Put an end to sex handbillers on Strip

Wayne L. Johnson, Alexandria, Va.

Thursday, May 22, 2008 | 2:02 a.m.

It is my understanding that prostitution is illegal in Las Vegas. From the looks of it, that is only in theory.

My wife, my teenage daughter and I were in Las Vegas last week. Walking on the sidewalk from the Mirage to the Monte Carlo around 9 p.m. you are offered photo cards of nude women who are promised to be in your hotel room in 20 minutes, for a fee.

These cards are being given out by men and women wearing orange T-shirts. If you walk the Strip you will be accosted by at least 90 of these people.

The sidewalks are littered with the photo cards that most tourists just throw to the ground. The fact that there are so many cards being given out indicates that these “services” are being used.

Considering the U.S. Justice Department’s recent prosecution of the “discreet” Washington, D.C., madam, I am shocked no one in the federal or state government is taking steps to stop this. Las Vegas needs to clean up its street scum.

I recommend that Las Vegas make prostitution legal but place severe restrictions on how and where solicitations may be made — such as through a hotel’s concierge. I recommend Las Vegas take a look at Germany, which has had regulated and licensed prostitution for more than 40 years. When I was there in the Army I was never solicited by anyone walking down a street.