Human-trafficking bill sent to House | Columbus Dispatch Politics

Image via WikipediaThursday, December 2, 2010 02:57 AM

By Jim Siegel

Calling it Ohio's action to "end modern-day slavery," the Ohio Senate voted unanimously yesterday to increase punishments for human trafficking. The House is expected to pass the bill next week.

The Senate approved the legislation after some drama. Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, initially pushed to add a major criminal-sentencing overhaul to the bill, but he backed down after a private meeting with his GOP colleagues.

Sen. Teresa Fedor, D-Toledo, who sponsored the bill with Sen. Timothy J. Grendell, R-Chesterland, said her wake-up call on the issue came in 2005, when the FBI busted a large prostitution ring in Harrisburg, Pa.

Fedor said she was "horrified" to learn that of the 177 girls and women involved, "77 had come from my district, Toledo." Of those, she said, 38 were younger than 18, and one was 10.

Toledo ranks fourth in the nation in human-trafficking arrests and rescues, she said, trailing only Miami, Las Vegas and Portland, Ore.

"In passing this bill, we will be one step closer to eradicating this atrocity," she told her colleagues. "The federal government can no longer handle the entire caseload in Ohio."

If the bill becomes law, Ohio would join 44 other states in making human trafficking a stand-alone felony. It would be a second-degree felony with a maximum eight-year sentence.

The bill also would:

• Make human trafficking an offense of violence.

• Add the definition of human trafficking to the crimes of kidnapping and abduction.

• Make kidnapping based on involuntary servitude a first-degree felony.

• Make it a crime to destroy identification documents with the intent of human trafficking.

• Make compelling prostitution a first-degree felony if the victim is younger than 16.

"It's hard to believe in 2010 we are standing here talking about human trafficking and involuntary servitude," Grendell said. But he said he has seen it in his own town, where a raid found a number of women forced to work at a massage parlor.

Grendell said the bill will help law enforcement and prosecutors deal with the various levels of the crime, from the pimps on the street to those behind the scenes creating false documents, transporting young victims and funding the operations.

And it's not just about prostitution, he said, noting those who are trapped in "substandard labor conditions by those who wish to exploit perhaps their immigration status or other issues."

There is a "very good possibility" the bill will pass the House next week, said Dave Isaacs, spokesman for Speaker Armond Budish, D-Beachwood. "It's a priority for the speaker."

jsiegel@dispatch.com

Source: Dispatch News

Human-trafficking bill sent to House | Columbus Dispatch Politics

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Child Sex Trafficking: Resources to Help Victims - ABC News

About 200,000 U.S. Children at Risk of Being Trafficked Each Year; Here's How to Help

By JESSICA HOPPER

Sept. 22, 2010

Portland is often voted one of the most livable places in the country but, police say, the Oregon city hides another distinction: It has become a national hub for child sex trafficking.

Portland is often voted one of the most livable places in the country, but police say this Oregon city hides another distinction. It's become a national hub for child sex trafficking.

(AP)

Oregon police believe more than 100 underage girls are being deployed to hotel rooms, sent to work on the streets and dance in the strip-clubs.

They are a few of the nearly 200,000 U.S. children at high risk for being trafficked into the sex industry each year, according to the anti-trafficking organization Polaris Project. The average age of entry into prostitution is between 12 and 13, the project says.

If you are a victim of trafficking or want to help those who are, here are some resources:
Polaris Project: This national organization works at the international, national and local levels to combat trafficking. It trains leaders on how to combat trafficking and even writes policy aimed at curbing what it calls the second largest crime in the world.

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National Human Trafficking Resource Hotline: This hotline allows you to report a tip if you think that trafficking has occurred in your neighborhood. If you are a victim of trafficking, the hotline will connect you to help in your area. You can also call and receive information about trafficking and where to go to train in counter-trafficking.

Department of Homeland Security: This government agency has a link to a state and local database of anti-trafficking groups. There is also information regarding immigration status if you are undocumented and a victim of trafficking. Concerned citizens can click on this link to request assistance for child victims of trafficking.

Child Sex Trafficking: Resources to Help Victims - ABC News

Fed money eyed for shelters for sex-trafficking victims - Washington Times

By Michal Elseth - The Washington Times

7:25 p.m., Wednesday, July 28, 201

U.S. authorities have long considered human-trafficking to be a foreign problem, and as a result U.S.-focused efforts against such sexual exploitation have to battle a serious lack of safe shelter for victims.

But local governments in cities such as Portland, Ore., and Seattle have begun to coordinate their responses with nonprofit groups, and Uncle Sam may also get into the game.

"Too many think that sex trafficking is only a problem in foreign countries. But here in the U.S., an estimated 100,000 underage girls — most of them American citizens — are exploited through commercial sex each year," said Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, New York Democrat and sponsor of a bill giving block grants to meet needs specific to victims of sex trafficking.

"Yet, nationwide there are only 50 beds to address the needs of those 100,000 victims. This is simply unacceptable. We have a moral obligation to help. These are America's daughters, granddaughters, sisters and nieces," she said.

The Senate is scheduled Thursday to consider its version of that bill, sponsored by Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat. The House version, also sponsored by Rep. Christopher H. Smith, New Jersey Republican, is still in committee.

The sex-traffic bills would provide federal funds for shelters, education, and victims' services to Portland and five other locations across the country to be determined.

Shelter and appropriate counseling services are difficult to provide for victims of sex trafficking. If girls are detained on charges related to their work, they acquire a criminal record, but existing domestic-violence shelters, runaway shelters, and other emergency services are reluctant to house victims with such specialized needs.

"What are we supposed to do?" said detective Sgt. Ryan Long, who heads the Seattle Police Department's efforts to fight domestic child exploitation. "We need more options. We have to start somewhere."

A new three-year, $500,000 grant program in Multnomah County, Ore., hopes to provide both immediate help and long-term safe shelter for victims. County officials announced last week that they will be partnering with the local YWCA in a pilot project that will use existing housing to shelter sex-trafficking victims and offer counseling sessions, rather than build a separate facility.

"We have a really deep desire to do something that will work really well for these youth, something that will last beyond grants," said Josslyn Baker, who is heading the program.

The program's more immediate project is a drop-in center, operated by the Portland-area advocacy group Sexual Assault Resource Center, where child sex-traffic victims can stop by for counseling and other needs at a facility that does not require the same level of funding as a secure shelter.

© Copyright 2010 The Washington Times, LLC.

Fed money eyed for shelters for sex-trafficking victims - Washington Times

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Charge: Runaway pimped for jewelry, rims for Cadillac

Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Last updated 6:19 p.m. PT

Oregon man charged with pimping 15-year-old girl

By LEVI PULKKINEN
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

An accused pimp is behind bars following allegations that he brought a 15-year-old runaway to Kent to work as a prostitute.

Charged with pimping a child, Oregon resident Zackery M. Driver was arrested after Kent police spotted the girl walking on Pacific Highway South on March 2.

According to charging documents, officers contacted the girl in an area of high prostitution wearing a short skirt and heels. She was later arrested at a nearby hotel.

Speaking with investigators, the girl initially denied that Driver was her pimp before admitting that he'd been profiting from her prostitution, a Kent detective said in court documents.

"It was evident she was emotionally attached to Driver," the detective told the court, describing the tearful girl. "(She) stated that she didn't understand how Driver had 'gotten in her head.'"

The girl told officers she'd met Driver in Portland after running away from home. She'd begun prostituting for his benefit in January, allowing him to post advertisements of her online and walking the streets of Portland. She estimated she'd given Driver at least $10,000 made from prostitution.

With that money, Driver bought 20-inch rims for his Cadillac, and installed a DVD player in the vehicle, the girl told police. He also bought expensive jewelry for himself, giving the girl only enough money for the basic necessities.

The girl said Driver refused to take her to the hospital when, on Valentine's Day, she developed a life-threatening infection.

"Instead he went on a date with another girl," the Kent detective told the court. "(She) was dropped off at the hospital and spent the day alone in her hospital bed.

"She cried when she told the story."

Driver and the girl arrived in Seattle on March 1, having taken a bus from Portland. The girl was arrested the following day.

On Friday, Driver was booked into the Norm Maleng Regional Justice Center, where he remains. He has been charged with commercial sexual abuse of a minor, a felony.
Levi Pulkkinen can be reached at 206-448-8348 or levipulkkinen@seattlepi.com.

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