Tennessee § 39-13-513 - Prostitution — Defenses.

§ 39-13-513. Prostitution — Defenses.

A person commits an offense under this section who engages in prostitution. Prostitution is a Class B misdemeanor. Prostitution committed within one hundred feet (100') of a church or within one and one-half (1½) miles of a school, such distance being that established by § 49-6-2101, for state-funded school transportation, is a Class A misdemeanor. A person convicted of prostitution within one and one-half (1½) miles of a school shall, in addition to any other authorized punishment, be sentenced to at least seven (7) days of incarceration and be fined at least one thousand dollars ($1,000). As used in subsection (b), “school” means all public and private schools that conduct classes in any grade from kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12). Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, if it is determined after a reasonable detention for investigative purposes, that a person suspected of or charged with a violation of this section is under eighteen (18) years of age, that person shall be immune from prosecution for prostitution as a juvenile or adult. A law enforcement officer who takes a person under eighteen (18) years of age into custody for a suspected violation of this section shall, upon determination that the person is a minor, provide the minor with the telephone number for the Tennessee human trafficking resource center hotline and release the minor to the custody of a parent or legal guardian or transport the minor to a shelter care facility designated by the juvenile court judge to facilitate the release of the minor to the custody of a parent or legal guardian. It is a defense to prosecution under this section that a person charged with a violation of this section was so charged for conduct that occurred because the person was a victim of an act committed in violation of § 39-13-307 or § 39-13-309, or because the person was a victim as defined under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (22 U.S.C. § 7102). Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 1; 1995, ch. 118, § 1; 2011, ch. 377, § 1; 2012, ch. 891, § 1; 2015, ch. 67, § 1; 2015, ch. 264, § 1. Compiler's Notes. Acts 2011, ch. 377, § 5 provided that the act, which added subsection (d), shall apply to any acts committed on or after June 1, 2011. Cross-References. Citations in lieu of continued custody of arrested person, § 40-7-118 . Definitions, § 39-13-512 . HIV testing for persons violating section, § 39-13-521 . Penalties for Class A and B misdemeanors, § 40-35-111 . Punishment for solicitation for prostitution near school or church, § 39-13-514 . Law Reviews. Filling the Gap: Refining Sex Trafficking Legislation to Address the Problem of Pimping, 68 Vand. L. Rev. 961 (2015).