Thursday, October 28, 2010

Anatomy of a Raid

I've never been in a raid myself, but I know quite a few girls who have. So here's what I know and heard.

Before ending up here at The Business, I worked at a place that had recently been taken over by a new owner. This guy has no idea what he was doing and instead of acting like a manager, he acted like a pimp. Not only did he not mind the girls doing full service in session, he actually encouraged it. So the place basically went from massage parlor to brothel overnight. And when this asshole told us we had to fuck him to keep our jobs - most of us quit.

That place got raided about a couple months later. Not because any of us squealed on him, but because his business began to attract the wrong kind of customer. That's one of the main differences between the clientele of a massage parlor and a brothel. In a parlor, the customers are mostly guys who are just thrilled to see some boobies and get a handjob. In a brothel, you'll get criminals spending their latest haul, and drug dealers looking to score a few new customers.

So to answer some of your questions, yes the cops do come in with guns drawn and making a lot of noise. This is for 2 reasons. First, they want everyone in the building to know that this is a raid and not a robbery. So anyone packing (and I will neither confirm nor deny whether we typically pack or not) will think twice before reaching for their own stuff. And second, they need to protect themselves just in case someone is dumb enough to pull a weapon (ya never know if that big spender you just had in session got all his money from knocking over a liquor store).

Raids happen super fast. They have to if they want to actually catch anyone in the act. Unlike a drug bust, we don't have any evidence that can be instantly flushed down a toilet. Instead, they want to catch the girls (and guys) naked in session. That way they can at least get you for public lewdness/indecency/etc. for having 2 naked bodies in the same room. Judges don't tend to buy the "...but she was topless for therapeutic reasons!" defense. Believe it or not, they go for the lesser charge of indecency because it's hard to get the charge of solicitation to stick. Mainly due to lack of evidence.

Now before some of you start crying "bullshit" because you read in the paper that the girls in a raid were all charged with prostitution - that's because they had all solicited undercover cops before the raid even started. Unless they have on camera a guy offering money for sex, there's no evidence to prove anything. There can be a pile of money on the counter, a guy tied to a bed with a gag in his mouth and a dildo up his ass, and a trashcan full of used condoms - there's no real evidence of prostitution. My friends that have been caught up in raids all had those charges thrown out in court.

HOWEVER... that doesn't mean that no one's going to jail. With enough "prostitution paraphernalia" lying around, they can usually bust the owner for running a house of "ill repute." The girls can all be arrested and have the shit scared out of them. And depending on the true nature of the raid, the customers may or may not be dragged through the streets for all the neighbors to see. At the very least, the guys will be questioned and released with the promise to never show their penises in public again. At worst, they'll be actually arrested and charged with public lewdness, with their names sent to the local paper.

That's exactly what happened around here a number a years ago. A place got raided not for the girls, but for the high-profile customers. No one famous, but a couple of business-owners and community-leader types. We all guessed they had a few enemies looking to take them down.

As for the businesses themselves - this is a free country and there is no law against offering massage services to the public. The cops can't confiscate your building. In fact, one of the first AMPs to be busted a year ago petitioned to reopen shortly afterwards. The owners reasoning - "I didn't know the girls were all illegal immigrants from Korea having sex for money." So if the place doesn't reopen under a different name, it'll probably just pack up and move across town.

Now why would anyone running an illegal business want to stay in the exact same notorious spot you may ask? For the same reason any good business would - location, location, location. If you've spent a few years building up a clientele at that address, why confuse anyone by moving it? Face it - EVERY town has 'that place" that's rumored to be a brothel/parlor/crackhouse/etc. And notoriety is the kind of advertising that money can't buy. So if you can't reopen at your old address, someone else will.

So if we're taken down tomorrow, chances are I'd post bail and be on my computer telling you all about it that night. Or maybe not since the DOJ is monitoring this website.

CJ

15 comments:

Unknown said...

CJ- this is totally your best post yet! At least for me... I'm sure the other guys will say the FOTWs are their faves. Really, really informative and well written, too (not that your other posts are terribly lacking in any way).

the best!

Jason - California said...

So you said that the place where you used to work the guy acted like a pimp. Then he demanded that everyone screw him to keep their jobs. Then you say "most of you" quit. So were you one of those that "screwed and stayed" or said "scerw YOU!" and left?

Mark said...

Jason,

I'm pretty sure this isn't the first time she's mentioned that incident. I can't be bothered to look through the archive but I'm pretty sure she told him where he could shove it, and none of the places she suggested involved her body.

Anonymous said...

Great post, CJ! I was the one who asked you the question about the raids. I expected a paragraph but this was much more. Keep it coming!

-Raid Questioner

P.S.-I would NEVER visit an MP for the threat of some cop pointing a gun at me while some lady is holding my gun!

Reflex said...

I can attest to the AMP's opening in the same spot they were in before. Happened here, few years ago a place got closed down for human trafficking, but they are back in business now, changed the name but the same kind of place. Working on getting them shut down now.

Jason - She has told this story before. She quit and was glad since she got to preserve her dignity and avoid the raid.

a regular said...

I will never understand why erotic massage, or even "full service" is illegal and raided with such vengeance. I mean it has to be the most victimless crime ever.
If only the same effort were expanded raiding vandals, car thieves, burglars etc. would this not be a far better world?.

Anonymous said...

Why is it an issue? To a publicity hungry prosecutor, it's low hanging fruit -- and very appealing to female voters, especially. More women vote than men, after all.

Just a few days left! Make your contribution now! www.davehecklerforda.com ... A different county but same difference.

-- Masked & Anonymous

Anonymous said...

P.s. Do the cops actually bust into the massage rooms? Sounds like a yes. Does it help if there is a double door set up, with an open outer door and a locked inner door? That would give at least a few seconds to cover up some. And if the masseuse is clothed -- as in a standard R&T set up -- and the guy is "undraped," I would imagine (heh) that she can usually throw a blanket on the guy. 'Seems like that wouldn't be illegal (as long as she doesn't have her hand around his cock!). But it must be bad for the client to be there, even if he's not charged. Awkward at best!

-- Masked

Anonymous said...

As informative as this post was... I wonder if thoughts of doors being kicked in ,guns a blazin' and being a dirty headline in the local rag, how much of all that will be floating around in my brain during my next session.

It hasn't up til now... thanks a lot CJ !

Palingi said...

@ Reflex - when responding to Jason you used the phrase, "preserve her dignity" - FUNNY!! I almost peed myself laughing!! You, like myself, are a cynical card. How can a skank like CJ preserve something that she ain't even got!! Dignity!!!???!!! I love it, Reflex. You are my man!! You a funny dude, bro. A skank ass ho like CJ would strip down to her thong and jerk off a dog, if the money was there! Reflex!! You nailed it, bro - SHE'S A TURNIP TWAT WHORE!!! Great call, my man.

Palingi said...

Upon further reflection I think that I may projecting my own self-image on CJ. Just because I would jerk off a dog for a few bucks doesn't mean she would. I'm not sure and I'm so confused about my own sexuality. Quick, somebody please call me pretty.

Zach said...

CJ, reading your blog has me out seeking massage. Initially I was out for a H.E. but as one was never offered, I simply enjoyed the massage.

I went to a new masseuse the other day. In the basement of an otherwise non-discript office building full of accountants and dentists.

One room, tastefully decorated. I undressed and covered with the small towel offered. As the massage started she asked me if I had massages before. "yes", then asked if I had ever been to an Asian place. "no, what are they lke" She replied that she heard that gave a deep massage and sometimes walked on your back.

The rest of the massage was great. Towards the end she asked: "have you ever been offered a release

?" Took me totally off guard and she seemed surprised when I stammered "no" She told that most of her male clients have been offered H.E. and was surprised I hadn't. Finishing the massage, she then asked "would you like one?"

Having not prepared for this I suggested "maybe next time"

Now, just for the massage I would return, but now that I know H.E. is offered I will definately be there again!

My only concern: any legal risk that this is actually entrapment? what do you think

Anonymous said...

Lowdown on raids was spot on; on brothels, completely off the mark, as usual.

Reflex... get a life.

Zach... you're gay.

Anonymous said...

brothels are similar to parlors in the respect that they too want to stay under the radar. Yes some clientele have 'paid in cash' type employment, but to call them criminals, painting them as violent and or predatory, is not cool.

Full service is just another part of the industry, we need to stick together and not point fingers at the other (sluttier) girls.

The logic being used to shut down brothels is the same that's being used to shut down parlors. we are all dirty whores to them, whether it's a hand release, bj or fs.

~lush

Thumber said...

Pennsylvania statutes:

S 245.00 Public lewdness.
A person is guilty of public lewdness when he intentionally exposes
the private or intimate parts of his body in a lewd manner or commits
any other lewd act (a) in a public place, or (b) in private premises
under circumstances in which he may readily be observed from either a
public place or from other private premises, and with intent that he be
so observed.
Public lewdness is a class B misdemeanor.

**********************************

You can't be convicted of public lewdness if you're caught at a massage parlor as a customer in a raid. That is what they often charge a prostitute and her customer when they are caught engaged in a sex act outside or in a car.

What the police generally do in a massage parlor raid is visit the parlor a few times in advance and get propositioned. They will then raid the place and arrest the women that propositioned the under cover cops for prostitution (most state laws are written such that a hand job is considered a sex act and therefore charging for it is prostitution). The owner/manager will be arrested for running a house of prostitution. Any clients on site will be taken in for questioning. If they are honest they will take their statements as corroborating evidence. If they lie then they will be questioned more in the hopes of catching them in a lie. If they catch them lying, they will be charged with obstructing justice.

They can't charge the customer with soliciting prostitution because they did not witness the transaction.