THE PROBLEM! GET THEM!!"  
   
 I'm all for the elimination of child trafficking, but to thwart consenting adults seems like a waste of time and resources....I dunno. Every year when I pay my taxes, I don't remember approving for the takedown of sites that provide a valuable resource for everyone to play safely and pleasurably....I am so pleased that TER has taken measures to protect itself.  
   
 Thanks again, TER. I'm so grateful you are here!  

-- Modified on 7/17/2014 4:28:15 PM

That's the crux of the case as far as I can tell from reading the indictment and the referenced laws: was the website "facilitating prostitution"? The argument is that if so, any interstate email or travel "in furtherance" represented racketeering, and any movement of profits from it constituted money laundering. If not, not.

https://www.eff.org/issues/bloggers/legal/liability/230

To print out your link:

Real reason he got busted was because he's an IDIOT and STUPID.
There are smart ways to not pay taxes.
What he did was essentially scream to the IRS "INVESTIGATE ME I'M AN IDIOT!