HT Current Laws

CURRENT LAWS HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Slatedor the November 2012 ballot, Proposition 35 is an initiative that will fight back against human trafficking and the sexual exploitation of women and children.

“California law provides very limited options for prosecuting demand and victims of child sex trafficking or commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) offenses are provided with little protection under the law as victims.” – California Report Card, Protected Innocence Initiative, Shared Hope Int’l and American Center for Law & Justice, December 2011.

What are the current anti-trafficking laws?Federal law
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” - U.S. Constitution Amendment XIII – Slavery Abolished (1865)

The U.S. Congress passed the “Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000″ (TVPA). Since TVPA applies only to federal cases tried in federal courts, each state is responsible to enact its own legislation to handle cases within the state.

California state law
In 2005, California enacted the AB 22 California Trafficking Victims Protection Act (CTVPA), which established human trafficking for forced labor or services as a felony crime punishable by a sentence of 3, 4 or 5 years in state prison and a sentence of 4, 6 or 8 years for trafficking of a minor. Incredibly, there is no stated penalty for sex trafficking of a minor without force.

The CTVPA was written when domestic human trafficking was viewed as a crime impacting mainly foreign nationals brought into this country. It overlooked thousands of American minors and adults who were also exploited. The CTVPA needs to be updated to reflect the trafficking of Americans and foreign nationals alike.
How does California state law compare to federal law?

Under federal law, a convicted sex trafficker receives a sentence of 15 years to life, whereas under California law the same crime receives a sentence ranging from 3 – 8 years. In California, the burden of proof for sex trafficking of minors is the same as for adults, which is inconsistent with federal legislation.

Why change the law?

Human trafficking flourishes where the law is weak

International Justice Mission, an international human rights organization, in collaboration with the Gates Foundation conducted a four-year study in Cebu, Philippines. The study found a 79% reduction in minor sex trafficking "when anti-trafficking laws are enforced by well-trained and equipped police and courts."