LEE COUNTY, Fla., - Seven women are now behind bars charged with prostitution after an undercover Lee County Sheriff’s Office bust.
Michelle Rena Paxton, Alyssa Marie Spannuth, Laurin Elizabeth Bakutis, Michelle Sue Ward, Stacia Anna Irizarry, Laura Lee Wallace, and Lauren Elise Derrick are accused of agreeing to perform sex acts for money to undercover deputies.
“It breaks my heart to think that some women have to sell their bodies for their drugs or to get the things that they need. It's a horrific lifestyle,” said Leslie Robinson, CEO of Street Chicks in Recovery, an organization that works with human trafficking victims and people struggling with substance abuse.
Some of the seven are repeat offenders.
“Until we stop the market for purchasing people, you're going to see women and children for sale,“ said Robinson.
Her organization aims to educate school age children about sexual abuse prevention and drug and alcohol prevention.
Robinson is also advocating for laws to be changed on how prostitutes are punished.
"I think you should be a felon if you pay for somebody regardless who you are. If you get caught paying for somebody, you should be charged with a felony,” Robinson said.
