Escort services allege acting sexy is illegal in Utah

• Tweet
• 
• 

• Tweet

Three escort services claim Utah law makes it too easy for undercover police to arrest people for prostitution, alleging that simply acting sexy could be grounds for arrest.

Baby Dolls Escorts, Companions LLC and TT II have filed a complaint over the law, arguing it is too broad and makes it possible for strippers at licensed clubs to be arrested.

“We’re talking about a person who takes off her clothes for a living,” their lawyer, Andrew McCullough, told the Associated Press. “My clients have a license for that.”

Direct verbal solicitation of sex for money is illegal in Utah. But amendments to Utah’s prostitution laws also made it illegal to suggestively solicit sex using “lewd” or “suggestive” nonverbal acts.

Police have defend the law, saying it protects officers from prostitutes who ask them to expose or touch themselves to prove they’re not police.

“Officers were being put in a position that we’re not going to allow, so we took a different direction,” said Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank.

Photo credit: Jenjke Bykov