Rhode Island Clubs Ban Teen Strippers

Quirky state sex laws allow teens to strip or enter "indoor" prostitution.

ByABC News
July 22, 2009, 6:10 PM

Aug. 5, 2009— -- In a bow to public outrage, 10 strip clubs in Providence, R.I., have signed a pledge to stop hiring girls under the age of 18 while officials scramble to plug a legal loophole that made it legal for kids too young to drink to do the bump and grind in bars.

Board of Licenses Chairman Andrew Annaldo distributed the pledge, although some say it may not be legally binding, according to the television affiliate ABC6.

An executive order was also issued by Providence Mayor David Cicilline prohibiting the issuing of licenses for adult entertainment to clubs that hire teens under 18.

Just last month, the police discovered a loophole in the state's minor laws that do not restrict girls as young as 16 from working as strippers, as long as they are home by 11:30 p.m.

The inconsistency came to light while police were investigating a 16-year-old runaway who had been working at one of Providence's notorious strip clubs. Police discovered that they could not prosecute, because there were no local or state laws barring teens from working in the city's thriving adult entertainment business.

"To think that any minor could just as easily be employed as a stripper is mind-boggling," said Elizabeth Roberts, Rhode Island's lieutenant governor.

In other parts of the country, even in Las Vegas, there are age limits on strippers, according to the report.

"It's an outrage that we would ever have allowed this to happen -- that anyone would hire a young person we are meant to protect," Roberts told ABCNews.com.

"Everyone was completely shocked to learn it wasn't against the law," she said. "None of us was aware of it."

The 16-year-old runaway had been working at Cheaters, described by the Boston Strip Club Directory as "dark and dirty."

Cheaters refused to comment to ABCNews.com.

"You get more contact here talking to a woman at the bar than you do in most clubs during a lap dance, and in the private rooms, anything goes for probably half the women working there, and the others will still make sure you leave happy," reported one of its customers.