Solicitation Of Prostitution Sting Herndon Virginia
Solicitation is an inchoate offense that consists of a person offering money or inducing another to commit a crime with the specific intent that the person solicited commit the crime. Solicitation of prostitution means offering or agreeing to engage in prostitution or another way of saying it is attempted prostitution.
There are two kinds of evidence: direct evidence and circumstantial evidence. Direct evidence is evidence that, in and of itself, establishes a fact in the investigation. For example, a videotaped exchange of money in a prostitution case is direct evidence. Circumstantial evidence is an evidence that tends to prove a fact by proving other events or circumstances, which afford a basis for a reasonable inference of the occurrence of the fact at issue. Often, law enforcement will rely on circumstantial evidence to build a prostitution case.
The Virginia Police Department routinely performs sting operations where members of the vice division will pose as either the solicitor or the prostitute. Because of the high number of prostitution cases in each year, prosecutors in Virginia usually seek jail time, even for first-time offenders.
The specific penalties for prostitution in Virginia depend on the severity or nature of the crime itself. The common penalties include:
- Providing Sexual Favors for Money or Goods: Class 1 Misdemeanor—Up to a year in jail and/or $2,500 in fines.
- Solicitation of Sexual Favors for Money or Goods: Class 1 Misdemeanor—Up to a year in jail and/or $2,500 in fines.
- Pimping or Pandering: Class 4 Felony—2 to 10 years imprisonment and/or $100,000 in fines.
If you are charged with using a motor vehicle for the purposes of prostitution, or you are accused of allowing your vehicle to be used by others for such purposes, you can be charged with this Class 1 misdemeanor. However, intent is a key component of this charge, so it must be proven that you knew or had reason to believe that the vehicle would be used directly for or to promote the act of prostitution. This charge carries the same penalties as the other Class 1 misdemeanor prostitution-related offenses.
You do not have to accept guilt if you are charged with any prostitution offense. You can raise defenses, including no intent, prostitution requires proof that you intended to offer sex for something of value or that you intended to provide something of value to buy sex. If you did not intentionally do that, you should not be found guilty.
In most cases, individuals are arrested for solicitation in sting operations. It is becoming more common for undercover officers to pose as prostitutes in order to solicit men. If an undercover officer can get someone to utter the words “sex and money” usually an arrest will take place immediately.
Prostitution is a criminal offense in Virginia, under Virginia Code Ann. § 18.2-346 and is punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor.
If you are facing a criminal case in Herndon, Virginia, the Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. can help you best possible outcome based on the facts of your case. If you wish to consult an SRIS Law Group, P.C. attorney, call us at 855-696-3348.
