North Dakota officials applaud legislation to hold 'online brothel' websites accountable

North Dakota's top law enforcement officer applauded legislation approved Wednesday by the Senate that will allow prosecutors to go after websites, such as Backpage.com, that knowingly facilitate sex trafficking.

“Backpage has been nothing but an online brothel for years,” said Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem. “This will give us the tools that we have been asking for for a long time.”

The Senate voted 97-2 to approve the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, which allows websites that facilitate sex trafficking to be held liable and enables victims to seek justice. Similar legislation was approved by the House last month, sending the bill to the president for his signature.

“People who will illegally profit from selling children for sex are going to be held accountable,” Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, one of the original six sponsors of the bipartisan legislation, said Wednesday from the Senate floor.

Read more: http://bismarcktribune.com/news/nd-officials-applaud-legislation-to-hold-online-brothel-websites-accountable/article_e42e927c-4366-5e7e-8ca3-0595c7f930d0.html