Flanked by survivors of sex trafficking, Republican attorney general candidate Doug Lloyd attacked his Democratic opponent Thursday as “foolish and dangerous.”
As Washtenaw County prosecutor, Eli Savit has decriminalized consensual sex work. The Democrat says he’s following research and guidelines set forth by groups like Human Rights Campaign and the American Civil Liberties Union.
Savit's office has prosecuted sex traffickers and supports charging buyers with misdemeanors when warranted.
But Lloyd, the Eaton County prosecuting attorney, argued the policy “ignores the realities of the sex trade.”
“It is the perspective of a social engineer, not a prosecutor,” Lloyd said.
Savit told WDET in June he cannot take things like cash bail reform or sex work decriminalization statewide without a change to Michigan law.
Leyna Luttrull is a human trafficking survivor and anti-trafficking activist.
At a press conference supporting Lloyd, Luttrull said policies like the one Savit employs in Washtenaw County could lead to sex trafficking.
“If we do not demand to prosecute our buyers, our pimps, and our traffickers, make no mistake: their darkness will only continue to burrow,” Luttrull said.
Luttrull, Lloyd, and Savit do have points of agreement on the issue. They all support the passage of bills in the state Legislature that increase penalties for human traffickers – but also give victims the ability to expunge crimes committed while being trafficked.
“Our bills do include partial decriminalization of the victims, but it includes increased penalties for the traffickers and buyers,” Luttrull said.
Savit campaign spokesperson Naina Agrawal-Hardin attacked Lloyd over his record.
“Throughout this campaign, Lloyd has continually failed to articulate any positive vision for how he would use the Department of Attorney General to make Michiganders’ lives better,” Agrawal-Hardin said. “Instead, he relies on transparent and desperate attempts to deflect attention from his own abysmal record and lack of vision. Michiganders deserve better."
