Prostitution in Rhode Island is the misdemeanor offense of providing or soliciting commercial sexual activity. Sex trafficking is a far more serious felony that involves recruiting, harboring, transporting, or obtaining a person for commercial sex through force, fraud, coercion, or when the person is a minor regardless of consent. Sex trafficking penalties in Rhode Island include multi-decade prison sentences, large fines, and mandatory sex offender registration. Federal sex trafficking charges add longer sentences and mandatory restitution. The line between prostitution and trafficking matters significantly in defense work. Targeted defense often focuses on contesting the trafficking elements while conceding the lower-level offense.
