Why do sex traffickers pick South Dakota? - CSMonitor.com:
Showing posts with label South Dakota. Show all posts
Showing posts with label South Dakota. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Monday, November 23, 2015
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
US attorneys host human trafficking forum in South Dakota
Source: bismarcktribune.com
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Law enforcement officials fighting human trafficking and sexual assault cases in the Dakotas want to increase the help they receive from medical professionals and the public in general to identify victims of those crimes.
The message was stressed Tuesday during the first day of a conference sponsored by U.S. Attorney Brendan Johnson from South Dakota and U.S. Attorney Timothy Purdon from North Dakota that was meant to raise awareness.
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Thursday, July 19, 2012
Top federal prosecutors warn of human trafficking
http://rapidcityjournal.com/news/top-federal-prosecutors-warn-of-human-trafficking/article_4fa8e62b-8554-5d5a-8672-b52fc226801e.html
FARGO, N.D. — Top federal prosecutors from North and South Dakota have added human trafficking to their list of violent crimes that are affecting American Indian tribes in the two states.
U.S. attorneys Brendan Johnson of South Dakota and Timothy Purdon of North Dakota told attendees of a conference on family violence Tuesday that both states are seeing an increase in girls and young women being recruited for prostitution and drug rings.
The prosecutors say the operations are formed mainly in populated areas, but Native American girls are particularly at risk. A recent sex trafficking case in North Dakota involved several victims from the Fort Berthold reservation.
Johnson says his office has seen three indictments for human trafficking in South Dakota in the last three months.
The conference runs through Thursday in Fargo.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Quincy sex slave case factor in push for human trafficking law - Quincy, MA - The Patriot Ledger
Boston - Attorney General Martha Coakley is highlighting Massachusetts’ poor rating by an anti-human trafficking group which has criticized the state for being one of only four in the country without laws to prosecute labor and sexual servitude.
Massachusetts and eight other states – Alaska, Colorado, Montana, South Carolina, South Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming – received the lowest rating. The Polaris Project ranked states based on the presence or absence of 10 categories of state laws that it believes are critical to a comprehensive anti-trafficking legal framework.
“This report highlights the fact that Massachusetts is well behind the rest of the nation in our laws to combat human trafficking. The passage of a human trafficking law would give us the tools to go after those who are exploiting children and other victims right in our own communities,” Coakley said in a statement released Monday.
Coakley, Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey of Quincy and other prosecutors are pushing for passage of a bill that would make human trafficking a crime in Massachusetts and create harsher penalties for pimps who sell adults and adolescents for labor and sex.
The House unanimously approved the bill in June and it is now in the state Senate.
Human trafficking hit home in May when a 28-year-old Boston man was charged with kidnapping a 15-year-old girl at an MBTA stop and forcing her to have sex with men at motel rooms, including the Best Western Adams Inn in Quincy.
Norman Barnes is still being held without bail and is due back in Quincy District Court on Sept. 6. Norfolk County prosecutors charged him with kidnapping and child enticement, which carry maximum penalties of 10 and five years, respectively. Those charges are the best tools currently available in Massachusetts in human-trafficking cases, prosecutors say.
Victim advocates said the bill at the State House would fix an “upside down” system in which victims of the crime are viewed as delinquents or prostitutes who are subject to penalties themselves.
A “safe harbor” provision in the bill would remove from the juvenile justice system anyone 18 or younger involved in commercial sexual exploitation and offer the same support services extended to child abuse victims.
“What can happen now is there isn’t clear communication, so kids fall through the cracks. They are seen as delinquent or invisible,” Lisa Goldblatt Grace, program director for My Life, My Choice, a nonprofit that provides services to adolescent girls involved in sexual exploitation in the Boston area and as far south as Plymouth, said earlier this summer.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Tell Village Voice Media to Stop Child Sex Trafficking on Backpage.com | End Human Trafficking | Change.org
Image by littlevanities via FlickrEnd Human Trafficking:Tell Village Voice Media to Stop Child Sex Trafficking on Backpage.com
by Amanda Kloer
September 02, 2010 07:00 AM (PT)
Craigslist may be the most famous facilitator of online child sex trafficking these days, but Backpage.com, owned by Village Voice Media, is working to catch up. In the past week alone, two human trafficking operations were busted for selling teens on Backpage.com. It's time to tell Village Voice Media and Backpage.com that facilitating and profiting from child sex trafficking is not acceptable.
Earlier this week a Georgia man was arrested for pimping two 17-year-old girls around the Nashville area. Detectives responded to a suspicious ad on Backpage and drove to a motel. There, they found the teens and their 37-year-old pimp, as well as a laptop computer, likely used to post the online advertising. Just four days prior to that, four people in Denver were arrested for forcing a teen girl into prostitution. They also advertised her sexual services, including semi-nude pictures, on Backpage. And last year, a South Dakota couple was arrested for selling underage girls for sex on .... wait for it ... Backpage.com yet again. Sorry Village Voice, but it looks like child sex trafficking on one of your websites is a disturbing trend.
Backpage's terms of use, of course, prohibit advertising for illegal commercial sex acts or exploiting minors, but both are happening anyway in Nashville, Denver, and Sioux City. And like Craigslist, Backpage and their parent company Village Voice Media are doing little to prevent the sale of children or trafficked adults on their site. Village Voice Media has a duty to ensure that young girls aren't being abused in the commercial sex industry with help from their website, and that they aren't facilitating human trafficking.
Online classified sites like Backpage.com, Craigslist, and others are quickly becoming some of the most common places children are sold for sex. These companies have tremendous power to prevent the sexual exploitation of minors online. However, vast amounts of money are to be made in the adult services advertising industry, giving companies few incentives to tighten controls and safeguards against pimps selling kids. That's where you come in. Pressure from online classified users can motivate companies like Village Voice Media to clean up their online classified and take critical steps to protecting children. So take one minute, write a letter to Village Voice Media, and take a stand for exploited children.
Photo credit: Saemel Trip
Amanda Kloer has been a full-time abolitionist for six years. She currently develops trainings and educational materials for civil attorneys representing victims of human trafficking and gender-based violence.
Tell Village Voice Media to Stop Child Sex Trafficking on Backpage.com | End Human Trafficking | Change.org
Monday, May 31, 2010
KELOLAND.com | Local Authorities Deal With Sex Trafficking
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By Katie Janssen
Published: May 26, 2010, 9:56 PM
SIOUX FALLS, SD - Sex trafficking isn't just seen by advocates; law enforcement in KELOLAND deal with a handful of cases each year. It’s a problem around the world, and most often involves women and young girls.
"When it happens, and it's happened in South Dakota, it's heartbreaking to read the reports,” Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead said. “It's heartbreaking to learn about the victims in these cases."
Milstead says people often confuse trafficking with prostitution. Both cases involve sex for money; the difference is trafficking victims work because they're forced to. Some are a long way from home.
"They're under threat. They're under coercion. They're being trafficked as a child or they're dependent on the person because of the fact that they're a child," Milstead said.
But it's not always involving people from out of state. Milstead says both perpetrators and victims are sometimes people who live in this area.
"Sometimes they'll be runaways or people with a troubled home. Sometimes they're throw-aways, meaning, 'Go ahead and move out. I know you're 15 but go ahead and go,'” Milstead said. “They're looking for a place to live. They find someone to provide shelter, food, companionship, and soon they're used for a business."
From finding victims to recruiting customers, the internet has helped the problem multiply.
"It's a challenge for law enforcement,” Milstead said. “That technology spike, and it's going to continue, makes it very easy for people to prey on victims."
Milstead's advice is to let your kids know of the danger and help them be safe online.
Milstead says because sex trafficking often crosses state lines, offenders can be charged with federal crimes.
© 2010 KELOLAND TV. All Rights Reserved.
KELOLAND.com | Local Authorities Deal With Sex Trafficking
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By Katie Janssen
Published: May 26, 2010, 9:56 PM
SIOUX FALLS, SD - Sex trafficking isn't just seen by advocates; law enforcement in KELOLAND deal with a handful of cases each year. It’s a problem around the world, and most often involves women and young girls.
"When it happens, and it's happened in South Dakota, it's heartbreaking to read the reports,” Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead said. “It's heartbreaking to learn about the victims in these cases."
Milstead says people often confuse trafficking with prostitution. Both cases involve sex for money; the difference is trafficking victims work because they're forced to. Some are a long way from home.
"They're under threat. They're under coercion. They're being trafficked as a child or they're dependent on the person because of the fact that they're a child," Milstead said.
But it's not always involving people from out of state. Milstead says both perpetrators and victims are sometimes people who live in this area.
"Sometimes they'll be runaways or people with a troubled home. Sometimes they're throw-aways, meaning, 'Go ahead and move out. I know you're 15 but go ahead and go,'” Milstead said. “They're looking for a place to live. They find someone to provide shelter, food, companionship, and soon they're used for a business."
From finding victims to recruiting customers, the internet has helped the problem multiply.
"It's a challenge for law enforcement,” Milstead said. “That technology spike, and it's going to continue, makes it very easy for people to prey on victims."
Milstead's advice is to let your kids know of the danger and help them be safe online.
Milstead says because sex trafficking often crosses state lines, offenders can be charged with federal crimes.
© 2010 KELOLAND TV. All Rights Reserved.
KELOLAND.com | Local Authorities Deal With Sex Trafficking
Thursday, May 27, 2010
The Human Trafficking Project: Anti-Trafficking Legislation 2010
HUMAN TRAFFICKING PROJECT
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Anti-Trafficking Legislation 2010
As many state legislative sessions come to a close, it is useful to take stock of anti-trafficking legislation that has passed this year. A number of states have passed bills that address different aspects of trafficking or that take creative approaches to combating trafficking.
Alabama and Vermont both passed laws making trafficking in persons a state crime for the first time. While this is exciting progress, several states still do not have laws criminalizing trafficking, such as West Virginia and South Dakota.
Other states that already had anti-trafficking legislation moved forward on efforts to increase penalties for traffickers. Maryland legislation that passed this session will increase penalties for traffickers, and create penalties for people that knowingly benefit from trafficking.
Beyond criminal provisions, some states passed legislation that will help people report potential cases and help victims connect with services. Maryland and Oregon both passed bills that will mandate or encourage certain establishments to post the human trafficking hotline number for the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. In Maryland, hotels that have been the location of arrests for prostitution, solicitation of a minor, and/or human trafficking will have to post the number; in Oregon, establishments that sell alcohol will be provided with free materials with the hotline number. Washington state also passed legislation that will allow for the hotline number to be posted in rest stops in the state.
Following New York's example, Connecticut and Washington also have become leaders in addressing commercial sexual exploitation of children/sex trafficking of minors through so-called Safe Harbor Legislation. Such laws aim to divert minor victims of sex trafficking, who in the past may have been arrested for prostitution and treated like criminals, from the criminal justice system. Instead, minors will be directed towards service for trafficking victims/survivors. Other states, such as Illinois, are considering similar legislation.
While this session has seen the passage of a number of important pieces of anti-trafficking legislation, much remains to be done, and constituents play a vital role in pushing legislators to take action. Please encourage your representatives to address trafficking in your state.
Posted by JenniferKK at 7:03 PM
Labels: Anti-human trafficking effort, CSEC, Government Action, Legal Issues, Legislation, United States
The Human Trafficking Project: Anti-Trafficking Legislation 2010
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Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Anti-Trafficking Legislation 2010
As many state legislative sessions come to a close, it is useful to take stock of anti-trafficking legislation that has passed this year. A number of states have passed bills that address different aspects of trafficking or that take creative approaches to combating trafficking.
Alabama and Vermont both passed laws making trafficking in persons a state crime for the first time. While this is exciting progress, several states still do not have laws criminalizing trafficking, such as West Virginia and South Dakota.
Other states that already had anti-trafficking legislation moved forward on efforts to increase penalties for traffickers. Maryland legislation that passed this session will increase penalties for traffickers, and create penalties for people that knowingly benefit from trafficking.
Beyond criminal provisions, some states passed legislation that will help people report potential cases and help victims connect with services. Maryland and Oregon both passed bills that will mandate or encourage certain establishments to post the human trafficking hotline number for the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. In Maryland, hotels that have been the location of arrests for prostitution, solicitation of a minor, and/or human trafficking will have to post the number; in Oregon, establishments that sell alcohol will be provided with free materials with the hotline number. Washington state also passed legislation that will allow for the hotline number to be posted in rest stops in the state.
Following New York's example, Connecticut and Washington also have become leaders in addressing commercial sexual exploitation of children/sex trafficking of minors through so-called Safe Harbor Legislation. Such laws aim to divert minor victims of sex trafficking, who in the past may have been arrested for prostitution and treated like criminals, from the criminal justice system. Instead, minors will be directed towards service for trafficking victims/survivors. Other states, such as Illinois, are considering similar legislation.
While this session has seen the passage of a number of important pieces of anti-trafficking legislation, much remains to be done, and constituents play a vital role in pushing legislators to take action. Please encourage your representatives to address trafficking in your state.
Posted by JenniferKK at 7:03 PM
Labels: Anti-human trafficking effort, CSEC, Government Action, Legal Issues, Legislation, United States
The Human Trafficking Project: Anti-Trafficking Legislation 2010
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