In 2008 the New York State Legislature passed the Safe Harbor for Exploited Children Act, a critical law in the fight against child sex trafficking. The law has numerous provisions, but the primary function of the law is to prevent commercially sexually exploited children from being charged with prostitution. The legal basis is that a ...
The Trafficking Victims Protection and Justice Act (TVPJA) has been blocked in the New York State Legislature for the second year in a row by lawmakers to further their political agenda. The TVPJA would strengthen law enforcement’s ability to investigate suspected traffickers, provide protection against criminal prosecution for trafficking victims, and increase the penalties for ...
In 2006, police in Merseyside, England declared that crimes against prostituted persons were categorized as hate crimes. (Jacobs Ms.Magazine 2014) This policy has become known as the “Merseyside Model.” The Merseyside Model focuses on the protection of prostituted persons, as compared to other forms of enforcement against prostitution, which criminalize the victims of prostitution. (Navarro ...
Lauren Hersh, New York Director of Equality Now and head of its Sex Trafficking program, states, “Prostituted persons are not only dehumanized by the act of prostitution but by society treating prostituted persons like second class citizens.” The negative stigma places prostituted persons at a higher risk of violence by abusers who act with impunity. ...
In Florida, children can no longer be prosecuted for prostitution. With the Safe Harbor Act implemented in January, children should be sent to safe houses where they will receive treatments and protection from previous pimps. Though the Safe Harbor Act is a positive measure, there is a need for more safe houses for trafficked children. ...
On June 29th, 2011, Senator Patrick Leahy, cosponsored by Sen. Boxer, Sen. Scott Brown, Sen. Cardin, Sen. Cochran, Sen. Feinstein, Sen. Gillibrand, Sen. Kerry, Sen. Rubio, Sen. Wyden introduced senate bill 1301, known as the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2011, in order to extend the work that the United States has done to ...
This toolbox is to intended to give legislators the framework for properly considering what an individual state needs in order to address the sexual exploitation of children in the United States.
A Legislature's Checklist
Statutes of limitation designate a particular time frame within which a prosecution must be commenced. The inherent policy behind a statute of limitation is to adequately provide a defendant the needed resources, many of which are time sensitive, in order to mount a competent defense. A secondary purpose may be to encourage law enforcement to ...
Criminal procedures, trafficking, prostitution-related criminal laws, and political environments vary widely across the United States, which means enacting effective mitigation laws will require a nuanced approach specifically tailored to each state. Thus while the Renewal Forum puts forward a model text, it is with the realization that different situations will call for variations on this ...
The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) is a federal law intended to improve America’s response to crimes targeting women, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. VAWA was first enacted in 1994 and was reauthorized in 2000 and 2005. It is currently up for reauthorization again.
Renewal Forum Position on VAWA Reauthorization 2012
