Dart on Craigslist: “Do They Think I'm Sort of Stupid?”

Sheriff still pursuing lawsuit

Remember that very public promise Craigslist made two months ago to get rid of prostitution ads? Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart certainly does.

Law enforcement officials like Dart, who has filed a lawsuit against the online classified community, say Craiglist is still selling sex and they have no intention of dropping their efforts to stop prostitution on the site.

"It makes me wonder, do they really think I'm sort of stupid, some bobble head who will think they changed it?" Dart told the Sun-Times.  "They seem to insist on being cute and playing games [and] it is getting old."

In May, Craiglist removed their "erotic services" category along with many of the graphic pictures. The company came under renewed pressure to remove the ads after a medical student in Boston was charged with the April killing of a masseuse he met on the site's erotic services section.  

Despite the change to a moderated "adult services" section, there remains criticism it still includes selling sex. CEO Jim Buckmaster calls Dart's lawsuit a stunt.

"They citizens of Cook County would arguably be better served if their sheriff spent his time  addressing actual crime, rather than using the courts to general personal publicity," he wrote in an email to the Sun-Times.

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