Manhattan will no longer prosecute prostitution and unlicensed massages

City prosecutors in Manhattan will no longer prosecute prostitution and unlicensed massages, District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. said Wednesday.

In a statement, Mr. Vance said the new policy will eliminate the consequences of having a prostitution case or conviction on a person’s record, empower New Yorkers to interact with law enforcement without fear or arrest and prevent “unnecessary” contact with the criminal justice system.

Mr. Vance immediately moved to dismiss 914 prostitution and unlicensed massage cases and dismiss and another 5,080 Loitering for the Purpose of Prostitution cases.

“Over the last decade, we’ve learned from those with lived experience, and from our own experience on the ground: criminally prosecuting prostitution does not make us safer and too often, achieves the opposite result by further marginalizing vulnerable New Yorkers,” Mr. Vance said.

“These cases — many dating back to the 1970s and 1980s — are a relic of a different New York and a very real burden for the person who carries the convictions or the bench warrant,” he continued.

The District Attorney’s Office, however, will continue to prosecute crimes associated with prostitution, including patronizing a sex worker and sex trafficking, according to The New York Times.

The Legal Aid Society’s Exploitation Intervention Project, which was formed to address the criminalization of sex trafficking victims, hailed Mr. Vance’s new policy.