Letter to Frank Girardot of the Pasadena Star News

Dear Mr. Girardot:

I read your article about how “investigative journalism” isn’t dead yet.  No it isn’t and thank the heavens it’s not or we’re in real trouble.  I say that because back in the 1980’s - no one believed that sex trafficking was “real”.  To speak about the subject then was received about as well as someone saying Bill Cosby had raped all those women in the 1980’s. 

The Telecommunications Act of 1995 hadn’t been passed yet - so when I was able to step up starting in 1987 to raise awareness this was real, it was happening to US citizens on US soil, and that we needed to change our legal and mental health system to help these victims I was heard.  We were able to run public service announcements, get interviews on major media, and I even produced a weekly public access show with survivors telling their stories.  The result?  The Trafficking Act of 2000 was passed giving us federal recognition of domestic sex trafficking.

Back in 2013 I received a call from a woman who has been forced to prostitute since she was 8 years old in China.  The ring that has now come out as headed by Liang Yaohui takes the women who hit 40 years old and brings them to the USA to staff massage parlors across this country.  That’s been established by the prosecution of three pimps in Wichita, Kansas.  Arrests which would not have taken place had not a non-corrupt police officer there waited until he retired from the force, got a job at the Zoning Dept., and was able to put together the case that led to those convictions.  This officer said it was because other officers on the force kept stopping him while he was still on the force because of corruption.   Something I’m hearing from many other cops right now across the USA also. 

However, the RICO Act was written because criminal operations don’t stop just by plucking out a few operators.  When this woman told a man who she said was one of the heads of this operation she wanted to “retire” now that she’s over 50 years old - the response she told me was being carted out of her Pasadena home, in front of her son and mother, to be falsely charged with prostitution.   She was further told if she didn’t shut up and “go back to work” she’d have another conviction where she’d be deported and then executed in China.  They execute back there for things we don’t.   Considering Liang Yaohui hadn’t been arrested yet - it was a valid threat to take seriously.

We contracted an attorney who started the process to clear her record because it jeopardizes the real estate license she got so she could go into other work.  With her able to speak both Mandarin and English, and residing in Pasadena - she’d make a lot of money in real estate.  The attorney was threatened to “back off” the case and his license threatened.  This victim was then told by an attorney who works for the traffickers that he cleared her record - only he had not.  When I showed her proof her charges had not been expunged - I then was threatened by a Pasadena officer by a phone call I recorded. 

I established this man is an officer at the Pasadena station with personnel.  I then tried to reach out to the Chief about all of this.  He didn’t respond until I started knocking on the doors of the press.  What happened after that was very interesting.  A “smear” campaign started up against me online.  One designed to make me appear I’m “5150”.  Why?  Because not only can I then be carted off for “observation” without a warrant - but further this type of thing can give the police the right to enter and take you out of your own home without a warrant.   A thing they’re well aware of after being sued for illegal entry so many times the judge finally ruled they can’t do this sort of thing again unless there is “exigent circumstances” such as a 5150 case. 

Why else?  After going to the press about this - I started getting calls from the Chief five times a day asking me to “come down to the station and talk to him about this”.  Only he never asked me the name of the officer who threatened me, the name of the officers who supposedly drug her out of her home, nor did he call Wichita’s prosecutor or police to get their files so he would even know what I was talking about.   So why come in?  I asked him straight out “how are you going to make sure I’m safe coming and going without asking me these names” and he refused to answer me.  If you ask me it seems like this whole 5150 campaign starting up the very day the Chief starts asking me to “come down to the station” was no coincidence and no I’m not going to go down there and be slapped into a straight jacket.  No I’m not that crazy. 

I have heard about the report ordered into the station and read it.  I’ve also been searching for who Internal Affairs is for the Pasadena station to take this information to them - and no one will answer me.  I’ve written to the Internal Affairs office for Los Angeles officers to receive no answer.  I’ve also written to every politician and elected official on up to the Attorney General’s office for an answer - and have still received not a call, tweet or email about this.  I would think the answer as to who handles Internal Affairs for Pasadena would be an easy answer for these people but clearly not. 

The prostitutes are not the only ones being victimized by this trafficking ring.  I’ve had more than one “customer” come to me saying they have been drugged, robbed, and then when they're gone to file a criminal complaint they’ve been threatened with arrest, public shaming, and the loss of their standing, job, marriage, and reputation.  Based on what we saw happen to Donald Banks and Steve Sassa - those are not empty threats.  I think it may very well be what we're witnessing happen right now to Lamar Odom. 

He had supposedly $75,000 in cash on him that was noticed missing at the hospital - and Nye County police are discussing charging him with drug possession.  What do you think’s going on if not that exact sort of discussion now?  I ask you - how is he going to prove he was dosed and not high on his own granting his past history and that he “didn’t” give that much money to these women “voluntarily”? Remember Rick Rizzolo in Nevada was doing the same thing for years before he got caught doing it and that was only after a man was paralyzed for life. 

My question to you is now what?  My forte is helping victims escape pimps.  However, I can’t extract a woman who is going to have cops coming after both of us who can fake criminal charges.  Especially out of  a department that has a detective on tape bragging he can “fake a homicide case” on someone.   No one will tell me who is handling Internal Affairs and the last time I went to a Chief of Police about a trafficking operation was Chief Gillispie in Nevada.  Within 24 hours of me handing him my file - all the evidence was cleaned up down to bleach on the floorboards.  He’s since stepped down because of corruption charges - but that didn't help me get those 24 women free in Operation Dollhouse in 2007 now did it?

I’d love to hear your ideas about what am I to do now.  Thank you for listening.  Please publish this is you can.

Jody Williams

(702) 468-4529

www.sexworkersanonymous.com