Much like with other professions, escorts and escort services must have a valid and up to date license filed with the licensing agency in order to legally practice their profession in Fort Collins, Loveland, and Estes Park. Without these licenses, penalties can be assessed if an escort or escorting agency is caught in violation. Let’s look at the requirements related to escorting and the consequences involved when the standards are not met.
Larimer County Escorting Violation Attorney: What is the Definition of an Escort?
According to C.R.S. 12-25.5-103, an escort is:
So, an escort in Larimer, Boulder, and Grand County is a person you pay to hang out with you. Maybe you need a date for a big work event or possibly you just want someone to spend some time with you, but as long as sex is not expected nor part of the transaction, paying an escort is a legal way to meet those needs.
Fort Collins Escorting Without a License Attorney: What Are the Violations Related to Escorting?
In Fort Collins and across Colorado – according to C.R.S. 12-25.5-111 – it is unlawful for a person:
(b) To work as an escort or escort bureau runner without a currently valid local license;
(c) To work as an escort or escort bureau runner without obtaining and carrying a valid identity card pursuant to section 12-25.5-106 (4);
(d) To allow the provision or procurement of any escort service to or for any person under the age of eighteen years without the written consent of such person’s parent or legal guardian;
(e) To permit any person under the age of eighteen years to be employed as an employee in an escort bureau. If any person who, in fact, is not eighteen years of age exhibits a fraudulent proof of age, reasonable reliance on such fraudulent proof of age may constitute an affirmative defense to any action seeking the revocation or suspension of any license issued under this article or to any criminal action arising because a person is not at least eighteen years of age.
Basically, it is a violation for an escort:
- to work without a valid license, or
- to work without carrying a valid ID card
And it is a violation for an escort agency:
- to operate without a valid license,
- to allow a minor to hire an escort (without parent permission),
- to employ a minor as an escort
If a person is cited / ticketed for either of the violations related to minors, then more serious criminal charges like Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor (a class 4 felony) can be charged as well. We also frequently see Prostitution or Solicitation charges added to Escorting Without a License tickets, as many Fort Collins police officers and Larimer County sheriff deputies do not believe someone when they say they are an escort and sex was not a term of the interaction.
Larimer County Escorting Without a License Lawyer: What is the Sentence / Penalty?
An Escorting violation is a misdemeanor offense. If convicted, a person can face up to 1 year in the Larimer County Jail, a fine of up to $5,000, and a suspension or revocation of an escorting license for up to 5 years. This does not include any penalties related to other criminal charges like Prostitution, Solicitation, or Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor. Those misdemeanor and felony offenses carry their own, separate set of penalties.
If you or someone you love has received a ticket or summons for Escorting Without a License, Prostitution, Solicitation, or Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the best Fort Collins criminal defense attorneys from the O’Malley Law Office at 970-658-0007 today. Together, we can protect your future.
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