Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Should Condoms Be Used as Evidence to Prosecute Prostitution?
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 12, 2010
Modified Jan 12, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 12, 2010
Modified Jan 12, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
In cities such as San Francisco and DC, and here in New York, condoms have been used as evidence against alleged prostitutes. (In DC, police have been accused of claiming that suspects carrying three or more condoms have an intent to sell sex in "Prostitution Free Zones.") Change.org asserts that the practice has had a chilling effect on safe-sex in the sex industry, with some undergound brothels refusing to keep condoms on premises. And the website also cites anecdotal reports that regular businesses have been reluctant to distribute NYC's free condoms because they can also be used as evidence of "maintaining a premises for prostitution."
The use of condoms as evidence is not specified under law as either acceptable or unacceptable, but a bill that has been languishing in the State Assembly would change that. If passed, the possession of contraceptive devices would not be permitted in specified criminal or civil proceedings as evidence of prostitution. The Sex Workers Project has a petition going to support the bill, so that one day people won't have to choose between jail and STDs. (In San Francisco, a study found that only half of sex workers use condoms with first-time clients, and fewer with repeat customers!)
Tagged
condom
evidence
law
prosecution
prostitution
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
People who said they knew her described her as an artist and a familiar presence in the Ramble.
By
Charles Lane
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 7:04 p.m. ET
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .