SEATTLE — The Seattle City Council was unanimous Monday in changing the name of the crime of “patronizing a prostitute” to “sexual exploitation.”
Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes asked for the name change to reflect “our more modern understanding that prostitution has a lot of unwilling participants.”
The Seattle Times reported that the crime remains a simple misdemeanor but the Washington Legislature is being asked to make it a gross misdemeanor. That would increase the maximum penalty from 90 days to a year in jail.
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