LOCAL : S.A. Bans Stopping for Prostitutes

The Santa Ana City Council unanimously approved on Monday night a no-stopping zone for a stretch of Harbor Boulevard to discourage men from pulling over to hire prostitutes. The rule will be in effect from 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. from Westminster Avenue to Warner Avenue. Violators can be fined $30. The vote also provides about $6,000 for 80 no-stopping signs, which will be installed March 15, said Ruth Smith, an engineer with the city’s Public Works Agency. The city probably will allow a 10-day grace period after that, she said. A Superior Court judge denied a controversial request last month by the city to declare prostitutes a public nuisance and bar them from the boulevard.