Friday, July 23, 1999
2 accused as prostitutes face prison
Both tested positive for AIDS virus
BY DAN HORN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
For the first time in Hamilton County, prosecutors are seeking prison sentences for accused prostitutes who are infected with the AIDS virus.
A grand jury this week indicted Patricia Proctor and Gary Price on charges of soliciting sex after testing positive for the virus.
The law, which went on the books three years ago, is intended to impose tougher sentences on prostitutes who knowingly risk transmitting the disease.
Prosecutors say both Ms. Proctor and Mr. Price told arresting officers they were aware they had tested positive for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
In each case, prosecutors say, the defendant offered to perform a sex act with an undercover Cincinnati police officer.
Ms. Proctor, 23, was arrested July 10 on Vine Street. Mr. Price, 24, was arrested the next day on Logan Street.
Although the cases are the first in the county, Prosecutor Mike Allen said he expects to see more cases involving the AIDS law as police become more familiar with it.
He said the law, which carries a possible sentence of up to five years in prison, is a valuable tool because it allows law enforcement to target the most dangerous offenders.
“In these types of cases, it's the same people you see over and over and over again,” Mr. Allen said. “Many of them just don't care. They continue to go out and solicit and put people in danger.”
To prove the case, he said, prosecutors need more than a positive HIV test from the defendants. They must show that the defendants were aware prior to the offense that they were infected with the virus, which can be sexually transmitted.
In these cases, Mr. Allen said, both suspects told police they had the virus.
He said court-ordered HIV tests, which are increasingly common in prostitution cases, should help police continue to track repeat offenders who have the disease.
“This is something (police) are going to be looking for,” Mr. Allen said. “I don't doubt we'll see more.'"
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