Sending letters to johns a success, say police
By Neco Cockburn , The Ottawa CitizenJanuary 22, 2009 3:01 PM
OTTAWA — Ottawa police will continue to send letters to potential johns after a year-long pilot project was deemed a success.
Police sent 69 “community safety” letters to homes during the first year of the program, which ended in October. Five men who received the letters contacted police, apologized for their actions and asked for more information, said Staff Sgt. Murdock MacLeod, who oversaw the pilot project and wrote a report recommending its continued use. Officers did not encounter any repeat offenders, he added.
“That tells me that the word is getting out,” he said.
The letters warn there is a “clear correlation” between street prostitution and drug use, also noting health concerns such as HIV and hepatitis.
A private courier company delivers each letter in a plain evelope directly to the person to whom it is addressed.
The letters are sent to men who have had direct contact with a police officer in the following circumstances, after picking up a sex trade worker, being found in the company of a sex trade worker, continually driving around an area frequented by sex trade workers or continually stopping and talking to sex trade workers.
The program caused controversy when it was first announced. Civil liberties groups have argued that it is not up to police to enforce morality, while groups such as the AIDS Committee of Ottawa and Elizabeth Fry Society said the practice could further isolate and marginalize prostitutes, stereotyping them as diseased and drug-addicted threats. Some people also raised privacy concerns.
Police worked with the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario to make sure privacy was protected, Staff Sgt. MacLeod said, adding that the force has received no complaints about breaches.
“We’re being as discreet as we possibly can,” he said.
ncockburn@thecitizen.canwest.com
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen
By Neco Cockburn , The Ottawa CitizenJanuary 22, 2009 3:01 PM
OTTAWA — Ottawa police will continue to send letters to potential johns after a year-long pilot project was deemed a success.
Police sent 69 “community safety” letters to homes during the first year of the program, which ended in October. Five men who received the letters contacted police, apologized for their actions and asked for more information, said Staff Sgt. Murdock MacLeod, who oversaw the pilot project and wrote a report recommending its continued use. Officers did not encounter any repeat offenders, he added.
“That tells me that the word is getting out,” he said.
The letters warn there is a “clear correlation” between street prostitution and drug use, also noting health concerns such as HIV and hepatitis.
A private courier company delivers each letter in a plain evelope directly to the person to whom it is addressed.
The letters are sent to men who have had direct contact with a police officer in the following circumstances, after picking up a sex trade worker, being found in the company of a sex trade worker, continually driving around an area frequented by sex trade workers or continually stopping and talking to sex trade workers.
The program caused controversy when it was first announced. Civil liberties groups have argued that it is not up to police to enforce morality, while groups such as the AIDS Committee of Ottawa and Elizabeth Fry Society said the practice could further isolate and marginalize prostitutes, stereotyping them as diseased and drug-addicted threats. Some people also raised privacy concerns.
Police worked with the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario to make sure privacy was protected, Staff Sgt. MacLeod said, adding that the force has received no complaints about breaches.
“We’re being as discreet as we possibly can,” he said.
ncockburn@thecitizen.canwest.com
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen
