Yolo County prosecutor announced this week the sentencing of a Woodland man to 10 years in state prison for pimping and pandering multiple victims.
Ray Lawler Jr., 41, received his sentence on Aug. 7 from Yolo Superior Court Judge Paul Richardson.
In May 2019, correctional staff at the Yolo County Jail advised the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office’s human trafficking unit that Lawler, a jail inmate, was possibly engaged in pimping and pandering while serving a sentence for a parole violation.
District attorney investigators began reviewing Lawler’s communications from jail and found he was directing an adult victim residing in Texas on how to post to escort websites, advising prices for commercial sex acts, demanding she continue to engage in commercial sex acts when she said she did not want to, and requesting she put money on Lawler’s jail commissary account.
Investigators arrested Lawler for pimping and pandering on June 27, 2019. Their continued investigation revealed evidence that Lawler had been involved in pandering other adult victims in Yolo County and surrounding counties since 2017, while on parole. Through this investigation several victims were identified and large amount of evidence accumulated.
On July 10, 2020, Lawler pleaded no contest to one charge of pimping, one charge of pandering, one charge of attempted pandering and admitted a prior strike offense.
Without the dedication and attention to detail of the Yolo County sheriff’s correctional officer taking action and making a report, Lawler would have served his parole violation and been released to continue his crimes with his current victim.
The DA’s human trafficking unit works closely with all local law enforcement agencies like the Sheriff’s Office and conducts training for officers on how to detect and report human trafficking, including when suspects commit the crime while incarcerated.
Human trafficking is a multimillion-dollar-a-year enterprise that preys upon the innocence and vulnerability of both female and male victims. In addition to apprehending suspects and helping victims, the DA’s human trafficking unit provides trainings for educators, nonprofits and community members to help educate the public about the dangers of human trafficking in our area and how to detect and report suspicious activity.
If you see or hear something suspicious and are concerned, please report human trafficking to the DA’s Office at 530-666-8180, or email district.attorney@yolocounty.org.
For more information on human trafficking visit the DA’s website: https://yoloda.org/human-trafficking-unit/. For additional resources visit https://humantraffickinghotline.org/, https://polarisproject.org/, and https://victimconnect.org/learn/types-of-crime/human-trafficking/.