Beaumont, TX
Categories:
Tactics Used |
|
---|---|
Reverse stings | ✓ |
Shaming | ✓ |
Auto seizure | ✓ |
Community service | ✓ |
Public education | ✓ |
Neighborhood action | ✓ |
SOAP orders | ✓ |
John school | ✓ |
Letters | ✓ |
Cameras | ✓ |
Web stings | ✓ |
License suspension | ✓ |
Beaumont is a city of approximately 120,000 residents, located in Jefferson County in southeast Texas. Prostitution is a persistent and visible problem in the area, generating complaints to police from businesses and residents. Sex trafficking of adults and children have also been documented in the city, as have targeted assaults on prostituted women.
To address such issues, the Beaumont Police Department has conducted at least five street-level reverse sting operations to identify and apprehend sex buyers. Operations have centered around 11th street, where commercial sex sales are said to occur frequently. In October 2014, police arrested six johns in the area using female undercover officers as decoys. Arrestees’ names and photos were not released to the media.
In August 2013, a web-based reverse sting resulted in “several” arrests, including that of a top law enforcement officer for the City of Rose Hill Acres. The identity of the City Marshal was obtained by media outlets from court records and interviews, but not from a public release by police. The sex buyer was booked into the Jefferson County Jail and bond was set at $250. He was one of several people arrested in a prostitution sting that took place at a Beaumont hotel, where those arrested had responded to ads in Backpage.com.
In December, 2019, six men were arrested during an undercover prostitution sting conducted by the Beaumont Police Department. Undercover officers placed ads online soliciting acts of prostitution. Numerous individuals responded and reached an agreement to exchange sexual favors for money. The six males arrested were those who followed through by appearing at the hotel room and agreeing to pay for sex. All six men were subsequently transported to the Jefferson County Jail on charges for prostitution. Police press releases included photos and identifying information about the men.
In October, 2020 the Beaumont Police Department announced the arrest of 26 individuals in a weekend prostitution sting. The two-day operation led to the arrest of 21 males that solicited sexual relations from minors and adults. Beaumont Police and the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office conducted the two-day operation with assistance from both the Liberty County and McLennan County Sheriff’s Departments with the goal of targeting “human trafficking” and “sex buyers.” The identities of all those arrested were included in news releases.
There has been some activity initiated by residents that that focused on deterring sex buyers. In October 2013, media outlets reported that some city residents had begun to take collective action to reduce prostitution in their neighborhood. In the Beaumont Avenues neighborhood, particularly along College Street, the publisher of the Spanish-language newspaper, La Voz, was using the newspaper to expose the problem of street prostitution. The publisher began taking photographs and video of the activity and encouraging residents and businesses to report to police. He argued that reason prostitution exists in the Avenues is because there’s a customer base, and by letting those in the area know he’s watching, and even publicizing the illicit behavior, they’ll stop.
Key Partners
Key Sources
- Street-Level Reverse Stings:
- “Undercover Prostitution Sting Nets 15 Individuals; Investigation Centered around Old Town and the Avenues”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 5 2006.
- “Beaumont Police Arrest 14 in Prostitution Sting; Officers Focus on College, 11th Streets”, Beaumont Enterprise, August 31 2006.
- “Prostitution Sweep Nets 8 Suspects”, Beaumont Enterprise, August 17 2007.
- “Sting Operation on 11th Street in Beaumont Nets 15 Sex Offense Arrests; Police Target 11th Street near Interstate 10, Other Areas in Response to Complaints from Residents”, Beaumont Enterprise, January 4 2007.
- “Man Arrested After Fleeing During Prostitution Sting Operation”, KDFM-FM 103.3, February 7 2008.
- “Police Chase down Man after Prostitution Sting”, Beaumont Enterprise, February 7 2008.
- “Beaumont Police Arrest 9 for Prostitution”, Beaumont Enterprise, October 24 2014.
- Web-Based Reverse Stings, Shaming:
- “Six Men, One Woman Arrested in Beaumont Prostitution Sting”, ABC/KBMT-TV 12, August 30 2013.
- “Prostitution Sting Produces 7 Arrests; Among Those Six Men and One Woman in Custody Is Officer for Rose Hill Acres”, Beaumont Enterprise, September 3 2013.
- https://www.mytexasdaily.com/upper-gulf-coast/six-southeast-texas-men-arrested-in-undercover-prostitution-sting (2019)
- https://www.kjas.com/news/local_news/article (2020)
- https://kfdm.com/news/local/beaumont-pd-anti-human-trafficking-operation-leads-to-21-arrests (2020)
- Neighborhood Action:
- Sex Trafficking and Child Sexual Exploitation in the Area:
- “Part II: Escaping Modern Day Slavery”, CBS/KFDM-TV 6.
- “Teens Testify about Working for Houston Pimp; Trial of Man Accused of Enticing Them Offers Look at Local Child Slavery”, Houston Chronicle, September 20 2006.
- “Defense Paints Girls as Liars in Child Sex Case”, Houston Chronicle, September 21 2006.
- “Teens Say Suspect Was Their Pimp; Expert Says up to 600 Children Work City Streets Nightly”, Houston Chronicle, September 21 2006.
- “Beaumont Native Sentenced to Lengthy Prison for Sex Trafficking of Minors”, U.S. Federal News Service, May 2 2007.
- “7 Years Added to Teen Sex Sentence”, Houston Chronicle, May 3 2007.
- “Beaumont Girl’s Victimizer Gets 22 Years; Man Convicted of 2 Counts of Sex Trafficking of Children”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 4 2007.
- “Pimps Troll Beaumont for Youths; Underage Girls Lured into Houston Sex Trade”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 25 2008.
- “Houston Man Enters Guilty Plea to Transporting Woman for Commercial Sex”, U.S. Federal News Service, January 5 2012.
- “Transporting a Woman for Commercial Sex Lands Houston Man in Federal Prison”, Press Release, Southern District of Texas Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, August 16 2012.
- Child Endangerment:
- “Day-Long Prostitution Sting Nets 18 Arrests; Police Follow Complaints, Knowledge that Women Work with Drug Dealers”, Beaumont Enterprise, August 26 2010.
- Background on Prostitution in the Area:
- “Passing Years Erasing Jefferson County’s Vice-Ridden Image”, Dallas Morning News, December 23 1985.
- “Eight Women Arrested in Prostitution Sting”, Beaumont Enterprise, January 26 2006.
- “Prostitution Sweep Nets 8 in Old Town”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 10 2007.
- “Sex Spa Crackdown Needed in Beaumont”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 11 2008.
- “Cops: Prostitution Is on the Increase; After Retreating to 43 Cases in All of 2007, Beaumont Has Seen 36 So Far in 2008”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 16 2008.
- “Spa Sex Sting Draws Inquiry; Investigation Attempts to Find Out How Far Cops Went while Targeting Alleged Prostitution”, Beaumont Enterprise, June 4 2008.
- “Raid Fallout Spurs New BPD Policies; Official Expects Clear Rules on Sting Operations to Be in Place after Suspended Officers’ Appeals”, Beaumont Enterprise, July 29 2008.
- “Sex Spa Raid Ends up with Cops Fighting to Keep Their Jobs”, Beaumont Enterprise, December 28 2008.
- “Sex Sting Cop Battles for Job; Rep: Were Sex Acts OK as Part of Prostitution Case? Arbitrator Hears Arguments for, against Firing”, Beaumont Enterprise, January 23 2009.
- “Cop Wins, Officer Suspended after Sex Sting Should Be Reinstated, Arbitrator Says”, Beaumont Enterprise, May 7 2009.
- “Day-Long Prostitution Sting Nets 18 Arrests; Police Follow Complaints, Knowledge that Women Work with Drug Dealers”, Beaumont Enterprise, August 26 2010.
- “Prostitution Moves from the Streets to Web Communities”, Beaumont Enterprise, January 16 2011.
- “Beaumont Police Arrest at Least 7 in Prostitution Sting”, ABC/KBMT-TV 12, July 11 2014.
- Documented Violence against Individuals Engaged in Prostitution in the Area:
State | Texas |
Type | City |
Population | 109579 |
Location |
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