It's official: Indoor prostitution is illegal in Rhode Island.  Representative Joanne Giannini acknowledges that prostitution will not go away and adds, "...it means Rhode Island will no longer be a safe haven for pimping and trafficking, and the victimization of young women."  Despite the exaggerations being passed on by Joanne Giannini and Citizens Against Trafficking, I still haven't seen any evidence that trafficking is any more common than it is in any other state.  They were very fortunate to have a large number of legislators who either don't seem to think clearly, or are afraid to use their common sense.

     Ms. Giannini isn't right about much, but she is right about one thing: Prostitution will not go away.  Instead of being centralized in indoor locations, it will now be outdoors.  Spas will soon be targets for police raids, so this behavior will soon scatter through out neighborhoods.  You don't like indoor prostitution?  Well, I guarantee you will like the increase in street-walking even less.  Now, instead of having "business" conducted indoors, it can occur near the neighborhood elementary school or church. 

     If you doubt this, just think about all those Providence Journal stories about prostitution stings in Providence over the years.  About a half-dozen police officers would spend the evening arresting prostitutes and Johns out on the streets, then have an article in the paper the next day.  I don't recall seeing any articles like that in a long time.  Could it be because prostitution has largely moved indoors?  I think so, and I also think we will see a return to large-scale raids and stings.

     This bill will lead to more arrests and incarcerations, a further strain on the court system, and a steep increase in outdoor prostitution.  However, I doubt we will see an increase in human trafficking cases.  After all, stopping the supposedly wide-spread occurrence of human trafficking was never the true goal of the bill's supporters.  It was merely a distraction used to drum up opposition to the current law.  This assault on liberty was a purely a puritanical crusade from the beginning.