States Seek to Shut Down Craigslist Erotic Services

Craigslist may have promised to do better, but many of the states have decided to make sure it does. They are putting through proposals to shut down the Craigslist erotic services section.

The online Craigslist source provided Phillip Markoff with information he used to rob and kill women, according to the charges now against him. As a result of this high-profile case, many states are taking action against Craigslist now. Although Craigslist has stated it has reduced erotic service ads by 95%, this is not enough for a number of states. For example " South Carolina Atty. Gen. Henry McMaster said in an interview last week they had given warning to Craigslist that it was going to be "subject to criminal investigation and prosecution" declaring that would be done by May 15 if the erotic services section wasn't entirely removed. In spite of this warning, Craigslist, that gets 40 million US visitors monthly, states that it is protected by federal law. After typing in simply the words, Craigslist erotic services today, I got a number of interesting advertisements, reflecting that McMaster in South Carolina has a concern that is substantiated by specific information that remains available. One advertisement specifically advertises sex for sale, so the claims about prostitution are legitimate based upon a simple overview of the classifieds of Craigslist. Later in the day warnings for underage people had been placed on the site, asking users to provide information before using. This reflects the possibility that changes are being made now. One enterprising website has specifics that it calls "200 Roses: The truth about Craigslist." Here it reviews the fact that Craigslist has prostitutes that advertise, filling a need for prostitution services, but also gives instruction on the use of Craigslist for these purposes, while at the same time asking questions about who regulates the advertisements. Given the information, that appears to be a legitimate question at the present time. Several days ago the Illinos Attorney General Lisa Madigan has decided to move towards shutting down Craigslist as well. She is one of a number of state attorney generals who are moving against what some call an online prostitution or call girl service. Madigan observes that more than 400 ads are posted on Chicago's website daily. It appears from what is happening in the several states that Craigslist advertising erotic services, or porn and prostitution, may soon be gone if the states have their way about it.Given the outcry, and the visibility of the problems caused by Craigslist advertisements, it may be that it won't be long before legal action is formally taken.