Texas law criminalizes both prostitution and the act of soliciting a prostitute. Still, anyone accused of either crime remains innocent until proven guilty. Have you recently been charged with such an offense? If so, you have the right to an attorney and due process under the law. Contact a Houston prostitution lawyer as soon as possible. The sooner, the better in resolving the case in your favor.
Still, not just any Houston sex crime lawyer will do. To stand up against these charges, you want a legal team with a reputation for providing a tough, thorough defense. The team at Blass Law has the experience it takes to get the best results for anyone charged with prostitution.
Read on to learn more about prostitution laws in the state of Texas, along with how to choose the right Houston defense lawyer to represent you at this critical time.
Understanding Texas Prostitution Laws
As our Houston criminal defense lawyers can explain, due to the sensitive nature of this kind of charge, factual data is key. While misinformation is easy to spread, it’s best to go directly to the source when discussing prostitution law and its associated facets: The Texas Constitution and Statutes.
If you’re facing charges related to any kind of prostitution, you’ll need to know exactly what you’re up against. All of Texas Penal Code Chapter 43 relates to Public Indecency, which includes details on prostitution. The specific subsections 43.02 to 43.06 detail statutes related to prostitution, including :
- 43.02: Prostitution
- 43.03: Promotion of Prostitution
- 43.031: Online Promotion of Prostitution
- 43.04: Aggravated Promotion of Prostitution
- 43.041: Aggravated Online Promotion of Prostitution
- 43.05: Compelling Prostitution
- 43.06: Accomplice Witness, Testimony and Immunity
Now, let’s review a few of the most common reasons you might be facing charges of prostitution: allegedly committing the act, allegedly promoting it, or allegedly compelling it.
Prostitution
Under the Texas Penal Code, it is a crime for anyone to commit the offense of prostitution. The Statutory Definition of Prostitution describes two ways that someone could be charged for this crime.
The statute explains that a person commits prostitution if they knowingly:
- Offer to engage in sexual conduct for a fee; or
- Agree to engage in sexual conduct for a fee.
A crime still occurs if the person offers or agrees to pay a fee to another person for the purpose of engaging in sexual conduct with that person or another.
A crime also still occurs regardless of whether or not the actor (or someone working on behalf of the actor) actually pays the fee; the agreement is what makes up the offense.
Promoting Prostitution
It is also a crime to promote prostitution in Texas. Also called pandering or pimping, someone who engages in this act will receive money or another kind of payout following an agreed-upon act of prostitution.
Under state law, a person commits this offense if he or she knowingly:
- Receives money or other property following an arrangement to participate in the proceeds of prostitution
- Solicits another person to engage in sexual conduct with someone in exchange for money or property
Say, for example, two men agree to split the money that a woman earns after an act of prostitution. Although the men themselves aren’t directly guilty of prostitution, they did engage in the promotion of prostitution, which is also punishable by law.
Still, this isn’t the only way that someone could promote prostitution.
One person can also solicit another person to engage in sexual contact with a third party for a fee. For instance, one man can solicit another man to engage in a sex act with a woman for a predetermined amount of money. Both this example and the one listed above describe acts of promoting prostitution.
This offense also includes anyone who oversees a prostitution enterprise that contains two or more sex workers, exercising any form of the following types of oversight:
- Owning
- Investing
- Financing
- Supervising
- Controlling
- Managing
Compelling Prostitution
Compelling prostitution occurs when a defendant deliberately:
- Causes a person, through force, threat, fraud, or coercion, to commit prostitution
- Causes a child under the age of 18 to perform prostitution. (This act is a crime, regardless of whether the defendant knew the age of the child or not.)
Causes a disabled individual to commit prostitution (This act is a crime, regardless of whether the defendant knew the individual was disabled or not.)
If you are unsure of the charge you are facing, our prostitution defense attorney in Houston can clear it up for you.
Our Houston Prostitution Lawyer Breaks Down Prostitution Charges and Other Related Offenses
We’ve described the different ways that someone could be charged with prostitution in Harris County.
However, there are different classifications of the various types of prostitution crimes. Let’s take a look at each classification and its associated sentence and penalty.
Generally, a person paying for a sex act is charged with a state jail felony. A person offering to participate in a sex act for money is charged with a misdemeanor.
Class B Misdemeanor
The following crime is considered a class B misdemeanor:
- Prostitution (without any aggravating factors)
The offense is punishable by:
- Up to 180 days in jail
- Fine of up to $2,000
Class A Misdemeanor
The following crime is considered a class A misdemeanor:
- Prostitution by someone who has one or two previous convictions for the same offense
Each offense is punishable by:
- Up to one year in jail
- Fine of up to $4,000
State Jail Felony
The following crimes are considered a state jail felony:
- Prostitution by someone who has three or more previous convictions for the same offense
- Solicitation of prostitution (with no aggravating factors)
Each offense is punishable by:
- Six months to two years in a state jail facility
- Fine of up to $10,000
Third-Degree Felony
The following crime is considered a third-degree felony:
- A repeat offense of solicitation
- Pimping/promotion of prostitution (with no aggravating factors)
- Online promotion of prostitution (with no aggravating factors)
The offense is punishable by:
- Up to 10 years in prison
- Fine of up to $10,000
Second-Degree Felony
The following crimes are considered a second-degree felony:
- Knowingly or unknowingly soliciting prostitution from someone younger than 18
- Soliciting prostitution from someone believed to be younger than 18
- Repeat offense of pimping
- Repeat offense of online pimping
- Aggravated online promotion of prostitution (“owning, managing, or operating an interactive computer service or information content provider, or operating as an information content provider” with the intent of facilitating solicitation or the promotion of five or more sex workers)
Each offense is punishable by:
- Two to 20 years in prison
- Fine of up to $10,000
First-Degree Felony
The following crimes are considered a first-degree felony:
- A repeat offense of aggravated online promotion of prostitution
- Causing a person, through force, threat, fraud, or coercion, to commit prostitution (no aggravating factors)
- Compelling a person with a disability to commit prostitution (no aggravating factors)
- Pimping the prostitution services of someone younger than 18
- Compelling someone younger than 18 to perform prostitution
- Exercising control over a prostitution enterprise containing two or more sex workers
This offense is punishable by:
- Five years to life in prison
- Fine of up to $10,000
Long-Term, Non-Legal Effects of a Prostitution or Solicitation Arrest or Conviction
While most people are more concerned about the fines and jail time, there are other consequences of an arrest or conviction to consider. You may lose friends and family or even custody of your children. You could lose your job or even your professional license.
How Can a Houston Prostitution Defense Lawyer Help?
If you’re facing criminal charges for any of the above offenses, it’s critical to get in touch with a Houston prostitution attorney as soon as possible. While your situation might seem dire, an experienced lawyer from our firm can help you understand possible defenses that can make a difference in the outcome of your case.
Let’s take a look at a few examples of possible, viable defenses that could apply.
Entrapment
Many prostitution arrests are the outcome of an elaborate police sting operation or police entrapment. This describes a scenario in which a police officer or another government official causes you to commit a crime that you would not otherwise commit. While it can be difficult to prove that you were illegally enticed, it isn’t impossible.
For example, a police officer may pose as a “john” (e.g., the person looking to pay for sexual conduct) or a sex worker and attempt to get people to agree to sexual conduct in exchange for a fee. While some of these arrests are “legit,” others are the result of entrapment.
It is illegal for an officer to encourage or entice you to commit a crime, including prostitution or solicitation. If you were a victim of entrapment, your Houston prostitution defense lawyer can help gather as much evidence as possible to support your case.
Due Process
In the event that an arresting officer is directly involved in the prostitution act itself, there are instances in which defendants could prove that the officer violated his or her constitutional rights.
For example, it’s considered inappropriate behavior if a police officer engages in a sex act as part of a prostitution sting. A judge might consider this a violation of due process and dismiss the related charges.
Lack of Probable Cause
An arresting officer must have probable cause to charge someone on the grounds of prostitution. This means the officer must be able to prove that an offer to engage in prostitution occurred prior to the arrest, beyond any reasonable doubt.
If you were arrested on a hunch or due to character bias, your lawyer can help identify this weakness in the prosecution and use it to your advantage.
Duress
Were you forced to perform or promote an act of prostitution because someone else threatened violence, trafficking, kidnapping, or any other kind of harm against you if you refused? If so, this is considered duress and is a powerful defense in court.
These are a few examples of some of your strongest defenses against Texas prostitution charges. If you choose an inexperienced lawyer to represent you, you could lack the ability to build a credible and effective case that could prove the above issues are at play.
Why You Want Jay on Your Side
You don’t want to risk leaving your freedom and future in the hands of an inexperienced lawyer who doesn’t care whether you win or lose. That’s why you want to work with Houston prostitution attorney Jay Blass Cohen. Jay is Houston born and bred; he cares about his neighbors and has one goal: Keeping Innocent People Innocent.
Jay has dedicated his entire career to criminal defense. He didn’t start as a prosecutor and switch sides. He’s always been dedicated to people in scary situations-people like you.
And he has over 15 years of results to show for it. He’s obtained several not guilty verdicts and gotten charges dropped for many clients.
See what he can do for you.
Hire a Houston Prostitution Lawyer from Blass Law Today
Have you been charged with prostitution in the greater Houston area? If so, you want a knowledgeable Houston prostitution attorney by your side to help you handle the intricacies of these charges, so you can fight them in court.
Our team is well-versed in the Texas criminal justice system. Regardless of which particular charge you’re facing, we’ve dealt with it in the past.
We’ll work with you to understand every detail of your case in an attempt to get your charges reduced or your penalties lessened to the greatest extent possible.
We’ll even try to get your case dismissed and the crime kept off your record if we find evidence of police errors or another issue that could undermine the credibility of your charge.
Get in touch with us today for a no-obligation case evaluation. Let’s take this next step forward together. We want to help regardless of whether you were falsely accused or just made a mistake.