Baltimore City’s top prosecutor Marilyn Mosby announced her office will no longer prosecute several minor crimes including sex work.
“Clearly the data shows that there is no public safety value in prosecuting these low level offenses,” Mosby said.
While the offense remains illegal in Baltimore City, Mosby says rather than arrest and prosecute they will work to connect those with the behavioral services they need.
“The johns and pimps know that they can get away with it in Baltimore City,” Natasha Guynes said.
Natasha Guynes runs the HER Resiliency Center and is a member of the Baltimore Human Trafficking Collaborative.
She is not in favor of criminalizing sex work.
However, she says Mosby’s new policy, which encourages less contact with law enforcement, may lead to more women becoming victims of trafficking.
“It leaves a lot of women vulnerable to being trafficked. Until we can start to identify how much is sex trafficking and how much is sex work we’re just leaving so many women vulnerable to victimization,” she said.
Delegate Kathy Szeliga has similar concerns that the women and men involved in sex work will be left behind.
“People involved in that are often human trafficked, they’re drug addicts, they need help and recovery services, and by skipping the courts there’s no accountability,” she said.
Prostitution should be legal. A woman can sell her eggs, she can sell her talent (art work, sewing, ect.) and a woman has the right to say what wants to do with her body when it comes to an abortion, but she can’t select who she wants to have sex with !!
I agree! A woman (or a man) can also sell their blood, their hair, their antibodies and who knows what else. Why should it be illegal to sell a little love?
Satan loves people like you
Why shouldn’t murder be legal then ?
Should legalize it like the rest of the modern world! Victorian America is 1800’s time to get into the 21st. century, adults love sex and regulating it and taxing it will bring in millions.
I travel for “Business” all over the world, and have been with many professionals, in several countries, and never caught something, or ever was rolled. It is one of the best things about my job. It helps me with my boring 28 year marriage too!
I foresee a time in which sex work will be a credited course at local community colleges, complete with business management courses.
Given Mosby’s personal issues – she is no longer partial or effective to handle day to day operations.
She needs to resign.
Do you think that she thought this up on her own?
It would look bad and threaten her career prospects if she arrested and prosecuted the VP.