413047-Underground-Commercial-Sex-Economy

Street and Internet
Similar to other cities, law enforcement discussed how sex work and sex trafficking on the street and
Internet involve the same individuals. Advertising via the Internet is said to increase during winter
months and in periods following increased law enforcement investigations of street-based sex work and
sex trafficking. Based on law enforcement interviews with women in sex work, law enforcement stated
that women usually prefer the street to the Internet since they don’t need to spend their money on hotel
rooms. Adult street sex work occurs in multiple forms—prostitution by drug-addicted individuals, pimpcontrolled
adults, transgender individuals, and same-sex prostitution. Law enforcement officials reported
their primary enforcement focus is on pimp-controlled sex work or sex trafficking; however, they noted
that most of the complaints they receive are for drug-addicted individuals involved in sex work on the
street.
Law enforcement reported that the recent economic revitalization of certain parts of DC have increased
the number of people in the city, thereby increasing the level of adult and child sex trafficking. In addition
to soliciting sexual services via the street and Internet, it was noted that DC nightclubs are also used. Two
officers explained,
Respondent 1: It [adult pimp-controlled sex work] kind of increased. Most of the clients
or young ladies try to fit in with the club crowd so you would not know what they were
doing. They would try and camouflage their actions. Early on you would have them
walking around in the middle of the street so you knew what they were doing, but as time
went on they figured out that law enforcement was putting them under surveillance they
changed their tactics. Now they try and fit in, like they are going to a club when they are
actually out there soliciting. That is how it is on any given night. Some nights the clubs
are closed so you totally know what they are doing but some nights they stand on the side
of road pretending like they are trying to go to the club.
Interviewer: And with the juvenile [pimp-controlled sex work], has that kind of
followed the same path as the adults
Respondent 2: Right. With most instances the juveniles pretend to be adults. It is not
until they are caught that they reveal that they are not adults. But some of them do not,
some of them fool us. But some of them truly are under the age of eighteen. There is a
correlation between the adults and the juveniles because they put them online as adults
because most johns like younger women. They think that a lot of the younger women do
not have any diseases so they prefer the young ladies more. (DC Law Enforcement
Officials)
Law enforcement went on to describe how minors marketed as adults and who lie to police may also fool
law enforcement during investigations:
Respondent 1: This girl, she was 16 years old when we caught up to her. She had
actually been with him since she was 13. She was a runaway and from here [DC]. This
whole time she had been here and he was prostituting her. Now, when we got her she
actually looked like an adult. She had her hair done and makeup and everything. She said
that she was working for some security firm and she needed extra money for her baby and
we actually believed her.
Respondent 2: She was well versed.
Respondent 1: Yeah. So we locked her up, she got out and then we locked her up again a
couple of days later. But we still did not know at that time either that she was only 16. So I
was at home and the next thing I know I get a call telling me that I have to redo her
paperwork as a juvenile. And I am like, “Hold up, is this the same girl No, she wasn’t no
juvenile”. And they said she was 16 and I said, “No, she is not 16.” But when I finally came
in and did the paperwork and I had to go to court building, we had to do a … hearing in
the juvenile section. When they brought her out I was like, “Wow, she does look like she is
16!” (DC Law Enforcement Officials)
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