"I like to watch."
Posted on 02/10/2005 8:46:07 AM PST by Dan from Michigan
Anti-prostitute sign gets mixed response
Mount Clemens activists were trying to discourage 'johns'
PUBLISHED: February 10, 2005
By Mitch Hotts
Macomb Daily Staff Writer
Homeowners in one Mount Clemens neighborhood are divided over a group's efforts to fight prostitution by erecting signs warning potential customers that they are being watched by area residents.
The group recently erected a placard with reflectors on it that read: "Prostitution Zone -- If you are looking, we are watching" in front of a vacant house on Euclid, near Gratiot. But Delores Gosciniak, a grandmother who lives near the vacant structure, tore the sign down.
Gosciniak said the sign not only hurts property values on her street, but also acts as an explicit advertisement for the hookers and their johns.
"Basically, the sign is telling the johns to wait on the corner if they're looking for a prostitute. People are going to think this is a pickup zone for illegal sex," Gosciniak said.
She brought the sign to Monday's City Commission meeting where she complained to city officials about its implications. Commissioner William Russell, who also didn't care for the placard, kicked it at one point.
The sign was put up by the Gratiot Corridor Watch, a group of local activists who have hosted a number of anti-crime demonstrations over the past two years, said spokeswoman Deb Roberts. They've posted similar signs supporting Mount Clemens police officers.
Roberts, who filed a report with police thinking her sign had been stolen, on Wednesday apologized to anyone who was offended by the message, which she acknowledged may have been had too much of an "in-your-face" attitude.
"Prostitution is our problem that hasn't gone away and everyone in this neighborhood knows it's there," Roberts said. "We have been working to clean up the area, but we've been disappointed in the results. Some of these men drive around and around the block and they'll approach anything that moves."
Members of the Gratiot group have collected the names and records of at least five women they say are known prostitutes who walk the street near Euclid and Gratiot. They say even if police arrest the women, the hookers usually are let off with a small fine and return to their illegal activities.
"It's getting to be like Eight Mile around here," Roberts said, referring to the well-known dividing line between Macomb and Wayne counties, where a number of topless bars are located. "I mean, we continue to pick up used condoms off the sidewalks and driveways."
Roberts said the group is now considering asking city officials to close off certain side streets to discourage men from riding around the block to meet with prostitutes.
Lt. Brian Krutell, the city's acting police chief, took custody of the sign as stolen property. When the watch group indicated they didn't want it back, he disposed of the sign. He said police are aware of the street walkers, but indicated the problem wasn't restricted to the Euclid area.
"Our officers enforce prostitution and loitering laws at every opportunity in all parts of the city," Krutell said. "We certainly have a working relationship with this watch group and continue to try to resolve all issues they bring forward."
Gosciniak, who estimates her family has made $40,000 in improvements to their home in the 12 years they've lived on Euclid, said prostitutes are a problem in every community, not just hers.
"I can't get over this, I'm very upset," she said. "My grandchildren are asking me to explain what a prostitute is. What am I supposed to tell them?"
What state is this in? That's always information we can use, but I don't know where this city is.
Michigan. (It's in the Topics section)
This sign was put up by folks who haven't had whoopee in a llllllllllllllllooooooooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnnnnggggggggggg time. God's cosmic and great sense of humor at work again.
By law, shouldn't they have some sort of graphic for people who cannot read? Anyone want to photoshop that one?
mt clemens is about 13 miles north of detroit.......
Especially Fords.
LOL !!! coffee via the nose!
Actually every cop I ever knew thinks the 'Nevada Model' is the only way to controlled the oldest profession in the world.
"I like to watch."
FMCDH(BITS)
Agreed.
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