Southaven is a city of approximately 50,000 residents, situated in the southern suburbs of Memphis in DeSoto County, Mississippi. Prostitution has been identified by police and others as generating a wide range of problems in the area, including johns responding to online ads being shot and robbed.  The Southaven Police Department has conducted at least three web-based reverse stings using undercover officers, in an effort to reduce consumer-level demand. Arrested sex buyers have also had their identities reported in the media and often face fines.

In November, 2017, a member of the Southaven Board of Alderman was arrested by the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office and booked into the county jail on charges related to procuring prostitution. He had communicated with a woman and promised her money in exchange for sex.