On August 15, Joseph Grossman, 36, was arraigned on felony charges of promoting the prostitution of a minor and corruption of minors. Grossman is currently incarcerated in the Bucks County Correctional Center. Grossman’s bail is set at $250,000, and he has no legal representation.
Grossman’s charges stem from a police investigation initiated in June when a Bucks County Children and Youth report alleged that a male shop owner solicited a sex act from a teen employee. According to an affidavit of probable cause, a 17-year-old female told the police that Grossman would frequently make inappropriate comments to her and touch her legs and her back while she was Grossman’s employee. This alleged behavior led her to quit her job; however, Grossman continued to contact her through the social media platform SnapChat. The minor later visited the store upon Grossman’s request and when answering that she was not yet 18 years old, Grossman allegedly offered $100 and marijuana for the her to perform a lewd act. Grossman then allegedly offered $300 when the female denied his initial offer.
While the CSE Institute celebrates the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office for its decision to prosecute Grossman, we are disappointed that he has not been charged under Pennsylvania’s human trafficking statute in addition to the other charges. Under Pennsylvania law, a person is guilty of trafficking if they recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain, advertise, maintain, patronize, or solicit a person who is subject to sexual servitude through the means of force, fraud or coercion. To convict someone of child sex trafficking, the prosecution only has to prove that the defendant committed one of these acts; the prosecution does not need to establish the means element of force, fraud, or coercion. Indeed, under both federal and state law, any form of commercial sexual exploitation of minors equates to sex trafficking because minors cannot consent to being bought or sold for sexual activities. We encourage the District Attorney’s Office to consider bringing charges against Grossman under 18 Pa.C.S. § 3011(b) to address the full scope of trafficking conduct and ensure justice for survivors.
The CSE Institute applauds both the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office for prosecuting Grossman and the Richland Township Police Force for investigating and charging Grossman. The CSE Institute praises the commitment of law enforcement for their continuous efforts to combat the sexual exploitation of minors and adults.
Grossman’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 18, 2025. The CSE Institute will continue to provide updates on this matter.
All views expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or of Villanova University.