Prostitution may be called the world's oldest profession but in California, it's still illegal. While many people deem it to be a victimless crime, the law doesn't necessarily agree and there are a lot more complications to a prostitution charge than you may think. In fact, the repercussions of this charge are quite serious.
In movies and television, you always see a prostitute arrested and put in a holding cell with a few others in the same business. They're always out the next morning and things go back to normal. For the "john" you may see them charged but many times they are released after an embarrassing call to someone to help them make bail. However, in some cases and definitely in real life this is not the end result at all.
If you are charged with prostitution you can actually do jail time and under certain limited circumstances, you can be required to register as a sex offender since it is a crime of a sexual nature. This means that you are registered along with those that committed more serious crimes such as rape and pedophilia. The penalties include:
- First Time Offenders. Even if it's your first time with a prostitution charge you can face country jail time, fines, mandatory counseling, probation and community service. You must also submit to AIDS testing and learn more about AIDS education.
- Repeat Offenders. If you are a repeat offender the penalties are much more severe. The fines are larger and the jail time is longer. You can even lose your driver's license if your offense was within 1,000 feet of a private residence and in your vehicle.
So whether you are the giver or the recipient in a prostitution case, the ramifications are quite severe. Even if you try to plead that you were entrapped, it's not that simple. If any part of the act took place including but not limited to removing an article of clothing, it qualifies - you don't even have to exchange the money.
In this type of case you need a criminal defense attorney to ensure that you get the best legal representation. Even if you are guilty there may be a possibility of a lesser sentence so that you can get along with your life and that's possible with the right legal help. If you were charged with prostitution in Temecula, Murrieta, Wildomar, Menifee, Hemet, Lake Elsinore, Perris, Banning, Corona, Winchester or Riverside, contact us for a free and confidential consultation.