Prostitution and Related Offenses
Prostitution, solicitation, purchasing, and premises or facilitation offenses under 796.07.
Florida Statute
§ 796.07
Prohibiting prostitution and related acts
Verified against the 2026 Florida Statutes: September 16, 2026
Quick Summary
Choose the conduct paragraph, then follow the solicitation, general-act, or massage-establishment penalty path. Confirm qualifying priors and mandatory consequences.
Charge Tracks & Enhancements
Choose ONE conduct paragraph (2)(a)-(i), then its penalty path and additional required facts. Vehicle use and mandatory consequences do not independently increase the degree.
1. Choose conduct & required facts
(2)(a) — Operate prostitution premises
F.S. § 796.07(2)(a)
Own, establish, maintain, OR operate a place, building, structure, or conveyance AND do so for prostitution, lewdness, or assignation. Check the massage-establishment enhancement.
(2)(b) — Offer or secure another person
F.S. § 796.07(2)(b)
Offer another, OR offer or agree to secure another, for prostitution OR a lewd or indecent act. This is not the (2)(f) penalty track merely because an instruction title uses 'soliciting'.
(2)(c) — Receive or allow someone to remain
F.S. § 796.07(2)(c)
Receive, offer or agree to receive someone into covered premises, OR permit someone to remain, for prostitution, lewdness, or assignation.
(2)(d) — Direct, take, or transport
F.S. § 796.07(2)(d)
Direct, take, transport, OR offer or agree to do so, to covered premises or another person AND know or have reasonable cause to believe the purpose is prostitution, lewdness, or assignation.
(2)(e) — Offer, commit, or engage
F.S. § 796.07(2)(e)
Offer to commit, commit, OR engage in prostitution, lewdness, or assignation AND be at least 18 at the time.
Elements of the Offense
Elements of the Offense
Elements marked AND are cumulative. Elements marked OR identify statutory alternatives; one applicable alternative must be established when that theory is charged. Conditional elements apply only to the identified statutory track.
- Element 1AND — Required
AND — all applicable requirements
The defendant committed at least ONE prohibited conduct track under 796.07(2)(a)-(i), shown in the Conduct & Required Facts guide. The alternatives are OR choices, not requirements to prove all nine acts.
Plain language: Prove the selected paragraph's act AND its required purpose or knowledge.
- Element 2AND — Required
AND — all applicable requirements
Establish the selected track's additional facts: for (2)(e), the defendant was at least 18 AND offered, committed, or engaged in the act; for (2)(d), the direction/transport act AND knowledge or reasonable cause of the prohibited purpose. For other tracks, prove the purpose or participation specified in that paragraph.
Plain language: Use the detailed conduct row, not a generic prostitution checklist.
- Element 3Conditional
Additional charge-specific facts
Jury Instructions
Jury Instructions
Instruction 23.1
Operate prostitution premises
Applies to 796.07(2)(a). Select only the charged conduct alternatives and applicable additional findings.
View Official InstructionVerified against the official instruction source: September 16, 2026
Instruction 23.2
Offer or secure another person
Applies to 796.07(2)(b). Select only the charged conduct alternatives and applicable additional findings.
View Official InstructionVerified against the official instruction source: September 16, 2026
Instruction 23.3
Receive or allow someone to remain
Applies to 796.07(2)(c). Select only the charged conduct alternatives and applicable additional findings.
View Official InstructionImportant Definitions
Important Definitions
Prostitution
Giving or receiving the body for sexual activity for hire; sexual activity between spouses is excluded.
Lewdness
An indecent or obscene act, as defined by the statute and explained in the applicable instruction.
Assignation
An appointment or engagement for prostitution or lewdness, or an act furthering it.
Sexual activity
Specified penetration or union involving a sexual organ; specified anal or female-genital penetration by another object; or handling/fondling another's sexual organ for masturbation. Bona fide medical acts are excluded. Consult (1)(b) and (1)(e) for the complete anatomical definition.
Additional Notes
Additional Notes
Track-Specific Proof
Preserve words, messages, offers, payment evidence, observations, and each participant's role. An offer or solicitation can be prohibited without a completed sex act when the selected paragraph criminalizes the offer. Completed purchasing, securing another, and soliciting another are distinct tracks.
Quick Reference
Choose the exact (2)(a)-(i) act, then the solicitation (f), ordinary other-act, or enhanced massage-premises penalty path. Verify qualifying priors; not every act called solicitation uses the (f) penalties.
Solicitation — Mandatory Consequences
For a (2)(f) conviction: 100 community-service hours AND paid attendance at the educational program if one exists in the circuit. A second or subsequent conviction also requires at least ten days of incarceration. A $5,000 civil penalty applies to any (2)(f) judicial disposition other than acquittal or dismissal; this does not increase the felony degree. See (5)(b)-(c), (6), and (8).
Vehicle Impoundment — Not a Degree Enhancement
For a (2)(f) violation involving a vehicle, the judge MAY order up to 60 days of impoundment or immobilization upon conviction, subject to owner relief, notice, and hearing provisions. This is not automatic field seizure authority or an increased charge degree. See (5)(d).
Prior Violations and Pretrial Programs
Obtain qualifying prior case records and confirm their legal treatment with the prosecutor. Instruction comments flag prior-violation proof and bifurcation issues; do not assume every arrest counts. A third or subsequent non-(2)(f) charge requires an offer of pretrial intervention or substance-abuse treatment under (4)(b) and 948.08.