Prostitution law violates my client's right to sexual privacy, lawyer says; group takes stand
A lawyer representing a spa manager charged with promoting prostitution is arguing that Ohio’s prostitution law violates his client’s right to sexual privacy.
Lawyer Blake Somers says in a motion that Ohio’s law is “denying consenting adults the right to make decisions about sexuality in the commercial market place,” the Dayton Daily News reports. Somers represents Yunmei Wallis of Dayton, one of two spa workers who are charged.
The Dayton Daily News story was published a day after Amnesty International voted to support decriminalization of prostitution. The policy also supports decriminalizing payment for sex and brothel ownership, the New York Times reports.
Amnesty International says it took the position because it believes decriminalization can reduce risks for prostitutes who are exposed to arbitrary arrest, extortion and physical abuse.
Among those opposing the policy are feminist groups that believe paid sex is inevitably coercive and preys on vulnerable people, according to this op-ed column in the New York Times.
