by J. Brooks Terry
Staff Writer
City Council member Suzanne Jenkins will introduce legislation by the end of the month to establish a primary funding source for local prostitution rehabilitation programs.
Jenkins said once a trust fund is created, the monies supplementing it will come from fines collected by the City for prostitution-related offenses.
“We’ve been working on this for a while, because we wanted to be sure we had done our due diligence,” said Jenkins. “But during that time we had been asking ourselves how we could do a better job of collecting fines so we could, then, go about creating an effective intervention for prostitutes and reduce the recidivism rate we have now. Now that we have something, we’re pushing hard on it. This is a public health issue we’re talking about.”
Providing the bill passes, Jenkins, who has chaired the Council’s subcommittee on prostitution for several months, said a policy change is in order.
“We understand we have to be careful on how we approach this,” said Jenkins. “But in order for this to work, we have to start charging prostitutes and Johns (solicitors of prostitutes) with violating the municipal ordinance code, not the State Statute.”
As part of Article 5 Revision 7 to the Florida Constitution, Jenkins said fines collected for statutory violations will soon be channeled directly to the State, thereby cutting a major funding option locally.
Taking effect in July 2004, the Florida Constitutional revision shifts controlling interest and fiduciary responsibility of all municipal court systems under State domain.
“All that the judges are doing right now is basically requiring the Johns to pay the court costs and nothing else,” she said. “Pretty soon those costs are all going back to State. The fines we collect for municipal code violations will stay here.”
According to municipal code, first-time solicitors can be charged with a Class D offense and fined up to $500.
There are currently no provisions for second or third offenses, though Jenkins said that might change.
“There’s the funding we need right there,” said Jenkins. “And I think the judges would be more likely to impose a higher a fine if they knew it would be used to help implement a local program.”
The ink is still drying on Jenkins’ bill draft, though she has already made contact with the State Attorney’s Office and the local judiciary to garner support.
“I’ve spoken with the Councilwoman about this and told her I would do anything I could do to help,” said County Court Judge Eleni Derke. “I have a meeting with the County Court judges next week and I plan to discuss with it with them and collect feedback.”
Derke said she largely supports Jenkins’ proposal, but declined to speculate on the reaction it will generate from others at the courthouse.
“It’s up to the State Attorney’s Office and the sheriff’s department to issue the municipal code violations,” she said. “But I will say that the judges will have to be prepared to give out higher fines if this is going to work.
“It won’t otherwise.”