Howard police announced Wednesday that 17 men were arrested in an April 3 prostitution sting in Jessup.

In the sting, female officers in plain clothes stood in areas along Route 1 and waited to be approached by men seeking to pay them for sex, according to police. Police arrested anyone who approached the women and made such requests.

Among those arrested were men from Annapolis, Baltimore, Columbia, Ellicott City, Elkridge, Laurel and North Carolina, among other places, police said.

The men were charged with solicitation of prostitution, police said.

— Mike Santa Rita

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user comments (11)

user columbiablogproject says...

I don't live in Jessup, so I wouldn't know if prostitution is a big problem in that area but personally I'd rather see the Howard County police conducting more foot patrols around the village centers and more circuits through Columbia neighborhoods. When I spoke to a pair of officers two weeks ago in the Owen Brown village center, they said they make rounds when they "get around to it." They told me they're usually busy elsewhere. As long as we're in a spending frenzy, lets create jobs in the area and double the ground presence of our police force. http://columbiablogproject.blogspot.com

Posted 8:37 PM, 04.08.09 | Permalink

user citizentaxpayerjane says...

17 in a single day? How much do they pay/charge? How many female officers were out there? Many from Howard County, all over, not just one area.

Posted 7:11 AM, 04.09.09 | Permalink

user givemeabreak says...

As gross is prostitution is to me, I am in complete agreement with columbiablogproject. Instead of standing by the roadside waiting for flawed individuals to solicite sex, I'd much rather have those cops walking around village centers and high-crime bike paths. Seems to me that our community has bigger fish to fry, like robbers, murderers, rapists, etc.

Posted 4:24 PM, 04.10.09 | Permalink

user editorialist1 says...

You would prefer police stand around in a village center waiting for a crime to happen rather than investigate and resolve ongoing criminal activities just down the road!? Often criminal activity is related. A solicitation on one end of town can directly relate to drug trafficing, rape or robbery on your bike path, your village center or your school. And you are not happy that the police are doing their jobs? And doing them well? More police patrols and crime investigation throughout Howard County is good. I applaud the police for taking care of the historic problem of solicitation in Jessup. Jessup IS your community. Many Columbians work and shop in Jessup. Who has not driven down Rte. 1 and 175 to buy cheaper gas than in the village centers? The County, State and private business have partnered to revitalize the Rte. 1 corridor to make Howard County a better place for us all to live. I appreciate the work.

Posted 5:21 PM, 04.10.09 | Permalink

user givemeabreak says...

Yes, I would prefer police to patrol village centers rather than set up hooker sting operations. Hopefully, if our cops were to patrol the village centers and bike paths, they wouldn't "stand around...waiting for a crime to happen." Ideally, the cops would be investigating suspected criminal activity and dissuading criminals from attempting crimes. If the police in HoCo actually caught major criminals and prevented major crimes, then I would be happy and say that the PD is doing its job. Unfortunately, this isn't the case most of the time. I am not saying that soliciting sex isn't worth the PD's attention, I'm just saying that for a department that always talks about stressed resources, I find the department's priorities to be misplaced. There are armed robberies and people getting mugged on the bike paths and at the village centers. Why wouldn't the PD deploy cops to these highly traversed criminal hot-spots? Again, prostitution is a crime for a reason, and I think it should be punished, but we could use those man hours elsewhere right now. "Often criminal activity is related. A solicitation on one end of town can directly relate to drug trafficing, rape or robbery on your bike path, your village center or your school." Maybe, but why worry about activities that "relate" to drugs, rape, robbery, and murder when you can catch the actual rapist, robber, or murderer by patrolling high crime areas? You can appreciate this sting operation all you'd like, but I'm sure your tune will change when you are carjacked at a village center and there are zero cops around.

Posted 6:16 PM, 04.10.09 | Permalink

user reality says...

Crime is everywhere in Howard County, but if you don't stop the prostitution in the Jessup are it will continue into and near the villiages. I've been in this area for 10 months now. Within in 4 months of being here I was approached and solicited to for sex and harrassed in the supermarket shopping for my 3 children and husband who just returned from Iraq. With all going on in the world and country people are still being selfish and obviously not aware of there sorroundings. Rte 1, 175 and I95 is a high traffic area, which needs constant patroling. I applaud the effort of the Howad County Police Deparmtment. Let's work together as a cummunity, not just an individual.

Posted 3:38 PM, 04.12.09 | Permalink

user givemeabreak says...

"Within in 4 months of being here I was approached and solicited to for sex and harrassed in the supermarket shopping for my 3 children and husband who just returned from Iraq." Your story bolsters my argument that we should have cops patrol the village centers looking for criminal activity. "With all going on in the world and country people are still being selfish and obviously not aware of there sorroundings." Untrue. I am all too aware of my surroundings, which is why I would like to see a shift in the PD's focus. Again, hookers should get busted, but I think that they could kill many birds with one stone if the cops would just get out of their cars and foot patrol high crime areas (like the village centers or shopping centers, where you were approached by a street walker) on a regular basis. "Rte 1, 175 and I95 is a high traffic area, which needs constant patroling." I agree with you 100%. Same goes for the Long Reach, Oakland Mills, and Wilde Lake village centers; but as it stands now, our cops mostly stay in their cars, and drive around on the highways and by-ways.

Posted 5:58 PM, 04.13.09 | Permalink

user citizentaxpayerjane says...

The HCPD is taking input, both by questionaire and invitation for the community to attend a meeting and provide feedback on Apr 20 in Marriottsville. See the HCPD site and contact them for further info.

Posted 6:15 PM, 04.13.09 | Permalink

user whiteboyslim says...

its all politic's, howard county police dont want to do hard work... they want the easy stuff just to get paid. i was talking to one the other day at harpers choice, he had such a cocky additude about himself. makes me wonder if they are more interested about killing little innocent dogs or arresting someone for robbery, even murder

Posted 10:38 AM, 04.23.09 | Permalink

user fromjessup says...

Well i would like to say this ..Im From Jessupp.. i grew up in jessup...the prosistition is very bad in this area.. on ANY GIVEN DAY... u can ride down rt1... down asstugue oceano and all the surroiding streets and SEE FEMALES NAKED.... now let me ask the other poster this... me perosnally i rather be around the villege centers then ride down the street 2 work and home and see naked females and men pickin them up.. people parkin on my neighborhood street seeing sex acts and all that..i walk down my street and see used condoms...needles...crackpipes..and all sorts of things... i live in 450thousnad dollar house in jessup.. i shouldnt have 2 worry bout that stuff... u other poster are worryed bout the "thugs" in the areaof the vilage centers..have u ever been persoanlly effected by this? i doubt it... juss becasue teenagers in baggy jeans are hangin out doesnt mean there all bad people... the people who around the jessup area are bad people.. do u kno how many females have been raped ...killed..beat up robbed.. in jessup? look it up.... this in jessup havent been goin on FOR YEARS AND YEAR SINCE 60'S ever since the truck stop came to jessup.... the truckstop is doin there part of keepin them out of the truck stop.. but YES IT IS TIME FOR HOWARD COUNTY POLICE TO STEP IT UP AND DO A LIL MORE 2 HELP TEH JESSUP COMMUNTIY...and not juss worry bout the "COLUMBIA AREA" because columbia is little more well off then Jessup and Elkridge....i dont lve in ad neighborhood but bein so close to teh truck stop the jail the detention centers yea we get the rift raft...... The village centers are closed by whut 11pm.... the whores work 24/7...but mainly at night.. u dont go to the village center at night...im priity sure when howard county did this it was at night... soo why patrol round the village centers..and if i dont recall long reach village centers has sub station there and so does oakland mills.... there not police station in jessup JUSS THE PIRSON AND WHORES..... sooo yea i invite anybody juss to come sit on rt and assitugue and pokomoke....oceano and the surrding and see the hoes in action..and since it gettin hotter outside it goin get worse..so thank u...

Posted 8:50 PM, 04.26.09 | Permalink

user fromjessup says...

i JUSSTED WANTD 2 ADD THIS 2.... CHECK IT OUT http://cedarvillaheights.blogspot.com/

Posted 9:00 PM, 04.26.09 | Permalink