Redlands is a city of approximately 73,000 residents, located between San Bernardino and Moreno Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Prostitution and sex trafficking have been identified by local residents and law enforcement as substantial problems in the area, including the serial murder of prostituted women in 1977, and the murder of another prostituted woman in 2013.

To address the wide range of crimes and other problems arising from local commercial sex, the Redlands Police Department has conducted reverse stings at city parks and within adult-oriented businesses.  In one three-hour reverse operation in 2003, eight male sex buyers were arrested. In April 2013, the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office announced a new policy targeting sex buyers. Dubbed the “Stop-the-Johns Project,” the initiative documented and publicized the names and photos of all individuals arrested and convicted of soliciting prostitution in the county. All sex buyers, including those arrested in Redlands, had their identities posted on the District Attorney’s website.