New York Decriminalizing Prostitution

The Independent Commission on New York City Criminal Justice and Incarceration Reform would like to reclassify prostitution as a civil offense. Meaning they will have to appear in court instead of being arrested. There's no more space for the hookers in city jails. Is the world ready for NY prostitution?

http://nypost.com/2017/04/02/decriminalizing-prostitution-could-be-the-key-to-closing-rikers-island/

Personally, I believe that prostitution should be legalized and regulated to ensure the well-being and a safe working environment for the employees and their customers but especially the employees.

However, treating prostitution as a civil offense will still be an issue since, once again, prostitutes are being harassed to go to court for a victimless crime. The courts should go after brothels who force people into the service rather than people who are willing to perform the service.

But that's my two cents.

@drunk_pi: Baby steps. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

If prostitution becomes legal it'll blur the line of what dating is. I'm against it.

How?

It was a joke. Just think about it :)

This is not my day. Or the cultural difference is to big for me to get it.

There is a joke in the states, that you pay for a sex when you pay for a date. It's crude, but I thought it was funny in this thread.

Sounds like a good first step to me but like Drunk_PI said I too believe that prostitution should be legalized and regulated.

@playmynutz:

I'm personally against it. Spreads STD's, gives people the wrong impression of women and it is extremely demoralizing.

There are a lot of sex workers who would disagree with you. These sex workers would also include women from Australia, India, and many other industrialized nations where these workers fought to make it legal.

I wish drugs were all federally decriminalized.

I would guess having it legal and regulated would lower the chance of STD's. (open to any insight on this one way or the other)

The wrong impression of women? Women aren't a whole, there are all sorts of women. Male prostitutes is a thing also BTW.

It may seem demoralizing to you but for some I'm sure it's not. Even if it is demoralizing, some women are still going to do it and having it illegal doesn't make it any less demoralizing. And if these women get arrested it's only going to make it harder to get out of the profession with a criminal record.

You obviously have your opinions about this but are those really valid reasons why the people that do choose to do it should be arrested for it? Do you think having laws that tell women why they can and cannot have consensual sex is okay?

I don't plan to be a John whether it's legal or not, but there just shouldn't be laws against letting consenting adults do what they want to do when there are no victims. Same reason I'm all for legal weed but have never even tried it, I even live in Colorado where I could legally buy it for recreational use.

No room for hookers in jail? Yeah, if it's a small county that has one (1) or two (2) holding cells.

Whenever a prostitute is taken to jail, they'll be back on the streets in less than eight (8) hours with a citation. The only time a prostitute stays in jail is if a warrant gets put out for her arrest and the warrant revokes 853.6/OR.

(Edit for clarity, speaking with respect to California Law)

What about those horny Johns and Janes?

You joke (and it's funny lol), but you're also on to something lol.

Women (and men, to some extent as well) are going to have to change a bit. If prostitution becomes legal, people are going to have to put up with a lot less shit from their significant others or be less tolerant during the dating process.

I think it's great, shit could be a lot more real and honest. Women won't string men along since men don't have to put up with their bullshit; men won't be as predatory or douche'y since they can get laid on a whim.

I think there are also a lot of professionals out there that simply don't want to be in a relationship, either for an extended period of time or ever, and prostitution is perfect for them. Or maybe there are people who are just in a really bad funk and need "a win" (to put it bluntly) and a quick, quality lay from a qualified person in the oldest profession is the answer.

What about the folks that pay for it?

I'm asking....ummm, for a friend.

Pretty sure, the prostitution situation in Nevada worked out well for the state.

@hillelslovak: @MuD3: @Maroxad:

So since you guys feel that prostitution should be a legal profession, let me ask you this.. Does that mean that if you had (or already have) a daughter and she told you that she wanted to become a prostitute for a career, you would be okay with it? Is this really something that we should let women or even men strive to be?

how is thinking sex workers dont deserve jail time equal promotion of prostitution?

@hillelslovak:

It means that you still encourage it. But that's not what I was asking.

If you had a daughter, would YOU let her become a prostitute?

I agree with this. Here in Europe, at least in my country, prostitution is legal and it's no issue

I loathe politicians. I think in order to be a successful politician you have to become a scumbag. If someone I loved told me they were going into politics I would fly off the handle. Despite all this some frantic hand waving and some dismayed pleading should be the limit of my outrage. I shouldn't be able to overrule that person's desires for their own life by making the profession illegal.

You can be wildly against something, I am fairly anti-drug, without thinking we should have the government level firearms at people for doing it.

Emotional appeals? Try harder.

As for becoming a prostitute? Could be worse. Better than than a professional moocher (priest/cleric), door to door salesman, telemarketeer, youtube pundit, ect. As long as she stays safe, she can do whatever the hell she likes. And since prostitution would be moved out of the black market. Her job as a sex worker would be a lot more safe.

Even if I dont like a job it still has a right to exist, provided it is not too detrimental to society, or violates upon the rights of others.

@mrbojangles25:

It's a misd. You'll get cited and released in the field for it; unless you refuse to sign the citation, demand to see a magistrate, or have no identification and refuse to identify yourself. Then you go to jail. Those are the big three.

Even if you go to jail, you're not staying for more than 8-12 hours typically. The jail will cite him out

If memory serves me right, felonies are reserved for sex trafficking and pimping with respect to prostitution.

Ah. That was new to me.

You make it sound like (mostly)men in US put up with a lot in hope of getting laid. Damn. Doesn't your girls want any?

They get charged with the same crime; 647(b). 647(b) is (typically) only used for when we do a sting operation, otherwise the common charge for loitering prostitutes will be 653.22. Both are misdemeanors. I'm probably not going to cite a female in the field, as the crime is likely to continue if I cite and release her. Secondly, she is a little fish in the big pond. Vast majority of girls are not out there on their own accord. They have a pimp that watches over and charges the girls a very high fee. He also routinely will abuse them. That's what we care about, getting the pimp because it's a felony, and getting the girls resources to better their lives.

The highways and truck stops have the worst of it. Minors being trafficked and forced into sexual slavery basically. It's hard to fathom these things occurring on American soil, but it's routine.

Women will end up doing what they want with their bodies, and they have the power to follow such mantra. It's sad for us in law enforcement to see all the abuse and decay that come with the selfish mantra. Prostitutes are routinely under the influence of narcotics/drugs, and they routinely live destructive lives. No one wants their children to follow such a dark path.

I mentioned women lol. I just can't go into a lot of detail as I am not one :P

Trust me, I have two women roomies, I know what they go through. Like I said, less douche'y and predatory guys to deal with if they can just go straight to the source for the D

@Maroxad:

This isn't about emotional appeals, so bare me the bull. I was talking about the negative effects of making something like this legal. Right now, it is at the bottom of the work chain where it belongs. It's not meant be a profession you want to stay in, it's something you should WANT TO AVOID. How many happy prostitutes have you met? How many children have you heard of being proud to have a prostitute for a parent?

And like everything else wrong with society, it's never your problem until the negative effects hit you. Just as I was saying. I guarantee you that anyone with a kid would despise the very idea of them going into a disgusting profession like prostitution. It's easy for anyone who doesn't have or want children to agree with it because it's not their problem but for those with kids would have this looming over their shoulder. The negative impact of legalizing this far outweigh the benefits.

How does the decriminalization of a victimless crime equal the promotion of the activity in question?

@Gaming-Planet: Ummm...That's a really dumb thought. Weed sure, but a huge no to all the rest.

"What if it happened to you" is usually a pretty emotional appeal. And the emotion, you seem to try to rile up here is that of shame.

What makes you assume the stigma of this profession will change with the legality of it? Looking at places where it is legal, the stigma isnt much better than it is elsewhere. Your argument has no basis in reality.

Even then, despite it being something most people would want to avoid. People still do it regardless wether it is legal or not. Why? Because for as bad as it is, it is better than being unemployed. In other words, prostitution is a lesser evil.

Theres so much wrong with this.

How does legalising something promote it? People are becoming prostitutes regardless of what the law says. If you really want to prevent people becoming prostitutes you should sart avocating for better education, employment, and welfare.

How does keeping it illegal help people leave the industry? If anything it makes it harder to leave as its a lot harder to get a job when you have a criminal record. With it legal people who resorted to prostitution as a last resort will have a much better chance of finding a decent job once their circumstances improve.

It's brings about negative activity and is at the bottom due to it's illegal nature. Remember the prohibition? Just look at states with legal and illegal pot.

The positives FAAAAAAAAAAAAR outweigh the negatives. It isn't even close. Legalization and Regulation would bring about less STDs, less violence against these women, less illegal drug relations within this specific trade, less putting people in jail for fucking (lol wtf), more tax revenue, etc. Probably less average yearly rapes in general as well.

What are the negatives? Some pompously religious people getting their panties in a twist? Who gives a flying **** about them?

Jails are massively overcrowded. Prostitution is a moral problem, shouldnt be a criminal one.

I have a daughter, and of course I wouldn't like it if she became a prostitute. But if for whatever reason she ever ended up in that position I sure as hell would rather her be in a regulated situation and without fear of being pinned with a criminal record because of it. Legalizing it wouldn't make it some glamorized career that children aspire to have, no kids are telling their parents they want to work at McDonalds when they grow up either. Laws shouldn't be there to keep people from doing things just because you don't like it, if there's no victim then what the **** is the punishment for? Maybe we should start arresting lawyers... nobody likes them.

So, your little shame appeal is bullshit, what are these negative repercussions for legalizing prostitution you seem to believe exist?

If I had a daughter, I'd still support her so long as she is aware of the risks, that she is happy, and that she isn't ashamed about what she is doing. I just wouldn't want her coming home and giving me details about her day at work. Wouldn't care to hear about how some 12 inch slugging guy impaled her. But the main factor is her HAPPINESS....

I'll admit that I would subtly encourage her every blue moon to look into other career choices for a better retirement plan and lower her chances of contracting some dangerous disease. But I definitely wouldn't beat it upside her head...

You used a fairly straight forward emotional appeal, lol.

Human beings want sex, it's our biological drive to want it. They are going to get it whether you feel they should have it or not. Do you know what's worse than a world with legal prostitution? Human trafficking, making children under the age of 10 disappear for the purpose of being sold into sexual slavery for the sole purpose of generating revenue off of the seediest and vilest underbelly of the human condition.

A world with legal prostitution means no pimps beating up their whores for not making enough money that evening. It means a world where women and men could profit off their skills and not take up the career out of desperation to make ends meet or feed an illegal drug habit. It means a world where not only the sex workers but the customers wouldn't have to fear disease transmission, and they would be paying fair market value for anything their little hearts could desire.

If you don't think there are happy prostitutes out there, I suggest you watch some documentaries about high-class escorts who not only love their jobs, but do what they do for obscene amounts of money. And in many cases, it oftentimes isn't even about sex. Many older men are looking for companionship and not wasting time messing around with the dating scene (due to lack of time or care).

I have to ask, what exactly is the source of your objection to legal prostitution? It's very existence has proven to be safer for everyone involved, and a very large revenue generator not only for the people participating in the business, but the places in the world where it is legal (through sex tourism). Anyone with an ounce of logic behind them could only come to the same conclusion... it's the only sensible one.

@foxhound_fox:

I dunno why people keep thinking that I'm trying to use an emotional appeal. I'm obviously the only person riled up about this and was speaking out of anger on behalf of myself. I don't like this one bit but I do understand the reason to want this from hearing other people's reasonings.

@killered3:

A lot of these so called daughters including yours are already getting ***** up, down, back and side to side from multiple guys per day. The only difference is that they don't get paid for it. I'm all for the girls doing what they want as long as it's safe. Would I want my daughter to be a prostitute? Obviously not but if she is an adult and was raised properly then she can make her own damn decisions.

The fallacy given by the government to keep prostitution illegal is usually the health aspect when in reality it is nothing more or less than a tax issue. The government feels entitled to a portion of ones earnings regardless of the income. A woman (or man) using their "gifts" for compensation should not include the government in the equation.

@blaznwiipspman1:

She's 9.

People grow up and have sex. Oh the humanity.

the emotional reasoning by the right wing nut jobs and the liberal SJWs is a plague on laws and legislations in the USA. Its why the US is becoming a damn joke..when these idiots use imaginary fantasies that they concoct in their heads and repeat over and over again. The slutty std spreading prostitutes who could be your daughter, the so called muslim jihadies invasion spreading sharia law, the molestor trannies creeping in bathrooms. sht has gotten way out of hand.

@blaznwiipspman1:

To be fair, SOME of the concern is valid but yeah, it does get pretty out of hand. Like my situation, yeah she'll grow up and sex is inevitable. It hurts but this is just a fact of life and I really have no control over it. I WANT to protect her from as much bad things as possible but I don't want to be one of those hove-over-parents. This is why I said that I understand why people would want this prostitution legalized.

@killered3: Sex, done irresponsibly is bad. Sex in itself, is not. Which is exactly why a good chunk of us want to legalize prostitution. We want to move it out of the black market, so it can be better regulated, and gain some levels of standards.

Prudeness does society no favors.

Clearly you don't understand. Father's should be in complete control of their daughter's lives and tell them what they can and cannot do.

Agreed, that's exactly the point.

The "would you want your child to ___________?" argument is moot because I don't have any say in it.

First off, by the time they're old enough to make those decisions, they're not really my child in the sense that I have any say in their lives; they might value my counsel (if I'm lucky), but I won't have any legal right to their decisions.

Second, and more importantly, if they choose to become a prostitute, I would have to resign myself to that fact and hope--and support--that they would do it in the safest and most profitable manner possible. That means A.) regulated and B.) without a middleman like a pimp abusing them and taking their earnings.

And let's be completely blunt for a second: the kind of people that are prostitutes are not exactly the kind of men and women that are cared for by their parents. You might get the odd one that do it as a social experiment or an act of rebellion, but for the most part they're doing it because they really don't have any better options. It's wash dishes, dig ditches, or...thanks to a newly enlightened society, have sex.

To add on, which pays the bills and debt? Working minimum wage at a McDonalds? Or being an escort/prostitute?

Companionship is a valuable commodity, which is why you see college students - especially women - pursue this avenue because people are willing to pay enormous amounts to get this service. Hell, there are places where people are just paid to hug strangers. I know it sounds ridiculous but it's a thing. Now, we could make college affordable or even free to reduce the amount of college students pursuing prostitution/escort/pornography; a higher minimum wage; or even introduce something even more radical such as a guaranteed minimum income but-what-the-fudge-do-I-know?

It's not just sex. It's the temporary feeling of companionship that people want and are willing to pay for and if someone who is of age wants to provide it, then it's their choice, whether if they want to hug a stranger, be an escort for a CEO to make him/her feel like an alpha, or have sex because maybe some people just want sex instead of going through the traditional route of having a relationship because maybe they don't want the relationship part yet.

I mean, what's the difference of paying for sex versus having a one-night stand? Hell, N64DD made the best point in that what is the difference of taking a girl out versus prostitution if the whole is to just bang?

Good, it's about time.

Fantastic. Its about time at least one or two states has recognized this fact of life that we cant really get around by making it illegal.