Judge caught with drugs, stripper, guns

In this November 20, 2008 photo, Senior U.S. District Judge Jack T. Camp poses for a photo in Atlanta. Camp, 67, was arrested Friday, Oct. 1, 2010, minutes after he handed an undercover law enforcement agent $160 for cocaine and Roxycodone, a narcotic pain medication, that he intended to use with the exotic dancer, as stated in a court document released Monday. (AP Photo / Zachary D. Porter)

ATLANTA -- A 67-year-old federal judge's wild relationship with a stripper started with a lap dance, prosecutors said, and quickly escalated into escapades of prostitution and gun-toting drug deals for cocaine and prescription pills.

Senior Judge Jack T. Camp, a veteran jurist who had achieved a status that allowed him a lighter caseload, now finds himself in a peculiar position, in front of one of his peers, and with lawyers combing through his decisions, wondering whether they have grounds to challenge them.

"I don't know whether the allegations are true or whether they infected the decision making, but it's incumbent upon me to raise these issues," said Gerry Weber, a civil rights attorney who is readying an appeal in a case that Camp ruled on in June.

Camp, a Vietnam War veteran who was appointed by Ronald Reagan, built a reputation for handing out stiff sentences, including for drug convictions. He could face years behind bars on drug and gun charges. The judge's attorney has said he intends to plead not guilty.

The stripper, who previously had a felony drug trafficking conviction, had been secretly working with the FBI since the spring to build a case against the judge. In exchange, prosecutors pledged not to charge her.

Camp's relationship with the dancer, who was not identified in court documents, began earlier this year. A day after receiving his first dance, he returned to the Goldrush Showbar for more dances, and added sex and cocaine to his tab, authorities said.

Over the next few months, the two used cocaine and other drugs together, sometimes at the strip club, and the judge would pay $40 to $50 to join her getting high, according to a sworn statement.

In June, the judge followed the stripper to a house in the Atlanta suburb of Marietta to buy drugs, carrying a semiautomatic handgun with him he later told her he brought to protect her, the affidavit said.

The relationship finally unraveled Friday. Camp told the stripper he would try to help with her criminal record and advised her to tell a potential employer who had rejected her application that "it was a minor offense and that one of the judges on the court can explain that to him," according to the affidavit.

A few hours later, the dancer asked Camp to follow her to the Publix grocery store parking lot in northeast Atlanta to meet a drug dealer. When she said she feared for her safety, authorities said he responded with a dash of bravado: "I not only have my little pistol, I've got my big pistol so, uh, we'll take care of any problems that come up."

Camp, who is married with two grown children, then gave the stripper $160 to buy the drugs from an undercover officer. When the agent, posing as a dealer, told Camp he had given the two a few extra pills, the judge sounded pleased. "We'll call you again," the judge said.

FBI agents swarmed the judge's car about 10 minutes later when he drove to the Velvet Room, a nearby night club. They recovered the plastic bag containing blue pills and a white substance, along with two guns from his front seat.

Not only has the case shocked the legal community, it has created a conflict of interest mess. For Camp's bail hearing, prosecutors were flown in from Washington and a magistrate traveled from Alabama because the local judges recused themselves from the case.

Camp supervised several cases while he was being investigated, including an April trial involving a pilot charged with shipping cocaine for drug traffickers. A jury acquitted the pilot after a trial in which prosecutors carted out 174 kilograms of cocaine in front of the jury several times.

It's unclear whether any of the judge's decisions will be revisited.

"If you could establish that a judge was under the influence of some substance at the time he presided or ruled, then you could conceive of a basis for a challenge," said Pete Donaldson, a criminal defense attorney based in Albany, Ga. "You can envision all manner of circumstances where that might come into play."

The judge grew up on a working farm in rural Coweta County, and he enjoyed talking to colleagues about raising timber, pumpkins and cows on a plot of land he still owns.

During his more than two decades on the federal bench, he hated when attorneys grandstanded and sometimes required them to cite the specific federal code when they dared raise an objection. But he always maintained a cordial relationship, said defense attorney Page Pate.

"He was a true Southern gentleman who was definitely tough with defenders - even more so in drug cases," said Pate.

Camp sentenced two men accused of killing DeKalb County Sheriff-elect Derwin Brown to life in prison without parole in 2004, and gave the personal doctor to a professional wrestler who killed himself, his wife and their 7-year-old son 10 years behind bars for prescription drug-related charges.

At a brief hearing Monday, the judge found himself surrounded by four defense attorneys. He flashed a quick smile to his family before he was released on a $50,000 bond.

William Morrison, who tried several cases before Camp before becoming his attorney, assured the judge's family that he was doing fine, and then told reporters Camp would likely take a leave of absence.

"This is really a case between Judge Camp and his wife. It's not about Judge Camp being a judge. It's about him being a husband," said Morrison, who added: "It is not a case about judging. It's a case about judgment."

Source: http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news%2Fnational_world&id=7709589

Craigslist to drop "erotic services" ads

BOSTON (Reuters) - Online classified site Craigslist will replace its "erotic services" ads with a new adult category following pressure by state authorities after the murder of a masseuse who advertised on the site.

The "erotic services" section will end within seven days and be replaced by an "adult services" category where advertisements will be individually screened by Craigslist staff, Craigslist said in a statement on Wednesday.

The measures could set a precedent for similar sites, said Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who led a 40-state task-force on Craigslist and campaigned publicly for tighter controls on the San Francisco-based service.

"Closing the erotic services section, a blatant Internet brothel, should lead to other blocking and screening measures, and set a model for other sites, if Craigslist keeps its word," he said.

Craigslist's sex-service listings have faced intense scrutiny since the April 14 murder of 25-year-old masseuse Julissa Brisman, who advertised on Craigslist in Boston.

Philip Markoff, a 23-year-old Boston University medical student, was charged with killing Brisman and with attacks on two other women he met through Craigslist ads.

Craigslist, a 14-year-old online bazaar that generates more than 20 billion page views per month in 50 countries with a staff of just 28 people, is partially owned by online auctioneer eBay, which bought 25 percent in 2004.

Along with free listings for everything from apartments and furniture to jobs and cars, Craigslist.com carries one of the largest and most controversial sex-service listings. Its rapid growth and low-cost business model have hurt newspapers by siphoning away advertising revenue.

Craigslist had already made some changes to curb illegal activity on its site. Under pressure from 40 U.S. attorneys general, the site agreed in November to charge people posting erotic ads $5-$10 by credit card and require them to submit a working phone number to use the site.

'HALF BAKED'

From Wednesday, postings to the "erotic services" section will no longer be accepted, Craigslist said. Postings to the new section, which opened immediately, cost $10. Once they are approved, they will be eligible for reposting at $5.

Not every state was satisfied. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has pressed Craigslist to go further by tracking computer IP addresses of suspected prostitution rings and take other safeguards.

"Several weeks ago, we informed Craigslist of an impending criminal case that implicated its website. Rather than work with this office to prevent further abuses, in the middle of the night, Craigslist took unilateral action which we suspect will prove to be half-baked," Cuomo said in a statement.

His office declined to elaborate on the criminal case.

In April, Blumenthal asked Craigslist officials to eliminate photographs in the "erotic services" and similar sections of the site, hire staff to screen ads that violate Craigslist rules and offer incentives for people who flag and report prostitution advertisements.

"We will be monitoring closely to make sure that this measure is more than a name change from erotic to adult and that the manual blocking is tough and effective to scrub prostitution and pornography," Blumenthal said.

Tabloids dubbed Markoff "the Craigslist killer."

The murder followed the killing of George Weber, a New York reporter knifed to death after responding to a personal ad he placed on Craigslist in March, and the early-April sentencing of Michael Anderson, a Minnesota man convicted of killing a woman who responded to a babysitting ad.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE54C4YP20090513?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0&sp=true

Brothels in Ecuador Skirt Law Banning Minors

Brothels in the petroleum port province of Esmeraldas provide an employment magnet for underage women. A significant number are lured into the work by a man they consider a romantic partner. Third of six on Ecuador's sex industry.

Brothel worker in Esmeraldas Quito Ecuador

ESMERALDAS, Ecuador (WOMENSENEWS)--The clients start filing in shortly after lunch. Beer flows. Women lead them into tiny rooms. A young woman sits to the side, forlorn, making no effort to get their attention.

"The hardest thing is when a drunken client comes in. They are rude and violent people," Jacklyn, who works in a brothel in Esmeraldas, told Women's eNews earlier this year.

Jacklyn said she is 22 years old, but doesn't look it. When pressed for her age, she admitted to entering the business at 15, but said a growing number in Esmeraldas are starting out as young as 12. That is three years younger than the national average age of minors who entered the sex industry in 2006.

This oil port, tourist destination and province bordering Colombia has a high concentration of formal and informal brothels.

It is one of the country's centers for the sexual exploitation of minors, according to a 2008 Organization of International Migration report. Three quarters of the teens and preteens trafficked in Ecuador pass through the brothels, bars, hotels and motels along this coastline, making the province a gateway for minors to join its sex industry.

Licensed centers of tolerance--a euphemism for brothels in Ecuador--conceal the trafficking and exploitation of minors for commercial sex. Local fishermen, migrant oil workers, police and military provide a steady clientele.

The age of consent is 14 in Ecuador and teenagers can start working age 15. But the country's new constitution, introduced last year, specifies that work for those under age 15 should not conflict with a child's right to education or put their development in danger. It explicitly calls for the protection of minors from sexual exploitation.

"The line between sex work and exploitation is blurred," Tania Moreno, a Quito-based sex crimes prosecutor told Women's eNews in February. "And teens are sadly the ones in highest demand in the sex market."


Reluctant Law Enforcers

In last year's report to the Organization of International Migration, Moreno detailed law enforcers' reluctance to interfere in brothels that hire or hide minors when the legal age to work is 15. He also noted the prevalent misconception that underage girls enter the sex industry out of enjoyment.

The reality, Moreno said in an interview, is that adolescent sex workers are children made vulnerable by their poverty. The majority leave school at 11 and often support entire families. Many, said Moreno, have a history of sexual abuse.

"'I was abused and not paid,' goes the logic," said Moreno. "So why not get paid?" The victim of sexual exploitation doesn't recognize herself as such because she has received money for the work she is doing so she doesn't see it as exploitation."

Jacklyn works at Las Hermanitas (The Little Sisters), one of two female-run brothels in Esmeraldas. It is sparse and overheated. Rooms offer three buckets instead of a sink for washing. Small corner shelves support personal belongings, ranging from vanity mirrors to condoms to nail polish.

She earns $500 per month, charging $6 for each 15 minutes of intercourse or "el punto." This is a high income compared to domestic worker wages. She pays a $1-per-client commission to the brothel owners and sends the balance to her sister-in-law who is caring for Jacklyn's two out-of-wedlock children. Jacklyn says the financial responsibilities of motherhood lock her into sex work.


'No-Fail' Business

"Girls do not enter this job because they like it," said Pavel Tenorio, a 22-year-old pimp working in Esmeraldas. "They do it out of need. This is a business that does not fail."

A 2008 survey of underage sex workers showed that the majority--42 percent--cited economic reason as a primary motivation for their activity. The second most common reason was fear of their partner, with 81 percent reporting a history of abuse. A quarter of underage sex workers hand over their income directly to the partner--often a chulo or pimp--who put them in the business.

One strategy pimps use is seducing a teenager and then forcing her into sex work.

Silvia Barragan is president of the shelter Foundation for our Young in Quito which offers shelter to victims of sexual exploitation or family violence from across the country.

"The hardest part of rehabilitating these girls is getting them to understand that they are victims, that these men do not love them and that they should not go back into the business," said Barragan.

In 37 percent of cases, the pimp or trafficker is a friend, classmate or boyfriend of the sex worker. The recruiter is a young adult, typically between the ages of 19 and 25, according to a summary of investigations in the first half of 2008, included in a database maintained by the shelter.


Brother Owner Expresses Shock

"As a mother, I am shocked to see girls come in at 14," said Lucia Quinonez, owner of Las Hermanitas. "But their 'husbands,' boyfriends, pimps--assholes--get them false documents and put them to work. Authorities try to control it but can't overcome the mafias. And us owners, some close our eyes. Others open them."

Quinonez, age 46, said she runs a tight ship at Las Hermanitas and handpicks her workers to avoid minors. But Quinonez said brothel owners who try to work within the law are facing a surge of false documents and minors who lie about their age.

Quinonez said she can spot a minor. Shaking or trembling are two give-away signs of inexperience. She added the majority of these adolescents robotically repeat that they are over 20 when asked for their age and identification papers. A few cry, sigh, and finally break down, saying they came into the business because they were forced by a boyfriend or because they have a family to support.

Quinonez said she turns them away but admits that mistakes can be made.

In December, a young woman entered Las Canitas--a brothel run by Quinonez's sister-- wearing a blonde wig. Quinonez told Women's eNews that she suspected the girl was a minor but the young woman insisted she was 19.

Maruja, Quinonez's sister, hired her. She ended up in the emergency room, with her vagina ripped apart by her 22nd client.

Source: http://www.womensenews.org/story/the-world/090506/brothels-ecuador-skirt-law-banning-minors

Craigslist to Crack Down on Prostitution Ads

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- Under the watchful eye of law enforcement in 40 states, Craigslist pledged Thursday to crack down on ads for prostitution on its Web sites.

As part of Craigslist's agreement with attorneys general around the country, anyone who posts an "erotic services" ad will be required to provide a working phone number and pay a fee with a valid credit card. The Web site will provide that information to law enforcement if subpoenaed.

Jim Buckmaster, Craigslist's CEO, said the deal will allow legitimate escort services to continue advertising, while providing a strong disincentive to companies that are conducting illegal business.

"We don't view it as a penalty, we view it as raising the accountability," he said. "A legitimate business should have no problem with that. They should have no problem providing a phone number or credit card credentials."

Craigslist filed lawsuits this week against 14 software and Internet companies that help people who post erotic service ads to circumvent the Web site's defenses against inappropriate content and illegal activity.

Craigslist, which posts 30 million ads every month for everything from apartment rentals to jobs in hundreds of cities, will also begin using new search technology in an effort to help authorities find missing children and victims of human trafficking.

Police across the country have been arresting people for using Web sites like Craigslist to advertise the sexual services of women and children.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who brokered the agreement, said his office contacted Craigslist after receiving several complaints from users late in 2007 about photographs depicting nudity on the site. He said Craigslist cooperated fully and there was never a need to threaten legal action against the company.

"The dark side of the Internet must be stopped from eclipsing its immense potential for good," Blumenthal said.

He added: "I am fully convinced that Craigslist wants to stop this activity as much as we do."

Buckmaster said the agreement does not cover Craigslist's personal ads, where prostitutes have been found advertising for "dates." But he said the San Francisco-based company has been working with authorities on that issue and on cutting down on the sale of stolen merchandise on its sites.

"We are experimenting with telephone verification in those sections," he said. "We don't have any plans to use credit card verification in that section currently. But this partnership is going to be active in that area as well, anywhere where crime does or could occur."

The agreement was joined by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

"The criminals engaged in the sexual trafficking of children no longer parade them on the streets of America's cities," said the center's chief executive, Ernie Allen. "Today, they market them via the Internet."

The states that signed the agreement are Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam also joined.

Source: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/T/TEC_CRAIGSLIST_PROSTITUTION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

3 Ada County residents charged with sexually exploiting teen girl, advertising her on Craigslist

Three Treasure Valley residents accused of taking sexually exploitative pictures of a 15-year-old girl and then using popular Web site Craigslist to advertise her for prostitution are all being held in jail Thursday morning.

Douglas A. Winberry, 50, of Meridian; Colby R. Watson, 36; and Lindsey J. McKeehan, 23, of Boise, are all charged with lewd conduct with a minor under the age of 16, sexual exploitation of a child, possession of sexually exploitative material, and inducing a person under the age of 18 into prostitution.

Watson and McKeehan are in the Ada County Jail. Winberry is being held in the Benton County Jail, near Prosser, Wash., where Meridian police say he fled to to avoid arrest after he discovered detectives were searching his home in the 2000 block of Cool Creek Avenue earlier this week.

Watson and McKeehan were arrested Wednesday at the Ada County Courthouse.

Colby R. Watson

Lindsey Jo McKeehan

Meridian police began investigating the case June 19 after getting a tip that Winberry had pictures of a girl, under the age of 16, in various sexual poses on a CD at his Cool Creek Avenue home. Police searched Winberry’s home and found evidence that he was engaging in sexual acts with the girl and that he advertised her for prostitution on Craigslist.

Detectives also found evidence that the girl previously had been used in the same way by McKeehan and Watson — that the couple had taken pictures and video of the girl engaged in sexual acts with both of them and advertised her for prostitution on Craigslist, a free classified advertising Web site.

When detectives searched their home in the 11000 block of West Raul Street, near Columbia and Cloverdale roads in south Boise, they found more evidence. An arrest warrant was issued Tuesday for Winberry, and officers arrested McKeehand and Watson as they developed probable cause in the case, police officials said.

Meridian Police Lt. Bob Stowe said detectives found evidence that McKeehan, Watson and Winberry all knew each other but did not disclose the nature of the relationship or whether they met through Craigslist.

Stowe also said detectives were still investigating how the adults knew the girl. There is no allegation that the girl was forced to have sexual contact with the three adults.

While there was definite evidence of advertising for prostitution in the case, Stowe said detectives were still working on whether any prostitution took place or where it may have happened. Stowe said there is evidence that at least some the exploitative images and videos found were recorded at the two homes.

Winberry was arrested in the Prosser area Tuesday night on the Meridian arrest warrant. Stowe said detectives figured out that was where he likely went and contacted Prosser police Tuesday once the warrant was issued. Winberry was arrested without incident and is being held in the Benton County Jail on a $1 million warrant.

McKeehan and Watson are being held in the Ada County Jail, each on a $750,000 bond, and will make their initial court appearance later Thursday.

The maximum possible penalty for lewd conduct with a minor under the age of 16 is life in prison.

Source: http://www.idahostatesman.com/235/story/425859.html