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Decriminalize
prostitution?
DA to disucuss with opponents
before making policy decision
WAIT ON IT: Eric Gonzalez will not make any decisions regarding decriminalizing
prostitution until after consulting with opponents of the policy. Photo by Colin Mixson
BY COLIN MIXSON
Following his surprise endorsement for
the decriminalization of prostitution
this month, Brooklyn’s top prosecutor
announced on April 10 that he will not
make any new policy decisions until after
conducting a thorough study of the
issue, in a process that he said will include
meeting with advocates committed
to preventing a more progressive
attitude towards city sex workers.
“We’re going to hear from a lot
of the other organizations, who are
staunchly opposed to any form of decriminalization,”
District Attorney
Eric Gonzalez told reporters at last
week’s press conference.
Gonzalez announced his plan to
meet with supporters for and against
decriminalizing Brooklyn’s sex trade
after initially endorsing the policy at
an April 4 meeting of the Lambda Independent
Democrats of Brooklyn,
where the prosecutor stated that he
“believes in decriminalization” before
a crowd that included Brooklyn State
Sen. Julia Salazar — who is championing
legislative solutions to keep alleged
prostitutes out of jail — along with her
Senate colleague Zellnor Myrie and
former sex workers turned advocates.
And while the District Attorney
remains undecided on the issue of decriminalizing
prostitution, Gonzalez
said his real focus will remain on preventing
sex traffi cking and fi nding new
ways to help victims.
“My obligation is to make sure I’m
protecting children who are being sex
traffi cked and women who are being
forced into this trade,” Gonzalez said.
The Brooklyn district attorney’s offi
ce currently operates on a so-called
“soft prosecution” policy regarding
prostitution arrests, where defendants
are given the opportunity to enroll in
social service programs at arraignment,
after which their cases are typically
dismissed within a few months.
However, the district attorney’s ability
to connect with sex workers may be
impeded by justice reforms included in
the 2020 budget that kick in next year,
which require anyone charged with a
misdemeanor violation — such as prostitution,
solicitation, or loitering — be
given a desk appearance ticket in lieu
of arrest, making their fi rst court date
months, rather than days, after their
initial run-in with the law, according
to Gonzalez.
“People engaged in sex work and
people who aren’t being arrested, the
question is whether that’s the best way
to get to the underlying traffi cking
thing,” said Gonzalez.
Brooklyn’s top prosecutor has already
proven himself willing to wield
his prosecutorial discretion to effectively
decriminalize other misdemeanor
offenses, and the DA has gradually
expanded on his predecessor Ken
Thompson’s policy of declining to prosecute
Brooklyn arrests for marijuana
possession and public smoking since
taking offi ce in 2016.
/KINGSTHEATRE.COM