Arrested teenage prostitutes are often sent back to the streets and the pimps who control them because juvenile lockups are filled with more serious offenders, a police officer who specializes in such cases told state legislators Tuesday.

Atlanta police Sgt. Ernest Britton and others asked members of the House Non-Civil Judicial Committee to support a bill that would decriminalize prostitution for those 17 and younger. Britton said that would help the legal system find help and treatment for teenager prostitutes, who are usually victims of exploitation.

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