THE BRONX — The Bronx District Attorney moved to dismiss more than 800 prostitution charges in the borough on Monday.
DA Darcel Clark’s move follows similar dismissals in Brooklyn. The Bronx District Attorney’s Office already declined to prosecute loitering for prostitution charges; women, LGBTQ individuals and at-risk youth were unfairly targeted by the charge, Clark said.
“The dismissal of warrants and cases related to this charge is the right thing to do,” Clark said. “Warrants create obstacles when people apply for housing, jobs or other resources. With today’s action, hundreds will be able to move forward without collateral consequence.”
Supervising Judge of Bronx Criminal Court, George Grasso, granted Clark’s motion to dismiss the cases.
“Individuals who had current matters pending in our Court where the sole charge was the alleged violation of this repealed law are now able to move on with their lives,” Grasso said. “This is another example of the ability of the Criminal Court to effectuate justice notwithstanding the ongoing pandemic.”
The motions include nearly 280 pending cases and more than 540 disposed cases in which a warrant was ordered, officials said. Some cases date back to the 1970s and 1980s.
“This is part of my overall effort to focus resources on prosecuting sex traffickers and provide assistance for those victimized by the sex trade,” Clark said.
