Stings in Florida. Public Shaming
Man in Maid Costume Arrested During Prostitution Sting.
The story of David Marsh has all the makings of a good WTF Florida story. He answered an ad placed online by what he thought was a prostitute. He hoped she would dominate him. He agreed to meet at a hotel and rode his bicycle there (he travels by bike because of a previous DUI). When he showed up, he took off his outer layer of clothing to reveal a French maid outfit and a dog collar. Underneath his apron was some sort of male chastity belt. Turns out, however, the prostitute was an undercover deputy, and Marsh was arrested.
Naturally, it made headlines, and the incident has gone viral for obvious reasons.
The arrest was part of a wider prostitution sting in which the Polk County Sheriff's Office arrested 95 people and publicly shamed every single one. Dubbed "Operation Naughty or Nice," the five-day sting netted 33 johns, 50 prostitutes, and 12 people who were arrested on other charges.
Sheriff Grady Judd seems to take a bit too much glee in publicly shaming those arrested, though. The amount of public assistance that arrestees received, their job titles, and marital status were collected and disseminated to the public. Many, it seems, had turned to prostitution just to get by. The Polk County Sheriff's Office might also need some sensitivity training. The department refers to multiple arrestees as "transgender," while others are classified as "transvestite. " The news release is kind of a sad document to read.
These prostitution stings seem to be a regular hobby of many smaller county sheriff's departments in Florida. This sting is at least Polk County's third of the year. Yet the county still seems to have plenty of people engaging in prostitution. Larger Florida law enforcement offices tend to forgo such tactics and concentrate on going after sex-trafficking rings and violent pimps.