On Friday, 30 November 2012, two miscreants (Terrence Williams and Charles Deville Nash) were sentenced to extended stays within the federal prison system for trafficking young women within Western Washington, and to/from other states. The pimps would advertise the availability of their victims via advertisements on Craig’s List and Backpage (see my prior piece: Sex Trafficking & Exploitation 2012 – Village Voice). According to the US Department of Justice, “both men controlled young women, advertising them on the internet, transporting them to “dates,” taking their earnings and through verbal or physical violence forcing them to continue in the sex trades.”
Why is this case different than others that I’ve spoken about before? This is taking place in my community. And when it is in your backyard you tend to pay attention.
Here are the details of these two specific cases as drawn from the US Department of Justice press release of 30 November 2012.
Williams: “According to records in the WILLIAMS case, between 2007 and 2011, he controlled or attempted to control three young women in the sex trades. WILLIAMS advertised at least one victim on line, transported victims to “dates,” took the earnings the women made from prostitution and controlled his victims with verbal and physical abuse. As part of his plea agreement, WILLIAMS is to pay his victims restitution. Prosecutors estimate it could be more than $185,000.”
Sentence: “In Tacoma, TERRENCE WILLIAMS, 25, of Bremerton, Washington was sentenced to nine years in prison and five years of supervised release.”
Nash: “According to records filed in the case against NASH, he victimized five different women for his financial gain. Prosecutors will ask that he pay his victims more than $240,000 in restitution at a hearing scheduled for January 2013. Between 2009 and 2011, NASH controlled the women at various times, advertising them on Backpage.com, transporting them to various states for prostitution, and taking their earnings from prostitution. NASH trafficked the victims in Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, and Utah.”
Sentence: “In Seattle, CHARLES DEVILLE NASH, 30, of Seattle, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and three years of supervised release.”
All very antiseptic, unless of course you were one the eight victimized women. So let’s look at the Modus Operandi used by NASH as detailed in a Seattle Police Department’s, “Certification for Probable Cause of Nash committing Rape and Prostitution of one of his victims – the level of detail in this report will be repugnant and graphic, the victim was truly victimized..
An excerpt:
“At about 0010 hrs, Officer Blackmar received an 0 & A (offer and agreement for a sex act for a monetary fee) from a female later identified as Hope . was arrested by other members of the Team at Denny Way and Vine St. After was arrested she told Officer J. Lee that she was being forced into prostitution by a person she identified as Charles Deville Nash. knew Nash’s date ofbirth and full name. Further described Nash’s vehicle as a green Lincoln Continental and that he and his car would be in the immediate area near the McDonalds at 5 Av and Broad St. gave a written statement to Officer Blackmar. At the top of the written statement form were the Explanation of Rights. initialed each of the numbered rights, and also signed her Waiver of Rights. detailed in her statement that Nash would beat her up if she did not bring money to him. She was expected to bring Nash $150.00 at a time. stated that Nash is known to have a handgun and often will hide the gun under the hood near the battery. She stated that Nash has three other girls working for him. She added that Nash drives the women to the prostitution areas to work and collects the money. Nash takes naked photos of all his girls and puts them in his laptop. Nash then posts these photos on Craig’s List and Backpage.com. stated that she would identify Nash and his vehicle. Officer Lee used his MDC computer. and obtained a JEMS photo. positively identified Nash’s photo as her pimp.”
Seattle City Council member, Tim Burgess (no relation) compiled a list of all cases which had a Craig’s List or Backpage nexus from 2008-2010 and through June 2011. The list is extraordinary, the list is sadly too long, with too many victims. The list can be found here: “Selected King County Superior Court Cases Involving Sexual Exploitation of Adults and Minors 2008-2010 and through June 2011”
There is no getting around it, no community is immune.