Quitting School To Become A Vice Cop
All I can say is that I love Houston.
From the AP....
Houston vice cops cleared to take it off
HOUSTON - Some suspects in prostitution investigations are confronting naked justice.
A prosecutor says police are now allowed to undress in an effort to persuade suspected prostitutes to negotiate sex acts.
During a four-month sting operation that ended with 56 arrests in November, some undercover vice officers dropped their covers altogether.
"Someone had to do something to shut these places down," said Harris County Assistant District Attorney Ted Wilson. "It was just so widespread. It had almost gotten in your face."
Wilson said Police Chief Harold Hurtt has changed a long-standing, unwritten department policy to allow undercover vice officers to disrobe in such cases.
But Hurtt and other Houston police officials declined to discuss the new policy.
"I'm not going to comment about the strategies and tactics that we use," said Hurtt last week.
The Houston Police Department has stepped up efforts to crack down on the local "spa scene." Besides the new policy, authorities are using organized-crime charges to prosecute owners and operators of prostitution businesses.
In exchange for testimony against the owners of the Wildflower Group and Escapes of Houston, authorities agreed to drop prostitution charges against all but one of the 50 women arrested during the Nov. 16 raids.
The businesses, said police, are among some 200 across Houston that advertise themselves as "day spas," "stress relief clinics," "massage parlors" and "modeling studios," but are really fronts for prostitution.
William Henry Costa and Mary Elizabeth Johnston, the Wildflower Group owners, were scheduled to be arraigned in a state district court Monday morning.
Former golf teacher Randall Jones, Escapes of Houston owner, was scheduled to appear in court later this month with three co-owners and operators.
Recently, growth of so-called "day spas" and "stress clinics" has caused a surge in residents' complaints about prostitution.
It had become almost impossible for vice officers to make arrests in such businesses because the workers, aware of prohibitions on police getting undressed, will not negotiate sex acts for money unless a man removes his clothes, Wilson said.
"The old street prostitution cases are easy, but the people running these massage parlors are sophisticated," he said.
Prostitutes' tactics are forcing police to the limits of acceptable practices to make arrests, said Charlie Fuller, executive director of the Clarkrange, Tenn.-based International Association of Undercover Officers.
"I can assure you that these undercover officers don't want to get naked, but they don't have a choice," he said, adding that many large-city police departments allow officers to get nude to make arrests.
But Robyn Few, an ex-prostitute who directs Sex Workers Outreach Project USA, said vice officers are fighting a losing battle.
"People need to recognize prostitution as a profession," she said.
From the AP....
Houston vice cops cleared to take it off
HOUSTON - Some suspects in prostitution investigations are confronting naked justice.
A prosecutor says police are now allowed to undress in an effort to persuade suspected prostitutes to negotiate sex acts.
During a four-month sting operation that ended with 56 arrests in November, some undercover vice officers dropped their covers altogether.
"Someone had to do something to shut these places down," said Harris County Assistant District Attorney Ted Wilson. "It was just so widespread. It had almost gotten in your face."
Wilson said Police Chief Harold Hurtt has changed a long-standing, unwritten department policy to allow undercover vice officers to disrobe in such cases.
But Hurtt and other Houston police officials declined to discuss the new policy.
"I'm not going to comment about the strategies and tactics that we use," said Hurtt last week.
The Houston Police Department has stepped up efforts to crack down on the local "spa scene." Besides the new policy, authorities are using organized-crime charges to prosecute owners and operators of prostitution businesses.
In exchange for testimony against the owners of the Wildflower Group and Escapes of Houston, authorities agreed to drop prostitution charges against all but one of the 50 women arrested during the Nov. 16 raids.
The businesses, said police, are among some 200 across Houston that advertise themselves as "day spas," "stress relief clinics," "massage parlors" and "modeling studios," but are really fronts for prostitution.
William Henry Costa and Mary Elizabeth Johnston, the Wildflower Group owners, were scheduled to be arraigned in a state district court Monday morning.
Former golf teacher Randall Jones, Escapes of Houston owner, was scheduled to appear in court later this month with three co-owners and operators.
Recently, growth of so-called "day spas" and "stress clinics" has caused a surge in residents' complaints about prostitution.
It had become almost impossible for vice officers to make arrests in such businesses because the workers, aware of prohibitions on police getting undressed, will not negotiate sex acts for money unless a man removes his clothes, Wilson said.
"The old street prostitution cases are easy, but the people running these massage parlors are sophisticated," he said.
Prostitutes' tactics are forcing police to the limits of acceptable practices to make arrests, said Charlie Fuller, executive director of the Clarkrange, Tenn.-based International Association of Undercover Officers.
"I can assure you that these undercover officers don't want to get naked, but they don't have a choice," he said, adding that many large-city police departments allow officers to get nude to make arrests.
But Robyn Few, an ex-prostitute who directs Sex Workers Outreach Project USA, said vice officers are fighting a losing battle.
"People need to recognize prostitution as a profession," she said.
posted by The Humble Best at 10:12 AM
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