Prostitution: Common Myths

What are some common myths and misconceptions about prostitution?

When people think of prostitution, they often imagine a woman standing on a corner, asking anyone who drives by if they'll pay her for sex. While this is an obvious example of illegal prostitution, there are a number of other scenarios that are also considered prostitution. In fact, many states, including Minnesota, define prostitution to include situations in which no sex occurs, no money changes hands, and no one ever discusses exchanging money for sex.

Myth: A provider must have intercourse to be charged with prostitution.

Fact: According to the same statute, prostitution requires only an offer or agreement to engage in sexual penetration or sexual contact for hire. Sexual penetration can refer to penetration by any body part (not just the penis), oral sex, or using a sex toy. Sexual contact is vaguely defined as touching a person's "intimate parts," so something as seemingly innocuous as letting a client touch the provider's breast would qualify.

Myth: To be charged with prostitution, the provider must have some physical contact with the client.

Fact: The crime of prostitution is complete as soon as the provider offers or agrees to exchange sex for money, even if she doesn't intend to actually have sex or never meets the client face to face. So if a provider makes a date with someone who doesn't show up, or decides not to have sex with him when he does show up, she can and probably will be charged anyway. The crime is words—the actions which the words describe are not required to be charged.

Common myths about what law enforcement can (and will) do to catch providers:

Many sites out there claim that if a police officer asks someone to commit a crime, it is "entrapment." Entrapment is a defense to criminal charges if the accused can prove that he or she would not have committed the crime if not pressured or coerced into it by the police and that he or she was not predisposed to commit the crime. Predisposition means that someone was already inclined to commit the crime before the police provided an opportunity to do so. To successfully claim entrapment, a provider must prove that she was not predisposed to commit prostitution, which is very difficult if she has a record of prostitution or a website advertising her services. She would also need to show that she didn't make (or readily agree to) an offer to trade sex for money.

Myth: Police officers have to be honest when asked if they are a cop.

Fact: Law enforcement officials can and do lie all the time to get people to incriminate themselves. It is 100% legal and very common, so do not be fooled into thinking that if a client says he isn't working for the police, then there's nothing to worry about.