The Kansas City Star
Kansas took two major steps on Monday — National Human Trafficking Awareness Day — to improve its statewide response to the growing Midwestern problem.
Tougher proposed penalties for traffickers and the formation of an advisory board in the attorney general’s office would help identify and aid more victims and make human trafficking less profitable, supporters of the initiatives said.
Both initiatives address issues raised in a five-part series last month in The Kansas City Star that found that the U.S. government has failed to find and rescue tens of thousands of human trafficking victims.
The Star’s investigation also found that, although the Midwest is becoming a hub for human trafficking, Kansas was one of the few states where no special visas for trafficking victims had been issued.
Senate Majority Leader Derek Schmidt, an Independence Republican, said his proposed amendments to the state’s existing human trafficking law could force traffickers to forfeit their assets and create new state crimes of “coercing employment” to satisfy a debt.
Schmidt said he proposed the changes because of inadequacies in current state law and because “the series you did this fall really brought the issue home to Kansas and reinforced my commitment.”
Also Monday, Kansas Attorney General Steve Six unveiled a new advisory board to improve state services for domestic and foreign-born human trafficking victims.
“We must increase institutional awareness and assist victims of human trafficking,” Six said in a prepared statement.
The board will work to find and help more victims.
“You can’t find something you’re not looking for,” explained Vicky Luttrell, an employee of the attorney general’s office.
Among board members will be Kristy Childs of the nonprofit group Veronica’s Voice, which helps Kansas City area women and girls escape the commercial sex industry.
Meanwhile, a conference focusing on human trafficking will be March 15-16 at the Kansas City Police Academy. Organizers said the conference is part of an effort aimed at “abolishing the sexual exploitation of juveniles in Kansas and Missouri.”
David Klepper, The Star’s Topeka correspondent, contributed to this report. To reach Mike McGraw, call 816-234-4423 or send e-mail to mcgraw@kcstar.com.
Posted on Mon, Jan. 11, 2010 10:15 PM
Kansas takes steps to fight human trafficking - KansasCity.com
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