The Police News
April 8, 2008

GALVESTON - I can't count the number of times that I have heard someone say, "Why do they bother to arrest those whores and Johns?"  "They're not bothering anybody."

Well, maybe not.  I've heard both sides of that argument.  Sure, the gals are pesty when they're out there on the street doing business.  We don't want them hanging around outside our businesses or our homes trying to find a trick.  They're bad for business.  They're bad for our neighborhoods.  They devalue our property if we don't get rid of them.

Usually it's the prostitute that gets the bad publicity.  We hear people calling them all sorts of demeaning names and insisting the police get them out of our neighborhoods, better yet, out of our town completely.

But take a look at some of the characters who keep them in business.  We don't hear much about them.  Do we?  Just who are they?  Where are they from?  What are they doing here?

Below are the names of 14 "Johns" arrested in Galveston the other day.  Undercover female cops made dates for sex with each one.  Each one of them approached the girl.  Not the other way around.  Each one of them offered the girl money for sex.  Not the other way around.  So it's not the whore making the deal, it's the guy.

And here's what we found about some of them.  These guys are from everywhere.  Dallas, Oklahoma, Montgomery County, Corpus Christi and Galveston.

They have been arrested in various parts of the country for all sorts of crimes ranging from simple misdemeanor theft, to Domestic Abuse, Hot Checks, Driving with Suspended License, Home Burglary, Arson for buring down someone's home, Criminal Trespass, Evading Arrest, Resisting Arrest, Forgery, Unauthorized Use of Motor Vehicle, Manufacturing and Possession of Controlled Substances (Drugs) and Drunk Driving.

These guys are criminals and they came to Galveston for some reason.  Why are they here?  How many burglaries and thefts and assaults and arsons and robberies have they committed here and got away with?

A couple of them are ex-convicts.  Nice guys.

And you think the prostitutes are bad?  At least the cops know who they are.  Actually prostitutes and drug addicts are some of the best sources of information for police officer's.  They deal with them everyday.  They're called 'snitches' and they know nearly everything that's going on out there in the world of crime and criminals.

But the cops don't always know these Johns.

That's why it's good policing when these stings are staged.  The police learn a lot from arresting these guys.  They may only charge them with a simple prostitution charge initially.  But now they know who they are, where they're from, and what kind of criminal history they have.  It's just possible that other unsolved crimes will be cleared with their arrests. 

That's the way I see it.

How about you?  COMMENT

Breck Porter

• Guillermo Hernandez, 46, charged with prostitution, $ 1,000 bond.

• Abel Padron, 31, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Charles Peterson, 25, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Kirk Land, 46, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Hermillo Obregon, 41, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Richardo Garcia, 27, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Terrell Baker, 46, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Johnny Ray Martin, 41, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Angelo Louis, 54, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Bernard Poggi, 61, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Alfred Durrett, 33, charged with prostitution, $1,000 bond.

• Daniel Spiker, 30, charged with solicitation/drugs, $334 bond.

• Brian Richardson, 26, charged with possession of marijuana, $1,000 bond.

• Joseph Trice, 54, charged with possession of marijuana, $1,000 bond.