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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
Time: 8:45 pm
Time: 8:45 pm
Results for juvenile sex trafficking
4 results foundAuthor: Shared Hope International Title: JuST Response State System Mapping Report. A Review of Current Statutes, Systems, and Services Responses to Juvenile Sex Trafficking Summary: While there is growing recognition at the federal, state and local levels that youth caught in the commercial sex industry are victims1 of exploitation rather than willing participants in criminal activity, in the 15 years since the Trafficking Victims Protection Action (TVPA) of 2000 was enacted, the majority of state prostitution laws have remained at odds with the federal definition of a juvenile sex trafficking victim. Only recently have state agencies that regularly interact with juvenile sex trafficking victims begun to screen the youth they serve for possible commercial sexual exploitation, and even when victims are screened, staff may lack the training to accurately identify trafficking. Yet another barrier arises when victims are identified but appropriate services are not available, leaving overburdened state agencies with an impossible task of connecting a victim to services that do not exist, or the multiple individuals and agencies working with this population are left to develop protocols in silos, resulting in victims touching multiple systems with no coordinated response. These types of barriers and challenges have both negatively and positively impacted the discussion of how states should respond to juvenile sex trafficking victims. While increased understanding of the impact of trauma on juvenile victims has generated pressure to develop solutions, there is a lack of clear agreement on best practices in responding to this population, leaving states without clear guidance on how to develop a system that avoids re-traumatization while addressing the unique needs of individual victims. This lack of guidance may prompt states to avoid developing a response until best practices are identified; however, a wait-and-see approach leaves the urgent and extensive needs of this victim population unaddressed. Enacting laws intended to protect victims without a deep understanding of the implementation challenges risks undermining the purpose of those laws, or risks establishing laws that are never put into practice. On the other hand, if states allow the complexity of the issue to deter action, vulnerable youth will continue to face the trauma of exploitation and punishment through the delinquency process instead of having access to critically needed services. This tension between the complexity of this issue and the critical need for solutions has led approximately half of the states in the country to make efforts to enact laws that change their response to victims, while other states have implemented non-statutory protocols in response. The unique policy and resource landscape in each state also contributes to the great diversity in how states are responding to juvenile sex trafficking victims. Within that diversity, however, trends are emerging and the nascent development of protective responses across the country provides a unique opportunity for creativity and collaborative learning, from the local jurisdictional level to the national level. Some states have begun the process of reviewing their laws, agency protocols and service options in a collaborative manner that helps create streamlined coordinated responses to identify exploited youth and connect them to the most appropriate services that avoid re-traumatization and, through ongoing assessment and support, promote their individualized long term success. This type of response - what Shared Hope has termed a JuST (Juvenile Sex Trafficking) Response - recognizes that achieving a comprehensive protective system response in any state is a complex and long-term process, taking into account the individual policy and services landscape in each state or jurisdiction. This report discusses how several states are shaping effective responses that align with their existing policies. Ideally these examples will offer a learning experience and inspire policy makers, advocates and service providers across the nation to creativity and action. Details: Vancouver, WA: Shared Hope International, 2015. 99p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 10, 2016 at: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/JuST-Response-Mapping-Report-Final-web.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/JuST-Response-Mapping-Report-Final-web.pdf Shelf Number: 0 Keywords: Child ProstitutionChild Sexual ExploitationChild TraffickingHuman TraffickingJuvenile Sex TraffickingSex Trafficking |
Author: Shared Hope International Title: Demanding Justice Arizona. A Field Assessment of Demand Deterrence and Enforcement and Justice for Victims Summary: Experts estimate that the crime of juvenile sex trafficking impacts thousands of youth in America each year, yet many cases remain unidentified or unreported. The commercial sex industry conforms to the basic economic principle of supply and demand - demand for sex acts with children drives traffickers to supply victims for profit. In order to effectively reduce the prevalence of child sex trafficking, the element that makes it a profitable venture for traffickers - demand - must be aggressively deterred. In 2014, Shared Hope International conducted a research project on the subject of demand for sex with minors. The study consisted of a desk review followed by quantitative research in four geographic areas, including Maricopa County in Arizona, of instances where buyers1 were identified. Using police and court records, this targeted research tracked the cases of identified buyers from arrest to prosecution and sentencing. This Field Assessment is a qualitative aspect of the project focused specifically on Arizona. It was designed to gather perspectives from a broad variety of stakeholders to assess the current attitudes, knowledge and practice toward demand deterrence, enforcement of anti-demand laws and the many aspects of justice for juvenile sex trafficking victims. A total of 78 individuals from 44 organizations participated in the research through interviews and three focus group discussions convened by Shared Hope with survivors of sex trafficking and law enforcement agents. Participants represented five stakeholder populations: non-governmental organizations and community service providers; law enforcement entities; prosecutorial entities; government entities and survivors. Concerted efforts to address child sex trafficking, and specifically demand for child victims, have been in effect for years in Arizona, making it a prime destination to conduct this Field Assessment. The research is intended to illuminate successful practices and key barriers to assist Arizona professionals in strengthening the local response to trafficking and to inform national efforts. Details: Vancouver, WA: Shared Hope International, 2015. 62p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 10, 2016 at: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/DJP_Arizona-Field-Assessment_optimized.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/DJP_Arizona-Field-Assessment_optimized.pdf Shelf Number: 137825 Keywords: Child ProstitutionChild Sexual Exploitation Child Trafficking Human Trafficking Juvenile Sex Trafficking Sex Trafficking |
Author: Shared Hope International Title: Non-Criminalization of Juvenile Sex Trafficking Victims Summary: Fifteen years after the Trafficking Victims Protection Act set the benchmark for identifying commercially sexually exploited minors as victims of sex trafficking, the vast majority of state prostitution laws continue to criminalize, penalize and stigmatize juvenile sex trafficking victims as offenders under prostitution laws. Consequently, punishing commercially sexually exploited4 minors creates social and legal contradictions that undermine the fight against juvenile sex trafficking - further harming victims and hindering a needed shift in cultural attitudes. Resolving the conflicts created by criminalizing juvenile sex trafficking victims is not merely a matter of legal theory but an imminent concern for juvenile sex trafficking victims who daily endure trauma caused by their exploitation. In developing protective responses and avenues to connect youth to services rather than punishment, determining how to eliminate the criminalization of juveniles for conduct that is inherently non-criminal remains a fundamental, indispensable element of this effort. Details: Vancouver, WA: Shared Hope International, 2016. 6p. Source: Internet Resource: JUST Response Policy Paper: Accessed April 14, 2016 at: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/JUSTRESPONSE-POLICY-PAPER-NON-CRIMINALIZATION-OF-JUVENILE-SEX-TRAFFICKING-VICTIMS.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/JUSTRESPONSE-POLICY-PAPER-NON-CRIMINALIZATION-OF-JUVENILE-SEX-TRAFFICKING-VICTIMS.pdf Shelf Number: 138674 Keywords: Child ProstitutionChild Sexual ExploitationJuvenile Sex Trafficking |
Author: Shared Hope International Title: Justice for Juveniles: Exploring Non-Criminal Response Mechanisms for Child Sex Trafficking Summary: The Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) clearly defines anyone under the age of 18 induced to perform a commercial sex act as a victim of human trafficking. Since its passage in 2000, 14 states and the District of Columbia have aligned with federal policy by ensuring that their prostitution laws criminalizing the sale of sex do not apply to minors. In states that still have the ability to charge children for the crime of selling sex under their prostitution statutes or for other crimes committed while being trafficked, some local jurisdictions have adopted policies prohibiting application of these laws when a minor is the subject. The Uniform Act on the Prevention of and Remedies for Human Trafficking (Uniform Act), which was approved for adoption by the states by the Uniform Law Commission in 2013, also eliminates criminal liability for minors for prostitution and related offenses. This shift in policy, and in some locations, practice, has led to a widely accepted understanding that commercially sexually exploited children are victims, not perpetrators, of prostitution and trafficking related crimes. This in turn has created a shift in child serving agency responses to identified victims - from directing exploited youth into delinquency proceedings to directing them into trauma-informed services. However, shifting toward a non-criminal response to child sex trafficking victims remains fraught with complicated questions regarding how to protect exploited youth and connect them to services. Because of the challenges associated with providing services, the field is rushing to find solutions that protect, empower and support youth who have been trafficked. This field guidance will explore implementation of non-criminalization policies and statutes, looking to identify promising trends and avenues to overcome current system challenges and safety concerns. We are grateful to the JuST Response Council members who contributed to this paper and hope it will serve as a resource to those in the field seeking a more robust system that will help juvenile sex trafficking victims avoid the re-traumatization of a misguided system response and connect them instead to a continuum of care that will empower them to achieve a life free from exploitation. Details: Vancouver, WA: Shared Hope International, 2016. 19p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 14, 2016 at: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/NonCriminal-Response-Mechanisms-Field-Guidance.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://sharedhope.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/NonCriminal-Response-Mechanisms-Field-Guidance.pdf Shelf Number: 138675 Keywords: Child ProstitutionChild Sex TraffickingChild Sexual ExploitationJuvenile Sex Trafficking |