Rethink Resources

Ok, I’m back with some news items:

From New York, Cop guilty of pimping teen runaway:

An NYPD detective pleaded guilty Thursday to his role in pimping out a 13-year-old girl and agreed to a 3-1/2-year jail term in a deal with Queens prosecutors. The district attorney’s office said Wayne Taylor, 35, and co-defendant Zelika (Mommy Z) Brown, 29, “bought” a 13-year-old runaway for $500 and took the minor to parties where she would charge men up to $80 for sex. They were charged with kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, endangering the welfare of a child and promoting prostitution, but were allowed to plead guilty to attempted kidnapping.

Clearly he got a deal as a police officer since many people have had much more serious prison terms for the same actions. He had to resign from the force too.

Also from the NY area, What a pimp reads:

What sort of person subjects children as young as 12 to beatings and a life of prostitution? An evidence list [attached large pdf] submitted in the case of Corey Davis, a Queens man who billed himself as “Magnificent,” might provide some insight. Mr. Davis, 36, is facing a minimum of 23 years in prison after pleading guilty in March to a federal charge of sex trafficking involving a 12-year-old runaway.

I’ve been seeing a lot more media sources attaching court documents and direct evidence released by the courts which I find really fascinating as a legal outsider. The list reminds me of how things I’m so used to seeing in working with youth in the sex trade (like scribbled notes about where to meet someone for an outcall or receipts) become evidence in trials like these.

From National Aboriginal News in Canada, Aboriginal youth often trapped in underage sex trade

Fidgety and anxious, “Tia” is uneasy talking about herself and seems surprised that anyone would care. She reveals that she is currently in a foster home that she is anxious to leave since she rarely sleeps there. “They don’t care about me, they just care about the money,” she says, gritting her teeth in anger. “They’re a joke. The system is a joke.” Although she claims she is in the sex trade industry by choice, her body language tells a different story. Gaunt, fidgety and talking with a slur, she appears to be going through an uncomfortable drug withdrawal. She abruptly ends our conversation when a vehicle pulls up and a man motions to the pretty, obviously-underage girl. After a brief conversation, the vehicle pulls away and “Tia” asks me to leave since my presence is making potential clients nervous. Before I leave, she reveals a little more about herself. “A lady started pimping me. She and her boyfriend watch out for me, so you better get out of here,” she warned before walking away.

The article goes on to talk about the inquest report from Tracia Owen’s suicide and the sexual exploitation of Aboriginal youth with some estimates that at least 70% of youth in the sex trade in Winnipeg are Native.

From Toledo Ohio, Primetime focuses on Toledo teens’ abduction, forced prostitution:

Three years after their short walk for a frozen snack became every parent’s nightmare, the two Toledo teens forced to spend 10 days having sex with strangers for money will appear tonight on ABC’s midweek news magazine, Primetime Live.

You can find a written summary of the Primetime special here. The police chief is continuing to hear criticism for the cops’ failure to respond quickly in this case when the girls’ family members located the house one girl was being held in and the police took 90 minutes to respond to repeated calls for assistance from the family.

And last week I posted about the campaign getting flack for encouraging young people to strip on camera to raise donations of clothes for homeless youth, well Virgin Mobile Pulls Back Racy Campaign:

While the Warren, N.J., company said it limited submissions to strippers 18 and older and was screening the clips to police their content before posting them, the campaign quickly drew criticism from people worried that it would attract teenagers eager to shed their clothes. Further, some nonprofits that work with homeless teens said they weren’t comfortable with the stunt…In response to the outcry, Virgin Mobile is giving the campaign a facelift, renaming it “Blank2Clothe.” Instead of taking their clothes off, viewers will instead be asked to do anything they want — juggling, singing or standing on their heads, for example — to trigger views and therefore, more clothing donations.