Legalize prostitution effort left candidate ‘shocked’ in blue state with rampant human trafficking

Michael Allen, a Republican candidate for Colorado attorney general, said he was "shocked" by a Democratic proposal to legalize prostitution, warning it would "open the floodgates" to human trafficking in Colorado.

"It's hard for me to even decipher why they've decided this is the time and place to introduce a radical bill like this," Allen said in an interview with Fox News Digital.

The bill, which sponsors said would "decriminalize adult commercial sexual activity," was introduced last month by Democratic state Sens. Nick Hinrichsen and Lisa Cutter and Reps. Lorena García and Rebekah Stewart. 

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According to Allen, the bill would go far beyond Nevada’s law allowing prostitution and would make Colorado "the leader in the entire country on legalized prostitution."

"I was shocked," Allen admitted.

"It doesn't make any sense to me. It would not solve any issue that is happening on the ground in Colorado. It would not help with our huge budget deficit. It will not help our crime deficit," he said.

"It is, frankly, very appalling to me that we've got four members of the left-leaning Democrat legislature who thought it would be a good idea to just open the floodgates and let these criminal actors run free without any repercussions."

The bill sponsors did not respond to requests for comment. 

A current Colorado district attorney, Allen is one of two Republicans running to flip one of the state’s top offices red. If successful, Allen would be the first Republican elected attorney general in over a decade.

Allen said, despite the state being dominated by Democrats, he believes that, after 10 years of "devastatingly bad criminal justice reform," voters are ready for a Republican attorney general.

Though the bill appears to have stalled for now in the state legislature, Allen said it demonstrates how the Democratic Party is "not doing the right things on behalf of the people in this state."

The only outcome he predicts will result should the prostitution bill ever pass is "continued depravity in the state of Colorado."

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"Prostitution is a natural outgrowth of human trafficking," he said. "The links are undeniable."

He explained that, in Colorado, "You've got two major corridors of travel that go through the state," which, he said, "are major arteries for human trafficking, and we see that in the Denver metro area as a huge hub for human trafficking."

Colorado is seeing record highs in human trafficking victims and is ranked among the states with the highest numbers of reports, according to data gathered by the Common Sense Institute. Further, according to the study, 79% of Colorado human trafficking crimes were for the purposes of commercial sex. The study also backs Allen’s claim that the trafficking is concentrated in the Denver area.

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As attorney general, Allen vowed to work to finally turn the tables on the rampant human trafficking in Colorado.

"The attorney general's office has the ability to use the statewide grand jury to investigate those crimes and then also prosecute those crimes and hold people accountable," he said.

He believes the upcoming midterm election in Colorado, including his race for attorney general, will be "pivotal."

"We need to have a better, stronger and more effective posture from our Colorado Attorney General's Office to combat criminal activity that is, frankly, affecting the entire state of Colorado," he said.