HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN OHIO

Transcription

1 HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN OHIO October 2014 REPRESENTATIVE TERESA FEDOR 1

2 Issue of Our Lifetime The prevalent crime of human trafficking is the human rights issue of our lifetime. Human trafficking is defined as the exploitation of people against their will for monetary profit, allowing victims little or no pay. The buying and selling of people is a big business. World wide revenues are estimated at $32 billion annually and in the U.S. it is a $9.8 billion industry. A young girl can earn as much as $720,000 per year for a pimp. 2

3 Who Are the Victims? Victims may be U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, or foreign-born The largest group of trafficking victims in the U.S. is now thought to be children who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents The worst exploitation is often directed at American teenage girls who flee abusive homes, end up at the bus station the only person there to help is a pimp. - Nicholas Kristoff, journalist and author of Half thesky 3

4 The Real Face of Prostitution Early Booking Photograph 4

5 Who Are the Victims? 5

6 Victimology 83% have been threatened with a weapon 82% have been physically assaulted 68% have been raped 59% have been raped 4 or more times 49% reported that pornography has been made of them in prostitution 75% have a drug abuse problem 57% were sexually abused as children 88% say they want to leave prostitution 77% of sexually exploited youth in Ohio will only go on to participate in adult street prostitution, if they don t get intervention 6

7 Typical Street Prostitute Contacts with Law Enforcement in Lucas Co. 08/21/2001 to 05/07/2009 Loitering/Loitering to Solicit - 98 Soliciting - 34 Poss. of Drug Paraphernalia - 14 Obstructing Official Business - 1 Disorderly Conduct - 9 Drug Abuse - 5 Public Indecency 3 Criminal Trespassing - 2 7

8 Human Trafficking In the United States 100,000 Number of American minors are trafficked into the sex trade each year in the U.S. 200,000 Number of American children at risk for trafficking into the sex industry Average age of first involvement in sexual exploitation 8

9 International Routes of Trafficking into the United States Source: The Future Group, Neha Mathur, March 2007: 9

10 Demand: At a Glance 21 Buyers reported that they were an average of 21 years old when they first bought sex. 83% of buyers said jail time and 79% said a letter sent to their family would be a deterrent to purchasing sex with a minor in one Chicago-based study, traffickers sold anywhere from individual women in their lifetime. $400 Traffickers commonly sell underage girls for $400 per hour or more. 90% - Up to 90% of victims are under the control of a pimp. 10

11 Human Trafficking In Ohio: By the numbers 2,879: Estimated number of youths born in Ohio who are at risk for commercial sexual exploitation 1,078: Estimated number of youths born in Ohio who have been sexually exploited over the course of a year 3,437: Estimated number of foreign-born Ohio citizens who are at risk for trafficking in labor or the sex trade, 783 of whom are actually being trafficked at any one time 11

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17 Human Trafficking in Ohio This first came to public attention in 2005, through Operation Precious Cargo in Harrisburg, PA. The FBI found that of 151 victims of sex trafficking, 45 were children, 78 of the 151 were from Toledo, Ohio 17 of the 18 pimps charged were from Toledo Toledo is considered an origin city, with girls recruited and shipped to other states. At the time of Operation Precious Cargo, more than 100 pimps were operating in Toledo. 17

18 Legislative History 127 th General Assembly, Senator Fedor s S.B. 205 was amended into H.B. 280 (Rep. Schneider) and changed it in two ways: 1) A human trafficking specification; if a person is charged with two sex trafficking related felonies (i.e. abduction, or compelling prostitution) the sentencing enhancement may be attached, which will mandate prison time of at least 12 months. 2) A Trafficking in Persons Study Commission; under the scope of the Ohio Attorney General. 18

19 Legislative History 128 th General Assembly, During the 128 th General Assembly ( ), 2 separate bills that addressed human trafficking were introduced: H.B. 493 (Rep. Chandler): A comprehensive bill that was patterned after the federal TVPA S.B. 235 (Rep. Fedor): A bill that explained what human trafficking was, made it a crime and gave it a penalty 19

20 Attorney General s Human Trafficking Commission Human Trafficking Commission Legal & Legislative Subcommittee (Rep. Teresa Fedor) Training & Law Enforcement Subcommittee (Sheriff Gene Kelly) Prevention, Outreach & Education Subcommittee (Crystal Ward-Allen) Victim Assistance and Safe Locations Subcommittee (Michelle Hannan) Demand Reduction Subcommittee (Nancy Neylon) Research & Analysis Subcommittee (Dr. Celia Williamson) 20

21 H.B. 262 Safe Harbor th General Assembly Authorizes a juvenile court to hold a delinquent child complaint in suspension pending the child's completion of diversion actions if the child is charged with prostitution-related conduct or is a victim of trafficking in persons. Increases penalties for trafficking in persons to a first degree felony and requires mandatory prison term of 10 to 15 years for an offender Allows a person convicted of committing a prostitution-related offense to apply for expungement of the record if the person was a trafficking victim at the time of the offense. 21

22 Prohibits a person from importuning, or soliciting another to engage in sexual conduct when the other person is a minor under 16. In order for the importuner to be guilty if the other person is 16 or 17 years of age, the importuner must know the minor s age and the minor must be a trafficking victim. Requires those convicted of promoting prostitution or human trafficking to register as sex offenders. Increases penalty for obstruction of justice in trafficking cases. Allows trafficking victims to sue their traffickers. Allows personal effects of pimps to be seized at arrest and provides that assets seized from pimps be earmarked for victims services. Requires creation of an awareness poster. 22

23 H.B. 262 Safe Harbor th General Assembly Requires the Attorney General to annually publish statistical data on trafficking in persons violations Requires the Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission to recommend rules to the Attorney General with respect to training in handling trafficking in persons violations in specified training programs for peace officers. Permits the Attorney General to prepare public awareness programs designed to educate potential victims of trafficking and their families of the risks of becoming a victim. Recommends that agencies and professions in which individuals may encounter child trafficking victims adopt rules requiring training and the handling of cases of human trafficking. Declares an emergency 23

24 H.B. 130 End Demand Act th General Assembly H.B. 130 End Demand Act, addresses the market-driven demand for commercial sex trafficking along with other important provisions. Individuals willing to buy commercial sex expose vulnerable children and adults to the abusive realities of human trafficking. Left unchecked, human trafficking will continue to flourish in our communities. Those who purchase sex, known as buyers or johns, are fueling the commercial sex industry and contribute to the exploitation of Ohio s children. To reduce the demand for purchasing commercial sex, Ohio must improve and sustain policies and pass laws focused on the buyers of illegal sex. 24

25 Sub H.B. 130 End Demand Act 2013 Force, Fraud or Coercion Removes the need to prove compulsion for minors aged 15 and under. For year olds, no need to prove compulsion if trafficker is in a position of authority over the victim, i.e. cleric, peace officer, etc. Broadens state definition of trafficking to include fraud (applies to both minors & adults). Increasing Solicitation Violation of a Minor The penalty for purchasing commercial sex of a minor or developmentally disabled person increases. Increases the penalty for purchasing sex from a minor 15 and under or developmentally disabled person to an F3, must register as a tier two sex offender. Increases the penalty for purchasing sex from a minor aged to an F5. 25

26 Sub H.B. 130 End Demand Act 2013 Commercial Sexual Exploitation of a Minor No person shall knowingly purchase advertising space or otherwise obtain advertisement for sexual activity for hire that includes the depiction of a minor. Establishes an F3 penalty. Massage Advertisement Language No person, by means of a statement, solicitation, or offer in print or electronic publication, sign, placard, storefront display, or other medium, shall advertise massage, relaxation massage, any other massage technique or method, or any related service, with the suggestion or promise of sexual activity. Establishes an M1 penalty 26

27 Sub H.B. 130 End Demand Act 2013 Terminating Parental Rights Imposes a reasonable efforts bypass which could terminate parental rights after a person is convicted of trafficking his/her own child, sibling, or other minor living in the home. This provision removes children of traffickers from their control Two-Way Video Teleconferencing Testimony During Preliminary Hearing This provision would ensure that a minor victim that has not had sufficient recovery time, if called upon to testify at the preliminary examination hearing, would at least not have to face his/her trafficker directly. 27

28 Sub H.B. 130 End Demand Act 2013 Redacting Minors Names from Police Reports Currently, police reports are public record and viewable by anyone. Minors names are usually redacted to protect privacy, however, if a minor has a criminal record, his/her name will often be left visible even if the minor is listed as a victim of child abuse. Because trafficking victims often have additional charges related to their victimization, their privacy can be easily compromised through police records. Emergency Clause Adding an emergency clause to the End Demand Act makes certain the safety provisions in H.B. 130 are implemented during the summer months when children are most vulnerable. 28

29 Provisions Included and Passed in H.B. 59 Budget Bill In Lieu Of Sec , Allows a victim of trafficking in persons to be eligible for intervention in lieu of conviction. Increasing the statute of limitations Sec (A)(3)(a) Currently, the criminal statute of limitations for any felony is 6 years, with the exception of several crimes (such as rape and gross sexual imposition) which are names specifically in the Revised Code. These carry a statute of limitations of 20 years. One way to increase the statute of limitations for trafficking would be to include trafficking as one of the crimes that is specifically named and carries a 20 year statute of limitations. (Budget Amendment) Increasing the statute of limitations allow prosecutors and victims a realistic opportunity to pursue criminal action and legal remedies. 29

30 Provisions Included and Passed in H.B. 59 Budget Bill Adding electronic means to Section (Promoting Prostitution) Many trafficking cases start out as charges of promoting prostitution, and traffickers often use modern electronic methods to exploit their victims. Changing the requirement in Section (Promoting Prostitution) that state or county lines be crossed to simply a requirement that the victim was conveyed This change allows law enforcement to stop a trafficker who is forcibly conveying his victims even if that trafficker does not cross county or state lines. Human Trafficking Content in School Safety and Violence Prevention Training Requires each board of education and each city and exempted village school district and the governing board of each educational service center to incorporate training in human trafficking content into the schools safety and violence prevention portion of the in-service training that is required to provide to specified categories of its employees. 30

31 Sub H.B. 130 End Demand Act 2013 Severability Clause H.B. 130 specifies that if any provision of a section contained in the act or the application of any such provision to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect any other provision or application of the section or of any other section. 31

32 What You Can Do: Get informed about how to identify a Human Trafficking victim: a.visit b.visit Report Instances of Suspected Human Trafficking or request resources on human trafficking. Contact 911 or the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) at Post the Polaris Project or Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force Poster in your church, synagogue, bus station wherever you see a need. Please visit the Governor s Human Trafficking Task Force, or 32

33 Thank You! For more information please contact: State Representative Teresa Fedor s Office or Rep45@ohiohouse.gov Facebook facebook.com/representativeteresafedor Twitter 33