Montana’s prostitution statutes don’t criminalize the buying or selling of non-penetrative sex. That means the state’s “illicit massage parlors,” as they’re referred to by law enforcement, weren’t breaking the law if workers provided sexual activity that didn’t involve penetration. A bill aims to change that by broadening the law to include “sexual contact that is direct and not through clothing” to the already prohibited exchange of sexual intercourse.
Author Archives: Susan Elizabeth Shepard
Susan Elizabeth Shepard is a Missoula-based journalist who previously worked at the Missoula Independent and is currently a freelance reporter writing about culture, labor and sex work. She is originally from Texas and is therefore delighted to report on the civil, well-oiled biennial machine that is the Montana Legislature.