Pawtucket City Council approves law to regulate massage parlors - The Providence Journal

[massage]

PAWTUCKET, R.I. -- City Council unanimously approved an ordinance Monday night that will allow the city to regulate "body works" spas and shut down places suspected of operating as fronts for brothels.


City Councilwoman Sandra Cano, who sponsored the measure with Councilman Timothy Rudd Jr., called the vote "a great holiday present" for the city. "Finally, we are able to proceed and close the massage parlors that are not good for our community, our city and for the women who are being targeted" in sex trafficking, she said.


It was the second time in four months that the city council had approved the ordinance. Mayor Donald Grebien refused to enforce one passed in August, arguing that it needed enabling legislation from the state and could leave the city open to lawsuits. The city also said the ordinance was too broad and could mean licensing places that have showers or offer spa services, such as the YMCA.


City council members grumbled, but took the ordinance back to committee to tweak the language. Meanwhile, Pawtucket Rep. Carlos Tobon pre-filed legislation to allow municipalities to license and regulate massage parlors.


As the amended ordinance came up for final passage Monday, Councilman Thomas Hodge praised the compromise: "We worked together to make the changes ... to get the job done."


The state Department of Health licenses massage therapists, but illicit spas were getting around the law by offering "body works," "body rubs," and "body scrubs." That's why cities began to regulate "body works."


Law enforcement has long argued that the spas are just cover for sex-trafficking operations. Police have found evidence of women living at the spas, where they work long hours performing sex acts on multiple men, before being shuttled to another spa in another city or state.


When Central Falls, Cranston, Coventry and Providence passed these ordinances, dozens of spas closed rather than attempt to obtain a license, which would mean identifying their owners and employees. Those that tried were rejected by city license boards under questions about how their businesses operated.


Pawtucket is now the fifth Rhode Island municipality with the law in place. Antonio Pires, city public safety director, said the city will now send out applications to 16 establishments that are potential licensees. The group includes three massage parlors that advertise on sex websites: Far East Acupressure, Harmony Spa, and Pleasant Massage Therapy.


The establishments will have 15 business days to respond, before the city takes action, Pires said.


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