Ontario judge strikes down Canada's prostitution laws

Toronto - A Superior Court justice struck down three Criminal Code provisions of Canada’s prostitution law in an Ontario court on Tuesday.

Justice Susan Himel said the decision will take effect in 30 days unless Crown lawyers come forward with arguments which can persuade her to grant a delay. The sections of the Criminal Code which were ruled to be unconstitutional involve communicating for the purposes of prostitution, living off of money another person earns through prostitution and operating a common bawdy house. The ruling could be used as a basis for challenges across the country. “The Government is very concerned about the Superior Court’s decision and is seriously considering an appeal,” The Globe and Mail quoted Federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson as saying. Judge Himel, in her 131-page ruling, said that the current laws endanger the safety of prostitutes. “By increasing the risk of harm to street prostitutes, the communicating law is simply too high a price to pay for the alleviation of social nuisance,” she stated. “I find that the danger faced by prostitutes greatly outweighs any harm which may be faced by the public.” Alan Young, the York University law professor behind the challenge, said the case is about protecting the security and safety of those working in the sex trade. “We have had a moral aversion to the sex trade for hundreds of years, but any time you can do something that increases peoples’ safety, you have done something good,” The Globe and Mail quoted him as saying. The litigants in the case were Terri-Jean Bedford, a dominatrix, and two former prostitutes, Valerie Scott and Amy Lebovitch. Scott, who is executive director of the Sex Professionals of Canada, said that prostitutes will now begin pressing for workers’ compensation, health standards and to be included in the income-tax program. She said sex workers want to be “good citizens running good businesses.” The Sex Professionals of Canada web site says that the organization is delighted by Justice Himel’s decision to acknowledge their right to legally practice their chosen profession. “This important victory gives us hope that sex work will one day be fully regarded as the legitimate occupation it is,” it states. When Bedford was asked if she planned to celebrate the ruling she waved her riding crop in the air and said “I’m going to spank some ass. Legally!” Judge Himel was positive about steps made by countries such as New Zealand, Australia and Germany to decriminalize and control the sex trade. The entire decision can be read online here.