Los Angeles Keeping a House of Prostitution Defense Attorney

Running or knowingly allowing a motel, hotel, massage studio, residence, Airbnb, or any other premises to be used for prostitution is a misdemeanor under California Penal Code § 315 PC. Although the nineteenth-century statute still refers to a “house of ill-fame,” modern courts interpret “house” broadly: any location, fixed or mobile, can qualify if maintained or knowingly occupied for commercial sex. If you or someone you know has been charged with keeping a house of prostitution, you must speak with a reputable Los Angeles sex crimes Lawyer right away.

To secure a conviction, the State must establish each of the following beyond a reasonable doubt:

• Maintenance or residence. You either owned, leased, managed, or otherwise kept the premises, or willfully lived or stayed there.
• Prostitution on the premises. The location was being used for acts of prostitution when you kept or occupied it.
• Knowledge. You knew or reasonably should have known that prostitution was occurring. (The jury may rely on “common repute” or community reputation when deciding whether you knew the nature of the establishment. CalCRIM No. 2441).

Because knowledge is an element, innocent landlords or employers who act promptly once they learn of illicit activity have a robust defense. Conversely, giving discounted rooms, security, or marketing assistance to sex workers is strong circumstantial evidence of knowledge and intent.

Vice investigators with the LAPD, often working with the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations, conduct undercover operations, utilize electronic surveillance warrants, analyze online advertisements, and perform “buyer stings” targeting johns. Motels along the Figueroa Corridor, the Harbor Freeway interchange, and certain San Fernando Valley tracks have been the focus of highly publicized city-attorney nuisance abatement suits.

Evidence gathered may support parallel charges such as:

• Prostitution or solicitation (§ 647(b) PC)
• Pimping & pandering (§§ 266h–266i PC)
• Human trafficking (§ 236.1 PC, often filed federally)
• Money laundering or asset forfeiture under Health & Safety § 11370.6

Because multiple statutes overlap, an early, strategic response can prevent “charge stacking” that ratchets the case from a six-month misdemeanor to a felony or federal indictment.

A conviction under § 315 PC carries:

• Up to 180 days in county jail and/or a fine up to $1,000
• Summary probation (usually two to three years), with mandatory AIDS education, stay-away orders, or search conditions
• Civil nuisance actions: The City Attorney can sue to padlock or forfeit the property for one year under the Red-Light Abatement Law
• Professional and business licensing fallout (e.g., loss of massage establishment or short-term rental permits)
• Immigration consequences: a crime “relating to commercialized vice” can trigger removability or bar naturalization

Judges frequently impose a time-served plus probation disposition for first-time offenders who accept responsibility early, but every courthouse has its own culture. Downtown Los Angeles misdemeanor arraignments differ markedly from the Airport Branch.

• Lack of knowledge. You neither knew nor had a reasonable basis to suspect prostitution. Rapid corrective steps, evicting tenants, firing employees, and installing surveillance bolster this defense.
• No prostitution occurred. Consent-based erotic massage or adult entertainment, while provocative, is not prostitution without a sex act for money.
• Entrapment/government misconduct. Repeated police inducement that would cause a law-abiding person to break the law defeats criminal liability.
• Ambiguous control. Airbnb hosts who never set foot on-site or passive investors whose only act is collecting rent can argue a lack of “keeping.”
• Suppression of evidence. Illegal searches of guest registers, digital ads, or back-office files can result in dismissal or drastic plea reductions.

• Pre-File Negotiations. When retained before the case is filed, we often present exculpatory evidence directly to the filing deputy, persuading the DA to reject or file a less serious charge.
• Civil-Criminal Coordination. We coordinate with civil counsel on nuisance abatement lawsuits to ensure statements in one forum do not damage the defense in the other.
• Asset-Protection Plans. Proper corporate compliance and lease-back arrangements can shield legitimate businesses from forfeiture.

Los Angeles County offers diversion under Penal Code § 1001.95 and, in some courthouses, the Community Justice Initiative. Completion dismisses the case and allows immediate sealing. Even after a conviction, you may petition for expungement under § 1203.4, restoring most civil rights and preventing most private-sector background checks from reporting the offense.

Q: “Is renting to a sex worker always illegal?”
No. Liability attaches only if you knowingly facilitate prostitution. A landlord who rents a unit at market rate without actual knowledge generally has no criminal exposure. Maintaining “reasonable landlord policies” (guest ID logs, security cameras, lease clauses) creates a safe-harbor argument.

Q: “Can the police use testimony from neighbors about 'suspicious traffic' as proof?”
Yes. Section 315 allows juries to consider “common repute” or neighborhood reputation instead of direct surveillance. That makes a robust cross-examination of complaining witnesses essential.

Q: “Will a § 315 PC conviction make me register as a sex offender?”
No. The offense is not registrable under Penal Code § 290; however, convictions for pimping, pandering, or trafficking may trigger registration.

Lead attorney Michael Kraut is a former Deputy District Attorney who spent fourteen years prosecuting vice and trafficking cases before founding Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. He understands LAPD Vice Division’s investigative playbook, the City Attorney’s nuisance-abatement agenda, and the evidentiary weaknesses common in multi-agency stings. Our team leverages:

• Immediate on-scene response: we obtain surveillance DVRs before they disappear.
• In-house forensic expertise: cell-site analysis and digital-ad archiving to challenge the government’s timeline.
• Established credibility: judges and prosecutors know we will take misdemeanor cases to jury trial when a dismissal is warranted.

Our goal is simple: keep you out of jail, protect your business or property, and preserve your record.

If you have been arrested, received a nuisance-abatement letter, or learned your property is under investigation for alleged prostitution activity, do not wait for formal charges. Early action can differ between a discreet resolution and a career-ending public filing.

Contact Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. for a confidential, no-obligation consultation. You will speak directly with an experienced criminal trial attorney—not a paralegal or intake clerk—24 hours a day, 7 days a week.