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Published Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011 | 9:56 a.m.
Updated Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011 | 9:56 a.m.
Raggio’s legacy extends beyond the Legislature to Northern Nevada’s storied history with legalized prostitution.
As Washoe County district attorney in the late 1950s, Raggio made it his mission to keep prostitution-peddler Joe Conforte’s makeshift brothels out of his jurisdiction.
Before Storey County legalized prostitution, effectively sanctioning Conforte's most famous brothel the Mustang Ranch, Conforte would set up shop in trailers at the intersection of Washoe, Lyon and Storey counties. When the authorities beckoned, he would simply roll his mobile brothels over the county line into another jurisdiction. The shell game worked for a couple of years, until Raggio was elected district attorney.
Raggio made life difficult enough that Conforte sought to blackmail him with an underage consort.
The plan backfired and Conforte was ultimately convicted of extortion. With Conforte behind bars on the conviction, Raggio and other county officials famously burned down Conforte's Triangle River Ranch brothel.
Interesting background...I've only been in NV for 7 years, didn't know about this event.
I'm curious if you have any analysis into the odds of expanding the brothel trade into more counties with Raggio gone? I assume his anti-prostitution stance carried over into his legislature career, and I've heard scuttle that some of his potential heirs may be a bit more liberal around these types of issues.
Jeremy... It seems unlikely that legalized prostitution would expand. Some individual lawmakers have advocated for the state to tax the brothels-- something the brothels want, too, in order to increase their legitimacy. Those efforts routinely fail.
If prostituion is legalized will the growth of Storey County be stunted by such growth as hog farms that can exist in the Nevada heat and produce pork that can be shipped to the west coast and to Canada and Mexico with less cost than shipping from the Mid-west.........
After nearly a year of advocating the State of Nevada taxing the Brothel Industry, some rather interesting research is only beginning to surface as a course of my endevors. It would appear that a new Nevada Representative, who comes from a family of Nevada Representatives, already has some persuasions against the Brothel Industry, beings how members in this person's family are into "rescuing women" who are "degrading themselves" in the sex industries. Please note how I am segregating in my textual statements. At a time when Nevada Citizens are suffering, one would think that the Nevada State Legislature/Senate, would change the law, tax the legal Brothel Industry their fair share, so as to ease the burden.
The legal Brothel Industry, willing and offering to be taxed, would also like to get the illegal sex trades out of business, and provide individuals the already existing programs to help them change careers: counseling, medical assistance, and educational assistance to redirect their lives from the sex industry. This would also assist law enforcement, and possibly curtail much of the exploitation of youth in the illicit street sex trade.
What is the problem with the State of Nevada?