Legalities of Escorting/Massage in California

[Guest EWC]

I was hopeful that there were some lawyers from California who could spell out for me the legal ramifications of the trade; Specifically, what consititutes entrapment? Can a locked door be broken down to enter and observe sexual activity going on? At what point does it go beyond mutually consenting adults, etc.? In the case of massage, what licenses are required in say Los Angeles? Do they need to be posted? Thanks for any help you can give me.

[Flower]

>I was hopeful that there were some lawyers from California

>who could spell out for me the legal ramifications of the

>trade; Specifically, what consititutes entrapment? Can a

>locked door be broken down to enter and observe sexual

>activity going on? At what point does it go beyond mutually

>consenting adults, etc.? In the case of massage, what

>licenses are required in say Los Angeles? Do they need to be

>posted? Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

It's been a long time since I've practiced criminal law as a prosecutetor and a lot has changed, but I think I can generally answer your questions. I'm sure others will chime in if they feel I made a mistake

 

Entrapment is a word thrown around much but understood little. Basically, in simplest terms, you are "entrapped" when a law enforcement officer convinces you to do something illegal that YOU WOULD NOT OTHERWISE BE DOING, nor be inclined to do.

 

It is NOT entrapment if an under cover (so to speak ) cop posses as a client and offers an escort money for sex. He is offering money to someone that is inclined to trade sex for money so NO ENTRAPMENT.

 

If, on the other hand, the cop was with a non-escort and having a beer or two and said I'll pay you $$ for a bj and the non-escort says no-way or laughs it off, but makes it clear he's not into the scene, BUT the cop keeps uping the anti and pushing and convincing so finally this guy who was not otherwise inclined to trade $$ for sex, relents and does so, and the cop then arrests him--THAT IS ENTRAPMENT. It's the convincing, talking into, the cajoling a person into doing something illegal he would not otherwise do, that is the entrappment.

 

This has nothing to do with knocking down a locked door and I assume you are just asking multiple questions. Knocking down a locked door could be legal if there is probable cause to believe that their is contraband behind the door and a search warrent is obtained. It could be legal under a few other senarios (which I won't attempt to list to exhaustion), such as if a law enforcement officer is in hot persuit of a criminal and he ducks into a house or room and locks the door behind him. There are other reasons, but they almost always involve a police officer's REASONABLE belief that a crime is occurring inside or there is contraband inside and they have a search warrent or the circumstances are "exigent" and the SW is waived by the law.

 

Normally, however, if a cop just thinks a misdemeanor is occurring behind the door, he can NOT knock down the door. Examples: If the cop comes accross a known prostitute giving a bj in the alley and some guy handing him a $50 bill, and approaches based on his probable cause to believe he is witnessing a crime, and the prostitute and john run down the alley into an apt and close the door, the cop can most likely bust the door down and arrest. If he sees a known prostitute walk into an apt door, even though he suspects that the prostitute is there for trading sex for $$, he can not break in merely on suspcion of a misdemeanor being committed inside. So if you have an escort to your home or hotel room, and your actions are not open to public view, then you have an expectation of privacy that is protected and would be illegally violated by a cop breaking in on suspcion of a crime (misdemeanor or felony) being committed inside. "Probable cause" to believe a felony is being committed is a different ballgame, but not relevant to this discussion most likely.

 

Sex with mutually consenting adults in a location where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy is usually always legal--but sex for $$ usually is not, language on escort websites to the contrary not withstanding--if the escort is pandering to clients for sex for money, then no amount of exculpatory language will prevent prosecution if legally caught and the DA is inclined to prosecute. This is a lot different from a guide taking a group or even an individual on a photo safari and the money traded is for the time and expertese of the guide as a GUIDE and photographer and NOT for sex, despite the fact that they end up having sex--this would be legal although it's always a question of proof of intent.

 

In California, Massage licensing is a STATEwide requirement, although possibly individual cities can regulate some--I know nothing about this specifically, but usually, if the state regulates, then the cities and counties cannot unless the state's legislative scheme allows for additional regulation.

 

Hope that helps.