Tennessee will remove HIV-positive people convicted of sex work from violent sex offender list

Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — HIV-positive people who were convicted in Tennessee of sex work under a decades-old aggravated prostitution law will no longer be required to face a lifetime registration as a “violent sex offender” under a lawsuit settlement finalized this week. Last year, LGBTQ+ and civil rights advocates filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Volunteer State’s aggravated prostitution statute, arguing that the law was enacted in response to the AIDS scare and discriminated against HIV-positive people. That challenge was settled this week, with Gov. Bill Lee and others signing off on the agreement.