BP Raided -- CEO Arrested

[Savannah Moon]

Originally Posted by AriannaKC

Charging Backpage with trafficking is like charging a hotel with trafficking, like charging a street corner with trafficking

LOL ..TRUE

[bilbobaggin]

Originally Posted by Y_eye_AwE_Ta

I heard he was busted for human trafficking

Backpage.com CEO Arrested & Charged With Human Trafficking! (Could Face 22 Years In Jail)

This link didn't work but I found it on Worldstarhiphop.com

Some headline writers are blowing it up to make it sound worst. He was charged with pimping of minors, so writers call that human trafficking.

Three charges. Pimping, pimping of minors, and conspiracy to commit pimping(I want to be in that meeting).

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...rnia/91699912/

[Guest030817]

3 charges from a 3 year investigation? With the volume that BP does? Pretty lame and a huge waste of money. He will most certainly beat those charges...just newspaper hype. When SF's Scarlet Book went down there were a string of murders to follow. Bet that news didn't reach the masses.

Moral politics do nothing for the actual safety and risk reduction of the exploited....now more lowlife management can join us here...or take it to the streets, endangering true victims even more. This does nothing to help victims. This helps politicians.

[Unique_Carpenter]

Originally Posted by AriannaKC

Moral politics do nothing for the actual safety and risk reduction of the exploited....now more lowlife management can join us here...or take it to the streets, endangering true victims even more. This does nothing to help victims. This helps politicians.

This^^^^^^
The actual folks that "traffic" will not be impacted as they usually know enough to hide their tails. Independents will be mostly impacted as a valid ad placement publisher may have to discontinue.

Side comment: Depending on how the California law is actually written, I wonder if a government employee token seller for San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit could be arrested for exchanging funds for turnstile tokens. Or if a School Principal could be arrested cause a mom put money into her kids school lunch account. Or, and here's the fun one we couldn't stop grinning about: Could a politician be arrested cause (edit add) hobby folks donated (end edit add-thx Ari) funds ended up in his campaign fundraising.

I agree with Ari that this situation is going to go to court. It might end up in Federal court as a constitutional rights issue. The BackPage folks have the funds for decent attorneys.

Originally Posted by zeejoe

A not so subtle reminder from your Uncle Sam that internet sites based in Texas (lookin' at you, ECCIE) are not immune from enforcement.

zeejoe,
ECCIE sold out to Europeans a couple years ago. And the old net servers that were in Texas were tossed last year, after the site relocated to new servers elsewhere.

[Guest030817]

UC-
I read that the Feds currently want nothing to do with this from a prosecution standpoint but may certainly enter the pic as you mentioned.

I misread your last example as: "politician's campaign $$$ ending up I the pockets of management. (edit..not sure I can post that word here)

[Unique_Carpenter]

Thanks Ari, I clarified mine.
But if a Politician were to....
Yup, you could be correct there, on a slightly different variation.

And yes Feds can only actually prosecute using Fed laws, its up to the States to prosecute their own laws.
Some of the guys that I run up bar tabs with think there's going to be huge amounts of attorney fees generated on this issue.

[Guest030817]

But legal experts say Backpage lawyers will likely assert that the executives’ conduct is protected by a far-reaching federal law, the Communications Decency Act, which generally shields websites from liability for third-party postings, particularly under state law. Backpage executives also have argued that their conduct is protected under the First Amendment.

-The Wall Street Journal

[josh renzo]

Where is a safer place or site to browse body rubs?

[Unique_Carpenter]

josh,
this board has a spa/studio forum.

Ari,
Agree that both the CDA and the 1st will both be used as defense.
The third bar tab discussion issue was if BP will continue to spend the resources on these matters as this constant political inspired war against BP will run up huge bills that would put lesser funded outfits out of business. The conclusion was that BP will, whereas Craigslist folded. Last, this Calif. criminal case appears to be somewhat similar to a civil case out of the State of Washington not to long ago, that BP won, and that was part of the discussion as well.

[Maverick 07]

Ariana makes some good points however she may be misinformed here. as someone with over 10 years experience in the adult club industry the decency act has been overturned before and this particular case hinges on complicity. Ive personally know the largest club owner in the world who was targeted and served 3 1/2 years on mail fraud in relation to obscenity.
The state of California has stacked the charges so there is no way these guys wont try to plea bargain here. The justices who are currently sitting in appeal would most likely hold up any decision in California. also to add to backpages woes the CEO has been just charged with money laundering in Texas. Complicity is easier to prove than you think and can be brought to court in a number of indirect ways. The authorites are attacking with the premise that backpage is not a passive board but actively encouraging illegal transactions in a number of ways. Other sites such as redbook have been closed and backpage is not immune.
Also it would be incorrect to assume that backpage isnt the largest online portal to prostitution. Since we live in a digital world it would significantly cut into underage and sex trafficking. Prostitutes lining the streets are easy targets to arrest and control. This case will eventually make it to the supreme court and It will loose there. Eccie could be next on the hit list.

[Savannah Moon]

I have heard since day one 6.4 years ago was going under..
And any of you that are under the impression that ANY site linked to this industry isn't under constant.. let's say, "observation" .
REALITY will be hard for you.
The sites..the CEOs
All involved were more than likely informed years ago what the repercussions would be in situations like this and that they were likely to occur.. Like I said these guys are prepared & these guys have more money than God PLUS they have amazing attorneys so it will be interesting to see how this pans out but I'm sure their legal staff has informed them of all the loopholes that were possible that is what they do and they are good... you don't hold that position in this industry and not expect it to happen!!!! you may not know when it's going to happen, but you know it's going to happen... Now the politicians have a nice little headline for their resumes you may not hear much more of it on the news.

[zeejoe]

BUMP.

Judge threw out the charges today.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-us...KBN13B2O7?il=0

[MOCHAakaMOCHA]

They're set to be tossed. Good. Those pimping charges on him were ridiculous.