Miami and its surrounding metropolitan area comprise the most populous metropolis in the southeastern United States in Miami-Dade County, FL. The county has a population close to 440,000 residents in the city proper and over 2.5 million in the greater metro area. As a major international trade port and tourist destination, the city has struggled […]
Methuen is a city located in Essex County, Massachusetts, and has a population of roughly 53,000. As in the neighboring community of Lawrence, the Methuen Police Department has reported links between prostitution (a misdemeanor) and a wide range of felonies. In the early 1990s, Methuen and Lawrence residents in the Arlington area– a neighborhood straddling both […]
Mesa is a city of approximately 510,000 residents, located 20 miles east of Phoenix in Maricopa County, Arizona. Among the problems associated with local prostitution have been the serial killing and serial rapes targeting trafficked girls and women involved in prostitution. For example, in 2011 a man was found guilty of raping two women offering […]
Merriam is a suburb of Kansas City with a population of roughly 11,000, situated in Johnson County. In an effort to reduce the demand for prostitution, law enforcement agencies have conducted at least one reverse sting in the community. In December 2010, media outlets reported the arrests of 29 sex buyers in the cities of Merriam, De […]
Meriden is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, with a population of approximately 61,000. As in the neighboring communities of Berlin, Southington, and New Britain, the city has reported problems with street- and business-based prostitution for many years, with activities frequently concentrated along the Berlin Turnpike. Cases of the forced prostitution of minors have […]
Merced is a city of approximately 86,000 residents, located roughly midway between Fresno and Stockton in Merced County, California. Prostitution and child sex trafficking have been well-documented problems in the city for many years. Some local prostitution is known to have been gang-related, in the form of prostitution rings meant to generate income for gangs. […]
Memphis is the largest city in Tennessee, with approximately 628,000 residents. Prostitution and sex trafficking have been identified by local and national law enforcement agencies as persistent and serious problems in the city. High-profile sex trafficking arrests in Memphis have drawn drawn national attention. While some cases have involved the trafficking of adult women, the […]
Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, with a population of approximately 85,000 residents. It is located near Palm Bay, on the central Atlantic coast of Florida. Prostitution and sex trafficking cases in the county date back decades and have generated many crimes, such as assault, homicide, robbery, weapons and drug offenses, and the production […]
Medford is a city in Southwestern Oregon. It is the largest city and county seat of Jackson County, OR, with roughly 86,000 residents. The Medford metropolitan area is also the 4th largest metropolitan area in Oregon. Medford has had well-documented prostitution and sex trafficking activity. For example, in November 2013, a sex trafficking investigation resulted […]
McKeesport is a city of approximately 17,000 residents, located 20 miles southwest of Pittsburgh in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Prostitution has been well documented in the city and surrounding areas. This activity and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates result in complaints to law enforcement agencies from residents and businesses. Among the more serious crimes […]
Demand Forum is powered by the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) and directed by Dr. Michael Shively, NCOSE's Senior Advisor on Research and Data Analysis. It was originally developed by Dr. Shively and Abt Associates with grant support from the National Institute of Justice. In January 2020 the website transferred to NCOSE. In January 2021, work began on a new grant from NIJ (#2020-75-CX-0011) to update and expand the content presented on Demand Forum.
