New York, New York – On Wednesday, Manhattan's district attorney announced that prostitution will no longer be prosecuted in New York, and plans to dismiss decades worth of cases.

Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. announced the change in a press release with hopes of "empowering New Yorkers to interact with law enforcement without fear of arrest or deportation."

Along with the move to decriminalize prostitution comes the motion to dismiss 5,080 Loitering for the Purpose of Prostitution cases following the repeal of New York's "Walking While Trans" statute earlier this year. Some cases to be dropped date back to the 1970s.

The district attorney made it clear that they would still be prosecuting other prostitution crimes involving sex trafficking rings.

Rather than prosecuting, Vance said his office and other city officials will be providing services for those formerly arrested for prostitution on a voluntary basis.

Members of the New York State Anti-Trafficking Coalition voiced their support for the district attorney's decision.

In a press release, co-chairs Rev. Dr. Que English, Dorchen Leidholdt, and Alexi Meyers said, "This announcement shows that the Manhattan DA is committed to changing its approach to the sex trade by decriminalizing people who are in prostitution and supporting those most at risk of exploitation.”

More often than not, sex workers who have been forced into the business by sex traffickers are arrested – giving traffickers room to find others to take their spots while they walk away scot-free.

"Too often survivors end up in jail or with a criminal record because of things their traffickers or abusers force them to do. That’s not right," said Anita Teekah, senior director of the anti-trafficking program at Safe Horizon.

District Attorney Vance Jr. also moved to dismiss 914 additional Prostitution and Unlicensed Massage cases.