| 2/5/2007 |
Giannini to submit bill to close prostitution loophole
STATE HOUSE – Rep. Joanne M. Giannini is planning to submit legislation aimed at closing a loophole that allows prostitution in Rhode Island when the solicitation occurs indoors.
Currently, prostitution arrests are usually made under a statute that prohibits loitering for the purposes of soliciting sex. But since “loitering” is generally considered something that occurs outdoors or in a place where the public passes by, existing law doesn’t allow charges if the solicitation occurs indoors.
Law enforcement officials have complained that they need a stronger statute to help close down a number of alleged brothels in Providence operating under the pretense of being massage parlors and spas.
“Prostitution is a serious problem in Providence, and we have to give police every available tool to stop it. They’ve identified this problem with the law, and we need to address it if we’re serious about cracking down on prostitution in Rhode Island,” said Representative Giannini, a Democrat who represents District 7 in Providence.
The bill would add a section on prostitution to the state laws, defining it and making it a misdemeanor punishable by the same penalty as loitering for indecent purposes – up to six months in jail and fines between $250 and $1,000 for the first offense, and up to one year and $500 to $1,000 for subsequent offenses.
It also adds sections of law that would provide equal punishment for “johns” who engage or attempt to engage the services of a prostitute, as well as for anyone who knowingly permits prostitution on their property.
This is the second bill Representative Giannini is submitting this year to crack down on the 10 or 12 alleged brothels masquerading as spas in Providence. These spas have been raided by police many times in recent years, and each time most of the people working there were Asian women, many of whom are illegal immigrants who police say are essentially being held prisoner in the buildings, where they eat, sleep and serve as prostitutes.
Her other bill would make it a felony to participate in human trafficking – defined as transporting, soliciting, recruiting, harboring, providing, or obtaining another person for transport – for the purpose of making the victim perform prostitution or forced labor.
Representative Giannini said her ultimate goal is not the arrest of women, but to protect women from being forced into prostitution in the first place.
“In many cases, women who are working as prostitutes are being forced to do so, either by a pimp or by people who have brought her here from another country. The vast majority of these women are victims more than they are criminals. But in order to shut down this dangerous industry and stop the cycle of victimization, police need every possible tool, including the ability to arrest everyone involved.”
Stronger laws that allow more arrests and prosecution of everyone involved in prostitution will deter brothels from opening in Providence, said Representative Giannini. Often, Providence police will raid a spa, and it will simply open up again afterwards.
She added that in cases where the women have been victimized, other laws, including her bill banning human trafficking, are available to help them and punish the people victimizing them.
“This bill is about helping women and stopping their victimization. If police are able to come down hard on the prostitution trade, fewer women will end up in it in the first place,” she said.
Co-sponsors of the legislation will be House Majority Leader Gordon D. Fox (D-Dist. 4, Providence), Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr. (D-Dist. 69, Bristol, Portsmouth), Rep. Helio Melo (D-Dist .64, East Providence) and House Majority Whip Peter F. Kilmartin (D-Dist. 61, Pawtucket).
For more information, contact:
Meredyth R. Waterman, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 222-2457 |
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