Kent, WA
Categories:
Tactics Used |
|
---|---|
Reverse stings | ✓ |
Shaming | ✓ |
Auto seizure | ✓ |
Community service | ✓ |
Public education | ✓ |
Neighborhood action | ✓ |
SOAP orders | ✓ |
John school | ✓ |
Letters | ✓ |
Cameras | ✓ |
Web stings | ✓ |
License suspension | ✓ |
Kent is a city with approximately 121,000 residents, located in northwestern Washington state. Like neighboring Seattle, Kent has struggled with a prostitution and sex trafficking problem for decades. For example, the King County Superior Court imposed a 35-year sentence against a sex trafficker after a jury convicted him of two counts of promoting commercial sexual abuse of a minor; two counts of second-degree promoting prostitution; one count of leading organized crime; two counts of first-degree theft; and one count of second-degree theft. Police used an undercover prostitution sting at a Kent hotel to catch the trafficker. Kent Police seized $18,000 in cash and two vehicles. With the prosecution completed, Kent Police and the city began a process of criminal forfeiture, which is an option because of the organized crime part of the sentencing. In 2015, King County prosecutors filed child pimping charges against a Kent couple accused of pimping a 13-year-old girl to dozens of Seattle and Portland-area men in little more than a week. Having taken in the girl when she needed a place to stay, the couple “rented out” the braces-wearing girl on Backpage.com. The child was raped by 10 men in one day. In November 2018, an investigation led to the closure of 18 massage parlors that were fronts for prostitution and other illegal activity, and the the City of Kent will also charge any customers of each business who were patrons of prostitution. Kent Police Department Commander cited an increase in businesses acting as fronts for prostitution in south King County, and that each of the businesses also employed unlicensed employees and failed to adhere to health and privacy regulations.
Consumer level demand provides the revenue stream for all prostitution and sex trafficking, and has therefore been targeted by local law enforcement agencies as a strategy for prevention and response. In an effort to deter sex buyers, the Kent Police Department has implemented several strategies that target johns in addition to the city’s prostituted women and aim to rescue child sex trafficking victims. Reverse stings (conducted at street level) and web stings (typically utilizing a decoy ad placed on sites like Craigslist and Backpage.com) are routinely utilized to apprehend potential buyers. Once arrested, johns may be served SOAP (or Stay Out of Areas of Prostitution) orders, placing them on geographic probation and restricting them from entering areas within the city known for commercial sex. They may also have their car impounded upon arrest, if they were soliciting from a vehicle registered in their name. In
In May, 2015, the south King County cities of Kent, Auburn, Renton, SeaTac, and Tukwila launched a program of arrests and prosecutions intended to get tougher on those who hire prostituted persons. The Kent Municipal Court went on the record in a Seattle Times interview and expressed her belief that cases like these should no longer be eligible for “diversion” and that those who are convicted should be sentenced to attend a 10-week intervention program (the OPS program for sex buyers, held in Seattle) as a condition of their sentences. Up to 2015, the City of Kent had made three arrests “buyers” of sexual services for every arrest of a prostituted person.
In July 2017, Kent Police arrested 11 men for patronizing a prostitute during an undercover sting at a local motel. Ten officers were assigned various roles during the operation set up at the Howard Johnson motel, 1233 Central Ave. N., to combat demand for the commercial sex industry by arresting men who solicit women for sex in exchange for money. Police placed an advertisement in the dating section of backpage. com, which featured photos of a woman posing in lingerie with a phone number and a “Sunday Funday Special.” An undercover female officer answered text messages or calls to the phone number in the ad. In one case, a man reportedly texted the number and agreed to pay $80 for a sex act. The woman told him to let her know when he was at the motel and she would give out her room number. When the man showed up at the room, officers arrested him. Police impounded the man’s Ford F-250 pickup and put a prostitution hold on it, so the man would have to pay fees to get the truck back. Police conducted several similar prostitution stings earlier in 2017.
In January 2017, a reverse sting operation to address the demand of both prostitution and sex trafficking. In discussion sanctions for arrested sex buyers, a spokesman for the Kent Police Department said that Kent offers “educational courses in conjunction with enforcement” (i.e., a “john school” program). Anyone convicted of patronizing a prostitute in Kent can be assigned to attend a 10-week intervention program. That program began in 2015, and while based in Seattle serves all of King County. The program is intended to address the belief systems motivating sex buyers. “Stopping Sexual Exploitation: a Program for Men” was developed and implemented by Peter Qualliotine, the co-founder of the Seattle-based “Organization for Prostitution Survivors” (OPS). The program a ten-week “transformative justice” intervention for court and self-referred sex buyers. The program includes 10 weekly sessions: Two individual 60-minute sessions before participation in the group, and then eight weekly group sessions of 2.5 hours each. The feel of $90 per session is paid by the buyers, and the proceeds support survivor services. Exercises and group discussions engage participants in a process of-self reflection and critical analysis. The program consists of the following topics or components:
- Sexuality and Gender Socialization
- Harm to Victim/Survivors
- The Sexual Violence Continuum
- Pimping, Trafficking and Domestic Violence
- Power and Violence
- Vulnerability
- Mutuality in Relationships
- The Will to Change
In addition to the “john school” type of requirement, arrested sex buyers can be sentenced up to one year in jail, required to pay a $1,500 fine, and those convicted must pay fees to get their vehicles back. First-time offenders can pay up to $2,500 in fees and fines, according to police.
Many of the tactics described above that had been is use previously in Kent were integrated into its local implementation of the Buyer Beware program. In 2014 King County launched the new initiative designed to reduce the demand for prostitution, change the attitudes and behaviors of men arrested for patronizing, and change cultural acceptance for the purchase of sex. The Buyer Beware initiative is a partnership with eight police departments and city attorneys’ offices across King County that are shifting their emphasis to pursue the buyers of commercial sex. The initiative is led by the Organization for Prostitution Survivors and the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Participating community organizations include Businesses Ending Slavery and Trafficking (BEST), Stolen Youth, and Seattle Against Slavery. Participating law enforcement agencies include the King County Sheriff’s Office and the police departments of Seattle, Des Moines, Kent, Federal Way, Bellevue, and Renton. Buyer Beware brings together local prosecuting authorities with community service organizations and survivors to carry out a comprehensive strategy to reduce demand and facilitate exit from prostitution. The Buyer Beware program’s model emphasizes the prosecution of sex buyers and connecting prostituted people to services. The original goal in 2014 was to reduce demand for commercial sex by 20 percent in two years.
The general approach is essentially the “Nordic Model” or “Equality Model,” which decriminalizes selling sex and shifts to a victim service orientation to prostituted or trafficked persons, but retains legal prohibitions against buying or profiting from the sale of sex. This model can be accomplished without changing prostitution law, through discretionary decisions not to arrest and prosecute prostituted or trafficked persons, even if selling sex remains illegal in state law and local ordinances). The Buyer Beware program places a systematic law enforcement emphasis on arrests and prosecutions of sex buyers, and increasing penalties to deter them. In addition to shifting the emphasis on arrests and victim services, interventions of the Buyer Beware program include John School, Neighborhood Action, and Public Education. Its key elements are:
- Referring sex buyers to “Stopping Sexual Exploitation,” a comprehensive intervention program.
- Collecting fines from arrested sex buyers to fund services for prostituted people.
- Reducing arrests and prosecutions of prostituted persons in favor of referral to services.
- Expanding effective services to assist prostituted people in leaving the life.
- Forming an alliance of public and private employers committed to implementing policies and practices against sex buying.
- Engaging high school and college students on the harm of commercial sexual exploitation.
- Conducting social media campaigns to engage young men on the harms of sex buying.
- Engaging a spectrum of community sectors, including public health, education, business, media and criminal justice to change cultural norms around buying sex.
Key Partners
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- Kent Police Department
- Kent Youth and Family Services
- Tukwila Police Department
- SeaTac Police Department
- King County Prosecutor’s Office
- Organization for Prostitution Survivors
Key Sources
- Street-Level Reverse Stings:
- “Sting Turns Up Police Heat on ‘Johns’ — Des Moines Sees Rise in Prostitution, Despite Targeting Customers”, Seattle Times, June 21 1993.
- “Kent; Prostitution Sting Nets 11 Arrests”, Seattle Times, February 15 2007.
- “Kent PD Prostitution Sting Yields Arrest of 15 ‘Johns'”, I Love Kent, March 21 2009.
- “‘John’ Sting Nets Ten Arrests, First Vehicles Impounded Under New Law”, Press Release, Kent Police Department, July 29 2009.
- https://www.newtonandhall.com/city-of-kent-prostitution-arrests—taking-it-to-the-johns (2015)
- Web-Based Reverse Stings:
- “‘Johns’ Caught Paying Kids for Sex Still Dodging Hard Time, Sex Offender Registration”, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, December 29 2013.
- http://www.kentreporter.com/news/kent-officers-use-undercover-prostitution-sting-to-arrest-man-police-blotter/ (2017)
- https://www.kentreporter.com/news/kent-officers-use-undercover-sting-to-arrest-men-seeking-prostitutes/ (2019)
- Shaming:
- Auto Seizure:
- “Looking for a Prostitute? Bill Would Allow Police to Seize Your Car”, Seattle Times, February 23 2009.
- “‘John’ Sting Nets Ten Arrests, First Vehicles Impounded Under New Law”, Press Release, Kent Police Department, July 29 2009.
- https://www.kentreporter.com/news/kent-officers-use-undercover-sting-to-arrest-men-seeking-prostitutes/ (2019)
- John School:
- Buyer Beware:
- “Criminal Penalties and Fined Related to Prostitution and Commercial Sexual Abuse of Minors.” Report to the Washington State Legislature, Washington State Department of Commerce, December, 2015.
- Sex Trafficking and Child Sexual Exploitation in the Area:
- “2 Charged with Using Yacht to Lure Girls into Prostitution”, Seattle Times, September 23 1994.
- “Pair Admit Running Prostitution Ring”, Seattle Times, December 22 1994.
- “Man Faces Charges of Forcing Teens into Prostitution”, Seattle Times, November 3 2006.
- “Kent Man Charged in Connection with Coercing Teens into Prostitution”, Seattle Times, September 14 2007.
- “Portland Man Charged with Pimping Out 15-Year-Old in Kent”, Seattle Times, March 10 2010.
- “Everett Man Sentenced for Human Trafficking in Connection with Kent Prostitution Case”, Kent Reporter, May 1 2010.
- “Police, FBI Sting Finds Eight Child Prostitutes in Kent”, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, November 9 2010.
- “Kent Police Break Up Child Sex Trafficking Ring”, Press Release, Kent Police Department, December 16 2010.
- “Kent Police Arrest Man Accused of Pimping Teens”, Seattle Times, December 17 2010.
- “King County Prosecutor Files Juvenile Prostitution Felony Charge Against Kent Man”, Kent Reporter, May 7 2011.
- “Seattle Man Accused of Running Lucrative Prostitution Ring”, Seattle Times, July 22 2011.
- “Woman Charged with Pimping Out 2 Teens”, Seattle Times, June 17 2013.
- “Woman Charged with Pimping Teen Girls in Kent”, Kent Reporter, June 21 2013.
- “Woman Claims She Was Forced into Prostitution, Sexually Assaulted”, Kirkland Reporter, July 3 2013.
- “South King County Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking Juveniles across State Lines,” Press Release, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, November 3 2015.
- https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/Charge-Kent-couple-sold-girl-13-to-dozens-of-6174020.php (2015)
- Background on Prostitution in the Area:
- “Prostitution Ring Bridged 2 States”, Bend Bulletin, October 28 1987.
- “Escort-Service Crackdown — Keep Out Notice Is Served on Organized Prostitution”, Seattle Times, November 7 1992.
- “Kent Woman Accused of Advertising Prostitute on Craigslist”, Seattle Times, April 16 2009.
- “Former UW Guard Venoy Overton Arrested for Investigation of Felony Promoting Prostitution”, Seattle Times, June 16 2011.
- “Prostitution Sting Nabs Four in South King County”, Seattle Times, April 19 2013.
- https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/kent-police-to-close-18-massage-parlors-following-prostitution-probe/ (2018)
- https://www.kentreporter.com/news/kent-police-shut-down-18-illegal-massage-parlors/ (2018)
- http://mynorthwest.com/1169451/kent-police-illegal-prostitution-massage-parlors/ (2018)
- Documented Violence Against Individuals Engaged in Prostitution in the Area:
- Gary Ridgway, Wikipedia.
- “Man Held for Questioning in Slayings of Five Women”, Spokane Spokesman-Review, August 21 1982.
- “Two Women Added to Death-Victim List”, Spokane Spokesman-Review, November 16 1983.
- “Searching Resumed for Skeletal Remains”, Spokane Spokesman-Review, April 1 1986.
- “Higher Toll Is Likely in Green River Case”, Seattle Times, November 20 1990.
- “‘I’m Gonna Get This Guy’; The Green River Murders, 10 Years Removed”, Seattle Times, July 15 1992.
- “Green River Killings Still Going On, Says Grieving Mom”, Seattle Times, June 24 1993.
- “Woman’s Body Identified”, Seattle Times, December 15 1993.
- “Kent Man Charged in Rape Cases”, Seattle Times, May 29 1999.
- “DNA Test Ends Family’s Turmoil — Green River Bones Found in ’86 ID’d”, Seattle Times, November 3 1999.
- “Man Who Attacked Prostitutes Gets 49 1/2 Years”, Seattle Times, January 29 2000.
- “Teens Face Murder Charges in Stabbing Death in Kent”, Seattle Times, August 25 2001.
- “Four Women Left Behind Families… and a Mystery”, Seattle Times, December 1 2001.
- “Teens Get Lengthy Sentences for Kent Killing”, Seattle Times, October 31 2002.
- “Three More Charges Against Ridgway in Green River Case”, Seattle Times, March 28 2003.
- “50th Green River Victim?; Help Sought to ID Remains”, Seattle Times, October 29 2003.
- “Ridgway Pleads Guilty to Long List of Victims”, Seattle Times, November 5 2003.
- “Ridgway Went from Having Sex with Prostitutes ‘to Just Plain Killing Them'”, Seattle Times, November 6 2003.
State | Washington |
Type | City |
Population | 84474 |
Location |
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