S7105A-2011 Actions

• May 24, 2012: PRINT NUMBER 7105A
• May 24, 2012: AMEND AND RECOMMIT TO CODES
• Apr 27, 2012: REFERRED TO CODES

S7105A-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S7105A

TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to promoting prostitution of
a minor by means of advertising

PURPOSE:
To increase the penalties for promoting prostitution of a minor be means
of advertising.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends section 230.25 of the penal law by adding a new subdi-
vision 3 which states that a person is guilty of promoting prostitution
in the third degree when he or she publishes, disseminates or displays,
or causes, directly or indirectly, to be published, disseminated or
displayed any advertisement, whether in print or electronic media, for
sexual conduct with a person under the age of eighteen in exchange for
money or any other property.

Section 2: Amends the penal law by adding a new section 230.26 providing
an affirmative defense for promoting prostitution in the third degree.
In any prosecution for promoting prostitution in the second degree, it
is not a defense that the defendant did not know the age of the person
under eighteen years of age in the advertisement. It is a defense to
such offense, which the defendant must prove by a preponderance of
evidence, that at the time of the offense, the defendant made a direct
attempt to ascertain the true age of the person appearing in the adver-
tisement by requiring, prior to publication of the advertisement,
production and viewing of a valid driver's license, marriage license,
birth certificate, or other governmental or educational identification
card or paper of the person under eighteen years of age, and did not
rely solely on oral or written allegations of such person's age or the
apparent age of such person.

Section 3: This act shall take effect on the first of November next
succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.

JUSTIFICATION:
This legislation will include in the class D felony of promoting prosti-
tution in the third degree, the advertisement for sexual conduct with a
minor whether in print or electronic media. The sexual trafficking of
individuals is a reprehensible act. While New York has been at the fore-
front in the fight against prostitution and commercial sexual abuse, it
persists.

The U.S. Department of Justice has estimated that as many as 17,500
people are trafficked to the country each year, but estimates have
varied greatly. For example, some have put the number of children traf-
ficked in the U.S.  between 100,000 and 300,000. The numbers vary great-
ly because of the crime's covert nature. Many incidents go unreported,
and often the victim is trapped in their situation.

As technology has evolved, commercial sexual abuse has moved from the
street level to the Internet. Victims are now marketed on sites afford-
ing anonymity to the pimps and johns buying and selling them.  The
Polaris Project, an organization combating trafficking, states that the
Internet is the number one platform used by pimps and johns.  Victims
are now trafficked through online escort services, chat rooms, and clas-
sified ad web sites. Such platforms not only rapidly connect buyers with
victims, but allow perpetrators to easily circumvent the law.

Among the leading sites carrying prostitution advertisements are Back-
page.com, AdultSearch.com, Eros. com, and Cityvibe.com. The AIM Group
tracked 22 of these sites during the last year and found that prostitu-
tion advertising in 23 U.S. cities generated at least $36.7 million.
Backpage.com, a general classified-advertising site, accounted for more
than two-thirds of this amount. This site has an especially large impact
in New York State. In counting the number of ads posted in the "Escorts
Section" of Backpage on April 18, 2012, New York has the second highest
total with 2,847.

Advertisements do not explicitly state that a child is being trafficked.
Instead, ads used coded language to disguise the age of a minor.
Victims may be listed as 18 years of old, or simply denoted as "young".
This legislation will require sites to make a genuine attempt to obtain
documentation that escorts advertised are at least 18 years of age. This
can include government issued identification or a birth certificate.

Internet sites cannot be allowed to continue posting these advertise-
ments with impunity. This legislation does not prevent sites from post-
ing ads, nor does it determine its content. Sites are still allowed to
publish ads, but must first obtain documentation proving the individual
depicted is not a minor. This legislation will protect the most vulner-
able, and hopefully stem the tide of internet prostitution at large.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law.

S7105A-2011 Text

 S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 
 7105--A
 I N  SENATE
 April 27, 2012
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  KLEIN  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
 printed to be  committed  to  the  Committee  on  Codes  --  committee
 discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
 to said committee
 AN  ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to promoting prostitution of
 a minor by means of advertising
 THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

Section 1. 

Section 230.25 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 627
 of  the laws of 1978, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 74 of the laws
 of 2007, is amended to read as follows:

 

S 230.25 Promoting prostitution in the third degree.
 A person is guilty of promoting prostitution in the third degree  when
 he OR SHE knowingly:

 1.  Advances  or  profits  from prostitution by managing, supervising,
 controlling or owning, either alone or in  association  with  others,  a
 house of prostitution or a prostitution business or enterprise involving
 prostitution  activity  by  two  or more prostitutes, or a business that
 sells travel-related services knowing that such services include or  are
 intended  to  facilitate travel for the purpose of patronizing a prosti
 tute, including to a foreign jurisdiction and regardless of the legality
 of prostitution in said foreign jurisdiction; or
 2. Advances or profits from prostitution of a person less  than  nine
 teen years old[.]; OR
 3.   PUBLISHES, DISSEMINATES OR DISPLAYS, OR CAUSES, DIRECTLY OR INDI
 RECTLY, TO BE PUBLISHED, DISSEMINATED OR  DISPLAYED  ANY  ADVERTISEMENT,
 WHETHER  IN  PRINT OR ELECTRONIC MEDIA, FOR SEXUAL CONDUCT WITH A PERSON
 UNDER THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE IN  EXCHANGE  FOR  MONEY  OR  ANY
 OTHER PROPERTY.
 Promoting prostitution in the third degree is a class D felony.
 

S  2.  The penal law is amended by adding a new section 230.26 to read
 as follows:

 

S 230.26 PROMOTING  PROSTITUTION  IN  THE  THIRD   DEGREE;   AFFIRMATIVE
 DEFENSE.
 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD15522-04-2
 
       S. 7105--A                          2
 IN  ANY  PROSECUTION FOR PROMOTING PROSTITUTION IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS
 DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF SECTION 230.25 OF THIS  ARTICLE,  IT  IS
 NOT  A  DEFENSE  THAT  THE  DEFENDANT DID NOT KNOW THE AGE OF THE PERSON
 UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE IN THE ADVERTISEMENT. IT  IS  A  DEFENSE  TO
 SUCH  OFFENSE,  WHICH  THE  DEFENDANT  MUST  PROVE BY A PREPONDERANCE OF
 EVIDENCE, THAT AT THE TIME OF THE OFFENSE, THE DEFENDANT MADE  A  DIRECT
 ATTEMPT  TO ASCERTAIN THE TRUE AGE OF THE PERSON APPEARING IN THE ADVER
 TISEMENT BY  REQUIRING,  PRIOR  TO  PUBLICATION  OF  THE  ADVERTISEMENT,
 PRODUCTION  AND  VIEWING  OF A VALID DRIVER'S LICENSE, MARRIAGE LICENSE,
 BIRTH CERTIFICATE, OR OTHER GOVERNMENTAL OR  EDUCATIONAL  IDENTIFICATION
 CARD  OR  PAPER  OF  THE  PERSON UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE AND DID NOT
 SOLELY RELY ON ORAL OR WRITTEN ALLEGATIONS OF SUCH PERSON'S AGE  OR  THE
 APPARENT AGE OF SUCH PERSON.
 

S 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.

*By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and Privacy Policy and verify you are over 13.

Discuss!