2001 Federal Sentencing Guideline Manual
§2G1.1. Promoting Prostitution or Prohibited Sexual Conduct
(a) Base Offense Level:
(1) 19, if the offense involved a minor; or
(2) 14, otherwise.
(b) Specific Offense Characteristics
(1) If the offense involved (A) prostitution; and (B) the use of physical force, or coercion by threats or drugs or in any manner, increase by 4 levels.
(2) If the offense involved a victim who had (A) not attained the age of 12 years, increase by 4 levels; or (B) attained the age of 12 years but not attained the age of 16 years, increase by 2 levels.
(3) If subsection (b)(2) applies; and
(A) the defendant was a parent, relative, or legal guardian of the victim; or
(B) the victim was otherwise in the custody, care, or supervisory control of the defendant,
increase by 2 levels.
(4) If subsection (b)(3) does not apply; and
(A) the offense involved the knowing misrepresentation of a participants identity to persuade, induce, entice, coerce, or facilitate the travel of, a minor to engage in prostitution; or
(B) a participant otherwise unduly influenced a minor to engage in prostitution,
increase by 2 levels.
(5) If a computer or an Internet-access device was used to (A) persuade, induce, entice, coerce, or facilitate the travel of, a minor to engage in prostitution; or (B) entice, encourage, offer, or solicit a person to engage in prohibited sexual conduct with a minor, increase by 2 levels.
(c)Cross References
(1)If the offense involved causing, transporting, permitting, or offering or seeking by notice or advertisement, a person less than 18 years of age to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct, apply §2G2.1 (Sexually Exploiting a Minor by Production of Sexually Explicit Visual or Printed Material; Custodian Permitting Minor to Engage in Sexually Explicit Conduct; Advertisement for Minors to Engage in Production).
(2)If the offense involved criminal sexual abuse, attempted criminal sexual abuse, or assault with intent to commit criminal sexual abuse, apply §2A3.1 (Criminal Sexual Abuse; Attempt to Commit Criminal Sexual Abuse). If the offense involved criminal sexual abuse of a minor who had not attained the age of 12 years, §2A3.1 shall apply, regardless of the "consent" of the victim.
(3)If the offense did not involve promoting prostitution, and neither subsection (c)(1) nor (c)(2) is applicable, apply §2A3.2 (Criminal Sexual Abuse of a Minor Under the Age of Sixteen Years (Statutory Rape) or Attempt to Commit Such Acts) or §2A3.4 (Abusive Sexual Contact or Attempt to Commit Abusive Sexual Contact), as appropriate.
(d)Special Instruction
(1)If the offense involved more than one victim, Chapter Three, Part D (Multiple Counts) shall be applied as if the promoting of prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct in respect to each victim had been contained in a separate count of conviction.
Commentary
Statutory Provisions: 8 U.S.C. § 1328; 18 U.S.C. §§ 1591, 2421, 2422, 2423(a), 2425.
Application Notes:
1.For purposes of this guideline
"Minor" means an individual who had not attained the age of 18 years.
"Participant" has the meaning given that term in Application Note 1 of §3B1.1 (Aggravating Role).
"Prohibited sexual conduct" has the meaning given that term in Application Note 1 of §2A3.1 (Criminal Sexual Abuse; Attempt to Commit Criminal Sexual Abuse).
"Promoting prostitution" means persuading, inducing, enticing, or coercing a person to engage in prostitution, or to travel to engage in, prostitution.
"Victim" means a person transported, persuaded, induced, enticed, or coerced to engage in, or travel for the purpose of engaging in, prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct, whether or not the person consented to the prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct. Accordingly, "victim" may include an undercover law enforcement officer.
2. Subsection (b)(1) provides an enhancement for physical force, or coercion, that occurs as part of a prostitution offense and anticipates no bodily injury. If bodily injury results, an upward departure may be warranted. See Chapter Five, Part K (Departures). For purposes of subsection (b)(1)(B), "coercion" includes any form of conduct that negates the voluntariness of the behavior of the victim. This enhancement would apply, for example, in a case in which the ability of the victim to appraise or control conduct was substantially impaired by drugs or alcohol. In the case of an adult victim, rather than a victim less than 18 years of age, this characteristic generally will not apply if the drug or alcohol was voluntarily taken.
3. For the purposes of §3B1.1 (Aggravating Role), a victim, as defined in this guideline, is considered a participant only if that victim assisted in the promoting of prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct in respect to another victim.
4. For the purposes of Chapter Three, Part D (Multiple Counts), each person transported, persuaded, induced, enticed, or coerced to engage in, or travel to engage in, prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct is to be treated as a separate victim. Consequently, multiple counts involving more than one victim are not to be grouped together under §3D1.2 (Groups of Closely-Related Counts). In addition, subsection (d)(1) directs that if the relevant conduct of an offense of conviction includes the promoting of prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct in respect to more than one victim, whether specifically cited in the count of conviction, each such victim shall be treated as if contained in a separate count of conviction.
5. Subsection (b)(3) is intended to have broad application and includes offenses involving a victim less than 18 years of age entrusted to the defendant, whether temporarily or permanently. For example, teachers, day care providers, baby-sitters, or other temporary caretakers are among those who would be subject to this enhancement. In determining whether to apply this enhancement, the court should look to the actual relationship that existed between the defendant and the victim and not simply to the legal status of the defendant-victim relationship.
6. If the enhancement in subsection (b)(3) applies, do not apply subsection (b)(4) or §3B1.3 (Abuse of Position of Trust or Use of Special Skill).
7. The enhancement in subsection (b)(4)(A) applies in cases involving the misrepresentation of a participants identity to persuade, induce, entice, coerce, or facilitate the travel of, a minor to engage in prostitution. Subsection (b)(4)(A) is intended to apply only to misrepresentations made directly to a minor or to a person who exercises custody, care, or supervisory control of the minor. Accordingly, the enhancement in subsection (b)(4)(A) would not apply to a misrepresentation made by a participant to an airline representative in the course of making travel arrangements for the minor.
The misrepresentation to which the enhancement in subsection (b)(4)(A) may apply includes misrepresentation of a participants name, age, occupation, gender, or status, as long as the misrepresentation was made with the intent to persuade, induce, entice, coerce, or facilitate the travel of, a minor to engage in prostitution. Accordingly, use of a computer screen name, without such intent, would not be a sufficient basis for application of the enhancement.
In determining whether subsection (b)(4)(B) applies, the court should closely consider the facts of the case to determine whether a participants influence over the minor compromised the voluntariness of the minors behavior.
In a case in which a participant is at least 10 years older than the minor, there shall be a rebuttable presumption, for purposes of subsection (b)(4)(B), that such participant unduly influenced the minor to engage in prostitution. In such a case, some degree of undue influence can be presumed because of the substantial difference in age between the participant and the minor.
8.Subsection (b)(5) provides an enhancement if a computer or an Internet-access device was used to (A) persuade, induce, entice, coerce, or facilitate the travel of, a minor to engage in prostitution; or (B) entice, encourage, offer, or solicit a person to engage in prohibited sexual conduct with a minor. Subsection (b)(5)(A) is intended to apply only to the use of a computer or an Internet-access device to communicate directly with a minor or with a person who exercises custody, care, or supervisory control of the minor. Accordingly, the enhancement in subsection (b)(5)(A) would not apply to the use of a computer or an Internet-access device to obtain airline tickets for the minor from an airlines Internet site.
9.The cross reference in subsection (c)(1) is to be construed broadly to include all instances in which the offense involved employing, using, persuading, inducing, enticing, coercing, transporting, permitting, or offering or seeking by notice or advertisement, a person less than 18 years of age to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing any visual depiction of such conduct. For purposes of subsection (c)(1), "sexually explicit conduct" has the meaning given that term in 18 U.S.C. § 2256.
10.Subsection (c)(2) provides a cross reference to §2A3.1 (Criminal Sexual Abuse; Attempt to Commit Criminal Sexual Abuse) if the offense involved criminal sexual abuse or attempt to commit criminal sexual abuse, as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2241 or § 2242. For example, the cross reference to §2A3.1 shall apply if the offense involved criminal sexual abuse; and (A) the victim had not attained the age of 12 years (see 18 U.S.C. § 2241(c)); (B) the victim had attained the age of 12 years but had not attained the age of 16 years, and was placed in fear of death, serious bodily injury, or kidnaping (see 18 U.S.C. § 2241(a),(c)); or (C) the victim was threatened or placed in fear other than fear of death, serious bodily injury, or kidnaping (see 18 U.S.C. § 2242(1)).
11.The cross reference in subsection (c)(3) addresses the case in which the offense did not involve promoting prostitution, neither subsection (c)(1) nor (c)(2) is applicable, and the offense involved prohibited sexual conduct other than the conduct covered by subsection (c)(1) or (c)(2). In such case, the guideline for the underlying prohibited sexual conduct is to be used; i.e., §2A3.2 (Criminal Sexual Abuse of a Minor Under the Age of Sixteen Years (Statutory Rape) or Attempt to Commit Such Acts) or §2A3.4 (Abusive Sexual Contact or Attempt to Commit Abusive Sexual Contact).
12.Upward Departure Provisions.An upward departure may be warranted in either of the following circumstances:
(A)The defendant was convicted under 18 U.S.C. § 1591 and the offense involved a victim who had not attained the age of 14 years.
(B)The offense involved more than 10 victims.
Background: This guideline covers offenses under chapter 117 of title 18, United States Code. Those offenses involve promoting prostitution or prohibited sexual conduct through a variety of means. Offenses that involve promoting prostitution under chapter 117 of such title are sentenced under this guideline, unless other prohibited sexual conduct occurs as part of the prostitution offense, in which case one of the cross references would apply. Offenses under chapter 117 of such title that do not involve promoting prostitution are to be sentenced under §2G2.1 (Sexually Exploiting a Minor by Production of Sexually Explicit Visual or Printed Material; Custodian Permitting Minor to Engage in Sexually Explicit Conduct; Advertisement for Minors to Engage in Production), §2A3.1 (Criminal Sexual Abuse; Attempt to Commit Criminal Sexual Abuse), §2A3.2 (Criminal Sexual Abuse of a Minor Under the Age of Sixteen Years (Statutory Rape) or Attempt to Commit Such Acts) or §2A3.4 (Abusive Sexual Contact or Attempt to Commit Abusive Sexual Contact), as appropriate, pursuant to the cross references provided in subsection (c).
This guideline also covers offenses under section 1591 of title 18, United States Code. These offenses involve recruiting or transporting a person in interstate commerce knowing either that (1) force, fraud, or coercion will be used to cause the person to engage in a commercial sex act; or (2) the person (A) had not attained the age of 18 years; and (B) will be caused to engage in a commercial sex act.