Decriminalize
Prostitution Now Coalition
Your Tax Dollars Are Being Wasted Ruining Citizens Lives
Instead of fighting real crime
COPYRIGHTED 1998 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - MAY BE
REPRINTED OR QUOTED FROM ONLY IF CREDIT IS GIVEN Decriminalize
Prostitution Now Coalition, MAILING ADDRESS IS SHOWN AND WE
ARE SENT A COPY OF PUBLICATION.
Los Angeles at war
against pleasure. Your tax dollars at work..the moralists winning over your rights as
consenting adults.
In Los Angeles the cops are out in force to attack providers whose "crime" is
making people happy. Such a sad state of affairs...If citizens knew this I would think
they would get upset. But all they usually hear is the stories about the street hookers.
September 1998 horror by Los Angeles Cops...similar to many stories all over the country:
A friend of a provider reports:
KarlaVanessa called me from jail tonight. She asked me to pass this on...West LAPD came in
and broke her door down. Vanessa had been trying to hire someone to answer her phones for
her last week (at the time, she knew something was up, called me afterwards).."I only
do rubdowns here" was what she told the undercover woman (COP)..
Well, they must have had a warrant, the tiny 5 foot tall 100 lb. woman was accosted at
gunpoint after her door was broken down. She hadn’t been doing anything at the time.
(she is one of the most loving, biggest hearted humans I have even had the fortune to
know).
Vanessa says she knows and remembers the faces of all 15 officers who broke her door down,
ripped her clothes off so they could "search for drugs" and literally ransacked
her home to the tune of 3 hours. They found $200 of her money, and $1600 of someone
else’s money - in a book!
Ransacked her car...btw here's a nice bit..they CAN take your car even on incall IF THEY
WANT TO.
She has been arrested for pandering because of this...she had no intention of putting this
woman to work, i.e. pimping her, only answer her phones,.$25,000 bail,they threatened her
saying the judge would demand 100,000 bail and/or 3 yrs. (For having someone answer the
phones). they ransacked her home, took her money, credit cards, who knows what else, plus
the humiliation. (Another witch burning here!)
She also asked that I tell everyone there is a big big sweep going one. Everywhere.
Internet, papers.
Another provider says about LA Vice cops: These guys are the laughing stock of the PD.
While other detectives are out chasing murderers, thieves, rapists, molestors, these Vice
Cops are chasing hookers for chrissakes! What a joke. Do you think the other cops in the
PD have any respect for them at all? When is the last time you heard of a vice cop chasing
hookers being killed in the line of duty? You don't!
Vice at West LAPD is extemely arrogant. They feel the need to justify why they spend their
time scaring women and children. This detective actually started to justify why he does
his job to Vanessa. He is trying to protect her from harm, it is not fair that she makes
so much money for nothing when her neighbors have to slave away 40 hours a week in an
office (So life is not fair? So what?)
From Venessa out of jail:
I am back! Well, after being in jail for 3 days, I just can say that it is not a good
experience for any of the providers. Wake up at 4 am for breakfast, have unsolicited
sexual advances from female gang members who promise they will protect me (yeah right),
not discounting the more hardcore lesbians, handcuffed all day long except for meals and
sleep.
So can you guys imagine me with no make-up, handcuffs, dirty hair..hey I will use that
photo from now on in my ads and maybe you all will feel sorry for me and call me. In fact,
maybe all my former clients could chip in and pay my attorney fees.
And to all of you who think you know what is going on and how to handle the cops...you
don't. You have no comprehension of what is really going on. Of course I am not that
stupid to place on this board the details because it will not aid the providers to have
the info in a public forum.
I do not want any of the providers to experience what I have been through. No one deserves
that. I have been through having my dignity stripped, treated like a criminal. Showing
kindness to a man is criminal??? If you guys have any compassion for me, then I want you
to stay out of my business.
A very special thanks to all my dear friends who were there for me when I was in jail. You
know who you are and I am forever grateful. Like the phrase says "You know your
friends in good times and a bad." You will always be my friend forever. God Bless!
O'brigado.
Another sex worker friend reported: I just learned that two very good women are going to
be doing a year in county because of their work in this industry.
An integral part of the case that was built again them came from a *client* who was
approached leaving a session. Obviously no one clued him in on being prepared to handle
police who hustle you off and threaten to tell your wife and your kids and your boss and
your priest/rabbi and your daughter's second-grade teacher about your hobby. What would
you do? Well, here's how he responded. He told the vice:
a. the name of the provider he saw b. her telephone number c. how he heard about her
services d. how much he paid e. what he got in exchange for his renumeration
With the exception of 'e' and parts of 'b', what goes on here is not that dissimilar.
Please note that the BIB already had their suspicions (high traffic, etc), and I do
realize that he was just one of many nails that went into that particular coffin.
He *should* have repeated the same mantra that someone suggested above (maybe you fellas
should practice it in case you are ever approached).
Dave in Phoenix said:
The experience of KV and those of the many others that are treated this way should be
brought to the attention of the media. Most of the media seems to be focused on the
drugged out street hookers or the high profile Heidi Fliess types, who as I recall never
even was convicted of sex work, only drugs. I think the majority of citizens would be
outranged by how their tax dollars are being spent on dangerous criminals like KV.
Nothing is going to change without public awareness and education. It has worked somewhat
in San Francisco. Or a better example is Berkley where lots of folks have been arrested
for being nude in public, until after so many juries refused to convict them, the police
stopped harrassing people if they were only being nude for art etc.
Honest reviews are still needed, but can be less explicit as is now the policy. With the
legal status ripoffs can continue to .. rip off and honest providers needed to be
supported, but ironic that support can be dangerous legally for the provider.
But as long as we remain one of the few Western nations where giving pleasure is a crime,
the problem will continue. That is why I encourage people to do whatever they can to make
these types of horror stories made public and get the public' attention as well as
organizing to more seriously work for decriminalization of "pleasure" providers.
The primary reason people don't protest the laws is out of fear of public embarassment and
loss of employment. If someone works with children in any way and protests this law, s/he
can expect to lose his/her job. If you work for a Mormon and try to make a stand , expect
a rough time at work. Hell, if you come out in favor of titty-bars, imagine the grief
you'll catch at work. If left to a vote in private the laws might be changed. But the
problem is forcing the issue to get on the ballot to allow the citizens to speak.
What we are faced with is moralists imposing their values on other people. If they can't
reach us by knocking on our doors and preaching, then they will instead enact laws to
prevent us from doing what they secretly wish they could.
