Violence against sex workers

[redmachine 1916]

I know this is not anything new but violence against sex workers does not get the same treatment or coverage as it would if the person or persons involved were not sex workers.

 

On the front page of Thursday's edition of the CH was a story about the "dramatic" rescue of a deer that someone was keeping as a pet which apparently is against the law. Who knew?

http://thechronicleherald.ca/NovaScotia/1202232.html

 

Meanwhile buried on page 9 is this story http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1202211.html

Here is a story about a man who is being charged for the second time in six months with the kidnapping,sexual assault and torture of a sex worker he is also the main suspect in the disappearance of a third sex worker who has not been seen or heard from for over two months.

 

 

So a story about a pet deer gets front page coverage while a story about a serial kidnapper/rapist/and probable murderer gets a page 9 rating. I can't help but wonder if these three women were 'respected citizens" would this still be a page 9 story?

[PAPERSILO 41]

agreed , far too many times sex workers are looked at than less than a person . people take out the human side of the fact they do what they do for the same reason as anyone else who goes to work everyday . unfortunately every just thinks of the " crack whore " that works any corner that is free instead of the ladies that live and contribute positively to society .

[Guest s******ecan****]

The story choice is reflective of society's current view of victimhood.

 

It goes something lke this......

 

ie the deer was completely innocent, a poor helpless animal taken advantage of

 

the sex worker on the other hand was only asking for trouble by being in this business to begin with, voluntarily placing herself in a risky situation

 

Its an offensive attitude to say the least.

[E.D. man 691]

One thing I have to say about once every two years the Ottawa Sun looks at the sex industry from violence to sex slavery from children to adults.

Alot of the low end street walkers have to deal with clients and their pimps, who will be violent with them.

Unfortunaletly its the pimps who need to be put in jail, not the sex workers. And the ones who force the kids to do it should be hung by their balls , then have them cut off and forced to eat them.

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

... So a story about a pet deer gets front page coverage while a story about a serial kidnapper/rapist/and probable murderer gets a page 9 rating. I can't help but wonder if these three women were 'respected citizens" would this still be a page 9 story?

 

I agree with you, RM!

 

On the other hand, in all fairness to the Chronicle-Herald (which is certainly not my favourite newspaper), today's page 9 story has been a page 1 story, including the main headline, previously -- as the story broke, was investigated, and developed. Including interview with surviving (alleged) victim on page 1. So sometimes priorities have been better judged. And today's page-9 news on the development of the case is only a routine and uneventful brief court appearance. Thankfully all is not gloom and doom, plentiful though they be.

[rickoshadows 937]

I am reminded of a statement made in reference to the disappearance of Sex Workers in Vancouver's downtown east side. This was when the issue was just starting to become knwon and before Picton was arrested. A columnist wrote something to effect of: "The dissappearance of six dogs from the west side would have generated more ploice attention then the disappearance of 26 (known at that time) sex workers. " Unfortunately, this statement is as true now as it was then.

[VedaSloan 119179]

When you criminalize people, you also dehumanize them. People don't care what happens to so-called "criminals."

 

Just think about all the jokes you hear about being raped in prison. People don't care because they're criminals.

[redmachine 1916]

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1203413.html

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9017994.html

 

The real sad part about this story is they had this guy dead to his rights several months ago that should have put him in prison during the time his latest crimes were committed. Because the witness/victim (a sex worker) was late to court the prosecutor dismissed the charges and set him free to brutalize women again. One has to wonder if this was a college girl from a well to do family if he would have been so quick to this decision.

 

This guy has had several different addresses over the last couple of years including other areas of N.S. and Ontario so this could get very ugly before the final chapter is written on this fellow.

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Rene Ross of Stepping Stone was the featured interview on the televised "CBC News: Nova Scotia at 5:00" tonight from Halifax. Subject: the handling of this case, and also the general case for decriminalization.

 

Viewer feedback question: "Do you support decriminalization of prostitution?" Viewers are invited to call 1-866-420-4551 and leave their comments on this question for airing Monday. Or via e-mail: [email protected]

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

... televised "CBC News: Nova Scotia at 5:00" tonight from Halifax ... Viewer feedback question: "Do you support decriminalization of prostitution?" ...

 

There were three responses aired by CBC Nova Scotia this evening on the Viewer Feedback segment. All were in favour of some form of legalization, in order to reduce harm to sex workers.

[Lowdark 5613]

I too remember reading about the disappearance of women in Vancouver before it became a national story. The number then was around. Social workers threw up their hands in exasperation at the negliegence of law enforcement and the media (nothing against the men and women in blue, their political superiors rarely care about anything that doesn't pop up in polls). One social worker asked if this would be the case if it were college girls disappearing. Let's hope that possible decriminalization open's the eyes of both the public and the law to the equality of the women in this indstry.

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Patricia Brooks Arenburg and Dan Arsenault report for the Chronicle-Herald, 27 Oct 2010:

 

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9018458.html

A man twice accused of attacking sex workers has been charged with murdering Nadine Taylor.

 

Steven Elliot Laffin, 36, of Dartmouth has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of Taylor, police announced at a news conference this morning in Halifax.

 

?Nadine?s body has yet to be located and we have reason to believe that we will not be able to locate her remains,? Deputy Chief Chris McNeil of Halifax Regional Police said. He would not say why police have come to that conclusion.

 

Taylor hadn?t been seen since she left her Fairview apartment to use a pay phone to call a friend at about 11:30 p.m. on July 28.

 

The 29-year-old Halifax woman, who worked as a prostitute, was reported missing on July 31.

 

Police searched Laffin?s Woodlawn-area home for several days in late August and early September and allegedly found one of Taylor?s shoes inside.

 

Officers brought Laffin in for questioning on Sept. 21 and returned him to the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility in Dartmouth where he is awaiting trial on charges stemming from an alleged attack on a sex worker in Halifax on Aug. 16.

 

On Sept. 23, police announced that they believed Taylor had been murdered.

 

Laffin is expected to appear in Dartmouth provincial court tomorrow morning for arraignment on the charges.

 

He is currently in custody at the provincial jail in Burnside.

 

Laffin was accused of another attack on a woman in August 2009. In that case, Crystal Hape, a prostitute from Eastern Passage, accused him of threatening and sexually assaulting her. The case didn?t lead to a conviction after Hape showed up late for the trial this June.

 

Today?s announcement by Deputy Chief McNeil and Supt. Darrell Beaton of Halifax RCMP started at 11 a.m. at police headquarters on Gottingen Street in Halifax and was still ongoing at the time of this report.

 

"The officers initially assigned to the file knew Nadine and very quickly recognized that her disappearance was out of character. They immediately were concerned that she had met with foul play, and investigated the file on that basis from the outset," MacNeil said.

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9018459.html :

Timeline leading to murder charge:

 

Aug. 3, 2009

: Crystal Lynn Hape of Eastern Passage tells police that Steven Elliot Laffin, a former worker at the Sydney and Halifax casinos, threatened her life and sexually assaulted her at knife-point at a Bedford construction site. A prostitute, Hape says she noticed a smell of alcohol on Laffin?s breath when he picked her up earlier on Maynard Street in Halifax. Laffin is arrested that same evening in Bedford and is charged with sexual assault with a weapon and uttering threats.

 

June 8, 2010

: Hape is late for Laffin?s trial at Halifax provincial court and the Crown attorney doesn?t have enough evidence to present to the judge so the case against Laffin is over without a conviction.

 

July 28, 2010

: At 11:30 p.m., Nadine Taylor, 29, of Fairview leaves her Convoy Avenue apartment because she wants to use a pay phone to contact a friend. Taylor isn?t seen again and police issue a missing persons bulletin some days later.

 

July 31, 2010

: Laffin marries Joanne Swinemar of Dartmouth.

 

Aug. 16, 2010

: A 29-year-old woman gets in a car with Laffin on Dentith Road in Spryfield. She later escapes from the trunk of the moving car on Old Sambro Road and Laffin later appears at the Spryfield community police office where he is arrested. He?s eventually charged with aggravated sexual assault, forcible confinement and uttering threats in the case. He?s been in custody since.

 

Aug. 28, 2010

: Investigators obtain a search warrant allowing them to gather evidence at Laffin?s house at 51 Weyburn Rd., Dartmouth. A police spokesman says their work is tied to an ongoing investigation and isn?t associated to the Aug. 16 attack Laffin is accused of.

 

Sept. 23, 2010

: Police say they no longer classify Taylor?s case as a missing person file. Based on information they?ve gathered, they think she is no longer alive and has been the victim of foul play, so the case becomes a homicide file.

 

Oct. 3, 2010

: Laffin?s 18-year-old nephew Dillon Jewett is found murdered in East Uniacke. There appears to be no connection between Laffin?s situation and his.

 

Oct. 27, 2010

: Police charge Laffin with second-degree murder in the death of Nadine Taylor.

 

 

 

 

[lovethegirls 127]

Let's ALL get with it! Let's bring the human factor into this, PLEASE! The Ladies, not deer should be front page news. We all need to make sure our Ladies are safe! What they do for a living, should never come into question! Just my two cents.

Or maybe we should let Picton out! Our LAW enforcement....

 

We really, and honestly need to give these Ladies a voice. Let's truely listen to what they gave to say, and let's all try and protect them from these killers! You and I know, that if we all open out eyes and see the truth, we really can protect these ladies.

[qwertyaccount 15793]

...a man who is being charged for the second time in six months with the kidnapping,sexual assault and torture of a sex worker he is also the main suspect in the disappearance of a third sex worker who has not been seen or heard from for over two months.

 

This guy should be put into a tree chipper.

 

Feet first.

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

CBC News reports, 15 Feb 2011:

 

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/02/15/ns-laffin-taylor-court.html

Steven Laffin, the Nova Scotia man accused of killing a sex-trade worker, will be back in court in October for a preliminary hearing.

 

Laffin, 36, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Nadine Taylor in Halifax. On Tuesday, 18 days were set aside for his hearing, starting on Oct. 31.

 

Taylor, 29, was reported missing on July 31. Her fiancé said she left her home three days earlier to use a payphone because she didn't have a phone.

 

In September, police said they were investigating her disappearance as a homicide. Though they didn't find her body, they said they had physical evidence and information from witnesses that led them to Laffin.

 

Laffin was charged in October.

 

He is also accused of attacking another sex-trade worker on Aug. 16. He has been charged with abduction, forcible confinement, aggravated sexual assault and uttering threats in connection.

 

Laffin remains behind bars at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility.

[roamingguy 300292]

It happens when people are treated as second class, or for that matter, third or fourth class citizens. And it's wrong and repulsive

SP's are someone's daughter, sister and/or mother.

And it's why when people use terms such as whore, hookers, streetwalkers etc it objectifies and demeans, and allows "mainstream" society to see SP's as something less than a real person. And IMHO using such terms reinforces the negative view that mainstream" society has of SP's.

Finally as a closing note, I've been hobbying since July, and all I have had the pleasure of meeting are ladies

RG

[Cleo Catra 178382]

This, sadly, is why many sex workers do not/will not report sexual abuse. Even from friends, when a sex worker speaks about abuse, the response is often a roll of the eyes and a 'well, what did you expect'.

 

I'm not saying I've been a victim - but I have talked to friends about things I've read, and heard about, and their reactions have unfortunately made me realize that most people do not think you can commit a sexual crime against a sex worker. Which is one of the saddest things I've ever had to come to terms with in my entire life.

[Guest MrN*ceG***7]

Clearly someone priorties are wrong where a pet dear...gets more press coverage then this...

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Steve Bruce reports for the Chronicle-Herald, 27 Sept 2011:

 

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9022155.html

 

A Dartmouth man will stand trial more than a year from now on five charges stemming from an attack on a prostitute in Halifax in August 2010.

 

Steven Elliot Laffin, 37, appeared in Nova Scotia Supreme Court in Halifax this morning to have dates set for a jury trial on charges of attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault, uttering threats and forcible confinement.

 

Justice John Murphy booked the matter for eight days beginning Oct. 9, 2012.

 

Murphy noted that earlier trial dates were offered to the accused but didn't fit defence lawyer Brad Sarson's schedule.

 

Laffin remains in custody at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility in Dartmouth.

 

On Aug. 16, 2010, a 29-year-old woman escaped from the trunk of a moving car on Old Sambro Road in Halifax and ran to a nearby home to call 911. The woman said she had been attacked by a john and forced into the trunk.

 

Laffin was arrested a short time later when he showed up at a community police station.

 

Police then began investigating Laffin in connection with Nadine Taylor, a prostitute who went missing after she left her Halifax apartment on the night of July 28, 2010, to make a phone call.

 

Although police haven't discovered the 29-year-old woman's body, and say it might never be found, they charged Laffin last October with second-degree murder.

 

A preliminary inquiry on the murder charge is scheduled for January.

 

In 2009, Laffin was charged with threatening and sexually assaulting another woman. Those charges were dismissed in June 2010 after the victim, a former prostitute from Eastern Passage named Crystal Hape, was late arriving for the trial.

[qwertyaccount 15793]

Innocent until proven guilty, and then:

 

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Steve Bruce reports for the Chronicle-Herald, 18 Jan 2012:

 

http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/56315-laffin-stand-trial-murder-sex-workers-disappearance

 

Laffin to stand trial for murder in sex worker's disappearance

 

Steven Elliot Laffin has been committed to stand trial for second-degree murder in the disappearance of a Halifax prostitute.

 

Laffin, 37, is charged with killing Nadine Taylor, 29, who went missing in the summer of 2010.

 

A preliminary inquiry got underway last week in Halifax provincial court and was expected to sit into next week.

 

But the hearing wrapped up Thursday earlier than anticipated, after testimony from the Crown's eighth and ninth witnesses, experts in DNA and blood spatter.

 

Judge Anne Derrick ordered Laffin to appear in Nova Scotia Supreme Court in Halifax on Feb. 23 to begin the process of setting dates for a jury trial.

 

Taylor hasn't been seen since she left her Fairview apartment on the night of July 28, 2010, to make a phone call.

 

Laffin became a suspect about three weeks later, after the Dartmouth man was charged with attacking another sex-trade worker in Halifax.

 

Although Taylor's body has never been found, police charged Laffin with her murder in October 2010.

 

Four civilians and five police officers or employees testified during the preliminary inquiry. The evidence they gave is banned from publication.

 

Laffin, who's represented by Halifax lawyer Kevin Burke, has been in custody at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility in Dartmouth for more than 17 months.

 

He has another jury trial set for Supreme Court next fall on five charges involving the other woman, who escaped from the trunk of a moving car on Aug. 16, 2010. Those charges are attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault, uttering threats and forcible confinement.

 

Laffin also faces a charge of assault causing bodily harm from an incident with another inmate at the Dartmouth jail last August. The alleged victim was Clarence Michael McLeod, who's also awaiting trial for second-degree murder.

[Sexy_LanaMegane 2288]

When you criminalize people, you also dehumanize them. People don't care what happens to so-called "criminals."

 

Just think about all the jokes you hear about being raped in prison. People don't care because they're criminals.

 

You are right Berlin. I do voluntary work once in a while 3 or 4 times a year for a non lucrative organism for help to sex workers of all levels. I have seen and heard a lot. I talked to women on the street level who are harassed by police on a daily basis. It makes them in danger and it's not fear. That's one of the reason why they should legalize prostitution. I also talked to foreigner women who have been trafficked crying for help. Many of them said these men inflicted them physical abuse, physical pain, deception, coerce, fraud, humiliation and other forms of intimidation to try to obtain what they wanted. Since prostitution was not legal, some of them didn't talk to police. Once they knew the recurent behavior these foreigner men used on them to try to get what they wanted, they became stronger and the intimidation became ineffective after. If prostitution would be legalized, I assume there would be less expoitation of women, transgender, men and children.