Stuart is a city of approximately 17,000 residents, located in Martin County on the eastern coast of Florida, near Port St. Lucie. Prostitution activity has been well-documented in Stuart and its surrounding communities. Among the more serious crimes associated with the local commercial sex market is sex trafficking. This activity and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates result in complaints to law enforcement agencies from residents and businesses.

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. Martin County Sheriff’s Office deputies have often conducted street-level reverse stings in Stuart using female officers as decoys.

In February 2019, law enforcement agencies announced several substantial investigations into allegations of human trafficking and prostitution occurring in storefront spas serving as brothels across several counties in Florida. After conducting surveillance and investigations in response to allegations and then establishing probable cause, warrants were obtained, and surveillance cameras installed in several Martin County brothels in the cities of Hobe Sound and Stuart. Initial reports said that four spas in Martin County were also involved in the multi-county investigations and enforcement actions. Evidence about sexual activity from the hidden cameras was combined with evidence from trash pulls and executed search warrants. This allowed police to begin conducting traffic stops of vehicles leaving the brothels to confirm the identities of alleged customers. The accumulated evidence led to arrest warrants for over 60 sex buyers in Martin County by the end of February 2019, and each day multiple sex buyers were either arrested or voluntarily surrendered to police. As of early March 2019, additional warrants may be issued as the evidence is further pursued. The six-month investigation revealed human traffickers were luring vulnerable girls to massage parlors in Florida, where they were coerced into working as prostitutes.

Most of the men will face charges for soliciting prostitution. Depending on the circumstances of the individual events, some men may not be booked into the County jail. Residents of Florida may receive a notice in the mail saying they are summoned to appear in court; out-of-state residents may have warrants issued for their arrest in Florida. Different agencies in Florida may handle charging and booking differently; e.g., in related investigations, Martin County arrested, booked sex buyers, and posted each mug shot online; Palm Beach County did not book them or post photos, and Indian River County agencies posted photos before the arrests occurred. Soliciting another to commit prostitution is punishable as a second-degree misdemeanor for a first offense and a first-degree misdemeanor for a subsequent offense. A first offense carries a jail sentence of up to 60 days, and a second offense carries a sentence of up to one year. Under Florida Statutes, punishment options for people charged for the first time with soliciting a prostitute may include a diversion program that may involve performing up to 100 hours of community service and attending a course on the harmful effects of prostitution and sex trafficking “if such programs exist in the judicial circuit in which the offender is sentenced.”