W-b Lauds Decrease In Crime 
Mayor Mcgroarty And The Head Of The 
Police Union Offer Different Reasons For 
The Turnaround

2 Hurt When Car Spins Out Of Control 
Bear

Thursday, January 09, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A 





Massaging the truth? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "No,'' the woman says. ``My name is not Melissa. I have never called myself &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Melissa.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Sorry, I tell her, it's just that a former massage parlor employee says
that &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Melissa's the ``alias'' you use"Massage business," she corrects. "How'd you
get my beeper number, anyway?" &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The former employee gave it to me. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "You can take me down to a church and bring out a stack of Bibles and I'll
swear that there's no sex at all taking place in this building," she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I am drug-free raising my 10-month-old. I'm engaged to be married. I
hardly do massages anymore." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At 23, the woman I'll call Melissa anyway says she has worked at the West
Side massage business for a few years. Her mother runs the place and Melissa
helps out by doing the bills, making sure the air conditioning is running
properly and whatnot. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Mom's 41, married again and has been at the current location for about four
years, Melissa says, adding that business is good. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That's a pretty amazing statement, I tell her, considering how she swears
her place of employment does not provide a service that keeps the massage
trade profitable. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Any masseuse worth her tip jar will tell you that men patronize massage
businesses for one reason and one reason only. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Raw consumer masturbation. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Without it, such enterprises invariably fail. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A Luzerne County jury recently found two masseuses guilty of
prostitution-related charges stemming from the massage of a Hazleton
undercover police officer's genitals. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cindy Clark, who admitted masturbating clients at a Hazleton massage parlor
because she thought state law allowed the act, is scheduled to begin a prison
sentence Monday of two to 23 months for promoting prostitution. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Clark, in fact, claims that sex is offered for sale at the West Side place
run by Melissa and her mom. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In the meantime, most, if not all, county massage service operators are
running for cover. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Sort of. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Local prosecutors say privately that massage parlor masturbation is not a
priority crime and they don't expect commando raids on a weekly basis. Still,
masturbation for sale has been officially deemed illegal -- a controversy that
police, prosecutors and purveyors have debated for years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 For the record, most masseuses working in your average sleazy storefront
firms are women who provide what the business euphemistically calls "hand
release" and "full-body massage." Most also are not certified massage
therapists who engage in a variety of technical massages not covered by the
state crimes code. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Most work nude, too. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Melissa says no way -- not in her family business. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The former employee of Melissa's massage parlor disagrees. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 During a job interview, mom and Melissa told the woman that the "girls" who
work there, "sub-contractors," as Melissa calls them, provide only legal
massages. The nurse's aide, who had just been laid off, says she felt
relieved. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 On her first day on the job, though, the woman says mom and Melissa
instructed her to pick an alias, explained that her pay would come only from
tips and that the more sex she offered customers the more money she'd make. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I walked out," she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Believe whom you wish. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The young woman calls herself "lucky" because she shunned work she calls
degrading and dangerous. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I wish someone would have made the effort to save that girl Christine
Burgerhoff. ... Please do something to help me make a difference," she
implores. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Someone killed Burgerhoff, 24, last April. Police have charged a former
boyfriend of the late Clarks Summit masseuse who dreamed of being a model
while selling herself to men. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Sex for sale is not a victimless crime. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And, prostitutes are people, too. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Sometimes they just don't realize it before it's too late. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Steve Corbett's column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Massaging The Truth? 
"no,'' The Woman Says. ``my Name Is Not Melissa. I Have Never Called Myself 
Melissa.'' 
Sorry, I Tell Her, It's Just That A Former Massage Parlor Employee Says That 
Melissa's The ``alias'' You Use.

Massaging The Truth? "no,'' The Woman Says. ``my Name Is Not Melissa. I Have Never Called Myself Melissa.'' Sorry, I Tell Her, It's Just That A Former Massage Parlor Employee Says That Melissa's The ``alias'' You Use.