Prostitution Crackdown On Bissonnet Track Spurs 86 Lawsuits

HOUSTON, TX -- City leaders on Wednesday announced a major crackdown on prostitution activities on an area of southwest Houston known as the Bissonnet Track. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said the Harris County Attorney's Office had filed lawsuits against 86 defendants investigators say are actively promoting prostitution.

"Prostitution objectifies women, it's tied to sex trafficking, it destroys people's lives and it can lead to further application and destruction of men, women, and children," Turner said during a press conference. "Houston is at the forefront of targeting traffickers and pimps."

The Houston area is regarded as a worldwide hub for human and sex trafficking and is known for a high number of hot spots related to prostitution and sex trafficking, particularly the area of Bissonnet Street in southwest Houston referred to as Bissonnet Track.

The lawsuits work in conjunction with law enforcement efforts by Houston Police, the Harris County Sheriff's Office and Houston METRO police to curtail the prostitution in the area, officials said.

"We focused on the habitual offenders; the people law enforcement has to go repeatedly to arrest over and over again, and who are causing a nuisance, a danger, and a hazard to this community," said Assistant Harris County Attorney Celena Vinson.

Propped on an easel next to Vinson was a photograph of a prostitute who Vinson said she'd watched soliciting sex outside of an elementary school.

"They are the ones winning now, and we want to take back this part of town. We want the reputation. No longer is Bissonnet, 'the Track.' No longer is this an area to buy women," she said.

The Bissonnet Track has become well-known as a red light district in Houston, Turner added, but there are other problem areas of Houston including Westheimer Boulevard near the Galleria, and Airline Drive on Interstate 45 up to FM 1960, where Harris County sheriff's deputies and deputy constables have conducted numerous sting operations.

According to Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo, there have been 3,800 crimes reported in the Bissonnet Track from January 2016 to the present, with 965 of those crimes were related to prostitution.

And of the 86 people who were named in the lawsuit, 13 are sex traffickers, 22 were buying sex, and 52 were selling sex.

"We don't just to deal with the supply, we have to deal with the demand," Acevedo said. "These activities ultimately have an impact on the quality of life."

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