Erie County is located in the western part of New York, bordering Lake Erie. The county seat is Buffalo, and the population is approximately 960,000. The Erie County Sheriff’s Office has worked closely with local police departments in executing reverse sting operations. Though the area began using reverse stings in 1997, the Erie County Sheriff’s Office has continued to have issues with the local police stations committing to sting operations targeting sex buyers. Buffalo launched one of the first john school programs in 1997 as an alternative to jail time for men convicted of soliciting and arrested in reverse sting operations. Today the john school is inactive due to the infrequency of reverse sting operations. Erie County also has Neighborhood Watch programs and surveillance cameras in the Buffalo area.