West Monroe is a city of approximately 13,000 residents, located in Ouachita Parish in northern Louisiana.  Prostitution and sex trafficking are known to occur in the city.  For example, in 2002 a woman was charged with enticing a juvenile under the age of 18 to travel in interstate commerce to engage in sexual activity; using a computer and/or an Internet service provider to entice a person under the age of 18 to engage in a sexual act; and knowingly transporting a female in interstate commerce from West Monroe to Virginia with the intent of having them engage in prostitution.

To combat consumer level demand, the West Monroe Police Department has partnered with the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office on several occasions to conduct street-level reverse stings that target local sex buyers. At least six “john stings” have occurred in the city, beginning as early as 2002. The city lies directly across the Ouachita River from the larger city of Monroe, and West Monroe officers have at times coordinated efforts with the Monroe Police Department.  For example, in December 2017 a prostitution sting at a West Monroe motel resulted in the arrest of four men who allegedly solicited the services of a prostitute.  In each of the separate cases, the men were accused of contacting a woman and offering her money (ranging from $50 to $75 dollars) in exchange for sex. The names of the four men were released to news outlets. At the time, the Ouachita Parish Sheriff deputies said this was an ongoing investigation.