As we mentioned a few months ago, OKC is in the middle of a cultural renaissance when it comes to shaming local johns, prostitutes, and other sex industry workers; one that harkens back to the good old days of the 1990s when The Video Vigilante roamed our seedy streets and John TV filled our public access airwaves.
Over the past year, the OKCPD vice unit has conducted multiple large scale prostitution stings to round up drug-addicted sex workers and their desperate customers.
Although the operations won’t put a dent in the sex work trade, it does provide cops with some low-hanging fruit to pick, and give them the opportunity to work with their pals in the local media to humiliate people by flashing their mugshots across television, phone and computer screens.
You know, people like Oklahoma City cop Jurden Brown Jr. He was one of 50 people arrested last week in a two-day OKCPD prostitution sting:
In case you’re wondering why Jurden looks extra guilty in his mug shot, it’s probably because he’s a master sergeant in the department’s Police Community Relations (PCR) Unit.
That means he’s a cop who goes around to local “neighborhood associations, businesses, churches, and other groups” giving presentations “on safety, crime prevention, drug abuse, and numerous other topics.”
I'm not sure if "sex work" is in the "other topics" category, but it probably should be.
Here are more details via KOCO Channel 5:
An Oklahoma City police officer was recently arrested in a two-day joint operation prostitution sting.
Records show that MSgt. Jurden Brown Jr. was arrested and booked into the Oklahoma County Detention Center Thursday evening on a count of engaging in prostitution, lewdness or assignation. He was released on bond.
The Oklahoma City Police Department's website notes that Brown is a community relations officer in southeast OKC's Santa Fe Patrol Division.
Police said 50 arrests were made during the two-day operation. Two firearms were recovered, a small amount of narcotics were seized and 48 vehicles were towed with holds on them for nuisance abatement.
Geeze. Talk about taking your job too seriously. I know local prostitutes need help, support, and protection, but that doesn’t mean you should be out supporting their trade!
Whether you’re a cop, preacher, or public school teacher, I think the sex industry should be legalized and regulated for the health and safety of all people involved, and not kept on the underground black market where it fosters and encourages drug abuse, crime and sex trafficking.
That being said, our puritanical society doesn’t really care what I think, so prostitution is very illegal.
That means if you’re a cop – especially one who works in the department’s Community Relations division – you should probably not partake in the local sex trade, or you risk looking like a massive hypocrite and becoming the subject of local news fodder.
And if you still want to take a pay-for-sex gamble, well, you better stick with more culturally approved methods, like visiting a strip club or signing up for some Sugar Daddy website. That’s what Clark Matthews does, and he’s an expert on this stuff!
Hey, a Clark Matthews reference!
Anyway, with Oklahoma City’s John-shaming resurgence still picking up steam, it will be interesting to see what notable figure pops up in the next big prostitution sting that won’t do a thing to combat the prostitution trade.
Naturally, we’ll be on hand to document it and help shame the individuals involved.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
