Battle lines have begun to form at the Colorado state Capitol, where legislators are preparing to tackle a proposal to decriminalize prostitution statewide.
Proponents said the proposal — which would eliminate the offense of soliciting for prostitution and the prohibition against patronizing a prostitute, as well as preclude local ordinances from banning “commercial sexual activity” — would result in safer and healthier outcomes for sex workers.
Opponents said it would exacerbate human trafficking in Colorado, with one critic warning the legislation could lead to the state becoming a “mecca” for sex trafficking.
If signed into law, the bill will take effect in July, making Colorado one of two states to permit prostitution. The other state is Nevada.
The bill would maintain the felony classification for pimping, though it would eliminate the word “prostitution” in the state laws and call it “commercial sexual activity.”
Additionally, the bill would repeal the ban against making a display to engage in prostitution, currently a petty offense. Using a building or place for prostitution would no longer be a public nuisance. Also, it would eliminate a provision in the escort services statutes that declares prostitution as illegal.
While the bill decriminalizes prostitution, it does not provide for a regulatory framework. Instead, local governments may not longer prohibit it. They also may not deny applications for a business license when the applicant has been convicted of soliciting prostitution. They would be prohibited from banning the advertising of prostitution and escort services.
Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly called the bill “unconscionable.”
“(Trafficking victims) are already being manipulated. They’re being intimidated into getting into this line of work,” he said. “I think for the legislature to try and legalize this and potentially make it more difficult to identify trafficking victims is horrible.”
Weekly said his constituents are shocked when they heard lawmakers want to decriminalize prostitution.
“I think this is going to bring undesired consequences throughout our state,” Weekly said, adding its preemption language over municipal ordinances is “egregious.”
In Weekly’s view, decriminalizing prostitution would only bring more human traffickers into the state, a position that former Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey agreed.
Morrissey said the bill would make Colorado “a mecca” for sex traffickers.
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“You’ll see an increase in prostitution, but I also think you’ll see an increase of people that aren’t coming here consensually that are being trafficked,” he said.
If the bill passes, Weekly predicted not only an uptick in prostitution, but drug use and sexually transmitted infections, as well.
“The fact of the matter is this industry is wrought with drug abuse and other criminal activity,” he said.
The proposal is the latest push in the country to move away from penalizing sex workers and individuals who pay for sex. It has been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Law enforcement officials, church leaders and Republicans at the state Capitol are expected to oppose the measure. Harm reduction advocates, along with their Democratic allies at the state Capitol, will likely back it.
Critics have argued that the research shows prostitutes — the majority of whom are women — have worse outcomes on practically any physical or psychological metric. They also directly tie prostitution to human trafficking, citing statistics showing that the vast majority of trafficked individuals end up as prostitutes and the average “entry” age is 13.
Proponents of decriminalizing prostitution have framed it as a move toward safeguarding the lives and health of sex workers, while arguing it will not lead to a hike in human trafficking.
Sponsors argue that the status quo, in which prostitution is illegal, endangers sex workers because fear of criminal punishment can hold them back from reporting abuse. Current Colorado law immunizes a person from arrest and prosecution for prostitution when seeking police or medical assistance, but backers said sex workers may still fear future retaliation from law enforcement.
“Even when they’re protected by the law, they’ve now exposed themselves,” said Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, D-Pueblo, one of the bill sponsors. “You’ve gone and you’ve said, ‘Hey, here’s my name, here’s my face, now you know what I do and where I live.’”
Prostitution is legal in some parts of Nevada and partially decriminalized in Maine.
Hinrichsen said he and his cosponsors — Sen. Lisa Cutter, D-Evergreen, and Reps. Rebekah Stewart, D-Lakewood, and Lorena Garcia, D-Adams County —are taking a similar approach to countries like Australia and Belgium, which he said have seen improved outcomes in sex worker safety and health, and a decrease in human trafficking.
Hinrichsen said his perspective on legalizing prostitution has changed significantly over the past few years.
“Based on evidence that has gone into scientific journals and the experiences that have been communicated to me by individuals who are impacted, I’m convinced that the outcomes would be safer, they would be healthier, they would be more affirming of privacy and autonomy, and individuals who are involved in sex work would have better opportunities to leave sex work,” he said. “I would hope that, even if you are staunchly morally opposed to prostitution, that those are outcomes that you would want for the individuals that are engaged in it.”
Hinrichsen said he knows it’s unlikely he’ll get his Republican colleagues, or even some of the members of his own caucus, to support his bill.
Battle lines drawn as Colorado considers decriminalizing prostitution - Colorado Springs Gazette
Proponents said the proposal — which would eliminate the offense of soliciting for prostitution and the prohibition against patronizing a prostitute, as well as preclude local ordinances from banning “commercial sexual activity” — would result in safer and healthier outcomes for sex workers.
Opponents said it would exacerbate human trafficking in Colorado, with one critic warning the legislation could lead to the state becoming a “mecca” for sex trafficking.
If signed into law, the bill will take effect in July, making Colorado one of two states to permit prostitution. The other state is Nevada.
The bill would maintain the felony classification for pimping, though it would eliminate the word “prostitution” in the state laws and call it “commercial sexual activity.”
Additionally, the bill would repeal the ban against making a display to engage in prostitution, currently a petty offense. Using a building or place for prostitution would no longer be a public nuisance. Also, it would eliminate a provision in the escort services statutes that declares prostitution as illegal.
While the bill decriminalizes prostitution, it does not provide for a regulatory framework. Instead, local governments may not longer prohibit it. They also may not deny applications for a business license when the applicant has been convicted of soliciting prostitution. They would be prohibited from banning the advertising of prostitution and escort services.
Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly called the bill “unconscionable.”
“(Trafficking victims) are already being manipulated. They’re being intimidated into getting into this line of work,” he said. “I think for the legislature to try and legalize this and potentially make it more difficult to identify trafficking victims is horrible.”
Weekly said his constituents are shocked when they heard lawmakers want to decriminalize prostitution.
“I think this is going to bring undesired consequences throughout our state,” Weekly said, adding its preemption language over municipal ordinances is “egregious.”
In Weekly’s view, decriminalizing prostitution would only bring more human traffickers into the state, a position that former Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey agreed.
Morrissey said the bill would make Colorado “a mecca” for sex traffickers.
Add The Gazette as a preferred source on Google
“You’ll see an increase in prostitution, but I also think you’ll see an increase of people that aren’t coming here consensually that are being trafficked,” he said.
If the bill passes, Weekly predicted not only an uptick in prostitution, but drug use and sexually transmitted infections, as well.
“The fact of the matter is this industry is wrought with drug abuse and other criminal activity,” he said.
The proposal is the latest push in the country to move away from penalizing sex workers and individuals who pay for sex. It has been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Law enforcement officials, church leaders and Republicans at the state Capitol are expected to oppose the measure. Harm reduction advocates, along with their Democratic allies at the state Capitol, will likely back it.
Critics have argued that the research shows prostitutes — the majority of whom are women — have worse outcomes on practically any physical or psychological metric. They also directly tie prostitution to human trafficking, citing statistics showing that the vast majority of trafficked individuals end up as prostitutes and the average “entry” age is 13.
Proponents of decriminalizing prostitution have framed it as a move toward safeguarding the lives and health of sex workers, while arguing it will not lead to a hike in human trafficking.
Sponsors argue that the status quo, in which prostitution is illegal, endangers sex workers because fear of criminal punishment can hold them back from reporting abuse. Current Colorado law immunizes a person from arrest and prosecution for prostitution when seeking police or medical assistance, but backers said sex workers may still fear future retaliation from law enforcement.
“Even when they’re protected by the law, they’ve now exposed themselves,” said Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, D-Pueblo, one of the bill sponsors. “You’ve gone and you’ve said, ‘Hey, here’s my name, here’s my face, now you know what I do and where I live.’”
Prostitution is legal in some parts of Nevada and partially decriminalized in Maine.
Hinrichsen said he and his cosponsors — Sen. Lisa Cutter, D-Evergreen, and Reps. Rebekah Stewart, D-Lakewood, and Lorena Garcia, D-Adams County —are taking a similar approach to countries like Australia and Belgium, which he said have seen improved outcomes in sex worker safety and health, and a decrease in human trafficking.
Hinrichsen said his perspective on legalizing prostitution has changed significantly over the past few years.
“Based on evidence that has gone into scientific journals and the experiences that have been communicated to me by individuals who are impacted, I’m convinced that the outcomes would be safer, they would be healthier, they would be more affirming of privacy and autonomy, and individuals who are involved in sex work would have better opportunities to leave sex work,” he said. “I would hope that, even if you are staunchly morally opposed to prostitution, that those are outcomes that you would want for the individuals that are engaged in it.”
Hinrichsen said he knows it’s unlikely he’ll get his Republican colleagues, or even some of the members of his own caucus, to support his bill.
Battle lines drawn as Colorado considers decriminalizing prostitution - Colorado Springs Gazette
