| Chapter 431 |
| 2025 -- S 0278 SUBSTITUTE A Enacted 07/02/2025 |
| A N A C T |
| RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- COMMERCIAL SEXUAL ACTIVITY |
Introduced By: Senators Murray, McKenney, Bissaillon, Pearson, and Acosta |
| Date Introduced: February 13, 2025 |
| It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
| SECTION 1. Section 11-34.1-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-34.1 entitled |
| "Commercial Sexual Activity" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 11-34.1-2. Prostitution. |
| (a) A person is guilty of prostitution when such person engages, or agrees, or offers to |
| engage in sexual conduct with another person in return for a fee. Any person found guilty under |
| this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to imprisonment for a |
| term not exceeding six (6) months, or to a fine of not less than two hundred fifty dollars ($250) nor |
| more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both. |
| (b) Any person found guilty of a subsequent offense under this section shall be subject to |
| imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or a fine of not less than five hundred dollars |
| ($500) nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both. |
| (c) In any prosecution for a violation under this section where the immunity provided by § |
| 11-34.1-15(a) is not applicable, it shall be an affirmative defense if the accused was forced to |
| commit a commercial sexual activity by: |
| (1) Being threatened or subjected to physical harm; |
| (2) Being physically restrained or threatened to be physically restrained; |
| (3) Being subject to threats of abuse of law or legal process; |
| (4) Being subject to destruction, concealment, removal, or confiscation, of any passport or |
| other immigration document or any other actual or purported governmental identification |
| document; or |
| (5) Being subject to intimidation in which the accused’s physical well being was perceived |
| as threatened. |
| SECTION 2. Chapter 11-34.1 of the General Laws entitled "Commercial Sexual Activity" |
| is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: |
| 11-34.1-15. Immunity from citation, arrest, or prosecution. |
| (a) A person shall not be cited, arrested, or prosecuted for a violation of § 11-34.1-2, or § |
| 11-34.1-4 if: |
| (1) The person witnessed or was a victim of a crime or becomes aware that another person |
| was a victim of a crime, and then promptly reports it to law enforcement in good faith or assists or |
| attempts to assist by cooperating in the investigation or prosecution of the crime including by |
| providing truthful testimony; and |
| (2) The commission or attempted commission of the crime occurred at or around the time |
| of, and was related to, the conduct prohibited by those sections of the general laws cited above. |
| (b) For the purposes of this section, "victim" shall be defined as a person who has sustained |
| personal injury or loss of property directly attributable to the criminal conduct of another person. |
| SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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| LC001009/SUB A |
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