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Susan B. Carbon, Director, Office on Violence Against Women

ASU Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law: Confronting Human TraffickingTempe, Arizona

March 11, 2011

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“The United States was founded on the principle that all people are born with an unalienable right to freedom . . . Yet even today, the darkness and inhumanity of enslavement exists . . . Fighting modern slavery and human trafficking is a shared responsibility . . . Together we can and must end this most serious, ongoing criminal civil rights violation.”

--Proclamation of President Barack Obama, January 2010

“There is no more basic human right than freedom from slavery . . . Yet, in its modern form of trafficking, this cruel practice persists on an enormous and alarming scale . . . [C]ombating the entrapment, abuse, and exploitation of trafficking victims is one of this Justice Department’s highest priorities.”

--Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr., National Conference on Human Trafficking, May 2010

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Background

Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) first passed in 2000, reauthorized in 2003, 2005, and 2008. The TVPA:• expanded the U.S. Government’s efforts to protect victims of trafficking

by expanding services and benefits for victims; • increased U.S. Government’s efforts to prosecute trafficking offenses;• bolstered the U.S. Government’s efforts to prevent future trafficking

crimes by providing for assistance to foreign countries in drafting anti-trafficking laws and developing enforcement capacity;

• requires the Attorney General to submit an annual report on the federal government’s efforts to combat trafficking.http://www.justice.gov/ag/annualreports/tr2009/agreporthumantrafficking2009.pdf

U.S. became a signatory to the Palermo “Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons” to the United Nations Convention against International Organized Crime on Dec. 13, 2000.

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19982000

20022004

20062008

20100

102030405060

Federal Prosecutions

Federal Prosecutions

Human Trafficking Cases Charged by Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, by Fiscal Year.

Some of these cases represent dozens or even hundreds of victims rescued and countless trafficking crimes prevented.

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HHS, DOJ, DHS, DOL, and DOS all play a role in providing services and benefits to trafficking victims.

DOJ efforts to serve victims are largely led by the Office of Justice Programs (OJP).

• Supports non-governmental victim service providers to meet the needs of trafficking victims and has created a Training and Technical Assistance Center provide support through the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)

• Administers the Anti-Trafficking Task Force Initiative through the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)

• Organizes the National Conference on Human Trafficking

• Funds studies and analyzes data to enhance our understanding of trafficking though the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) and the National Institute for Justice (NIJ)

DOJ Efforts to Protect Victims

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OVC Services for Victims of Human Trafficking Program

Currently comprised of 43 grantees, broken down as follows:• 34 grantees specifically serving foreign national victims• 5 grantees serving domestic minor victims (U.S. citizens and Law

Permanent Residents under the age of 18)• 3 grantees providing services to all victims (adult and minor

foreign national and domestic victims) • 1 grantee developing training and technical assistance support for

youth-serving organizations

Comprehensive service model (case management, medical, dental, mental health, shelter, and sustenance)

Coordination and collaboration (BJA Anti-Trafficking Task Forces, U.S. Attorney, ICE)

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OVC Comprehensive Services Model

Culturally competent services provided for male and female victims of sex and/or labor trafficking

“Wrap around services” that meet victims where they are and support them in making informed decisions about the support they need to work through the impact of the crime • Domestic minor victim living in foster care, group home,

detention facility, or with family• Adult victim living independently, in shelter, or an inpatient

substance abuse treatment center

Support and advocacy during interactions with law enforcement

Emergency and ongoing assistance

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Comprehensive Services

Intake and eligibility assessment Intensive case management

Shelter/housing and sustenance Medical care

Dental care Mental health

Legal immigration services Interpretation/translation services

Literacy education and job training Victim advocacy

24-hour response to client emergencies Transportation

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BJA began the Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force Initiative in 2004.

There are currently 40 active BJA funded task forces. Grants are provided to local law enforcement authorities.

All BJA task forces are multi-disciplinary, collaborative efforts among law enforcement at all levels, victim services agencies, and U. S. Attorneys Offices.

BJA Human Trafficking Task Force Efforts

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Multnomah County

Chicago

Seattle

Colorado District of Columbia

Milwaukee

Indianapolis

Harris County –Original and Enhanced Model

St. Paul

Anchorage

Hawaii Austin

Boston

Collier CountyLee County

Homestead

Suffolk County, NY

Nassau County, NY

OaklandSan Jose

Phoenix

Connecticut

New York CityNew Jersey

Los Angeles

San Diego

Erie County

Bexar County

Fort Worth

Salt Lake City

Clearwater

Dallas

Northern Marianas (Saipan)

Louisiana

Orange County

Pitt County

Georgia

Nashville

Miami-Dade

Cook County

Anaheim

BJA Human Trafficking Task Forces

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BJS Human Trafficking Reporting System (HTRS)

Designed to increase our understanding of human trafficking in the U.S. by creating a sustainable data collection and reporting system that will track information from state and local law enforcement agencies about people involved in human trafficking. Data collected on a monthly basis includes: number of investigations, arrests, prosecutions and

incarcerations of human trafficking offenders, number of victims identified by agencies participating in human

trafficking task forces http://www.humantrafficking.neu.edu

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• It is estimated that as many as 80% of trafficking victims are women and girls;

• Many traditional domestic violence and sexual assault services providers are seeing trafficking victims seeking assistance from their programs;

• Victims of trafficking are often subject to the same kinds of abuse as are battered women and children:

– Restriction on freedom of movement, isolation, financial control, threats, intimidation, physical and sexual violence, and fostering of drug and alcohol dependencies due to their situations.

• Victims of trafficking may have some of the same needs as domestic or sexual violence victims, but they will also have unique needs that require a specialized response.

OVW Activities Intersection with Violence Against Women

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• Partnered with the Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF) to develop a multidisciplinary trafficking manual “Collaborating to Help Trafficking Survivors: Emerging Issues and Practice Pointers,” which provides information on the dynamics of trafficking and its impact on victims and is aimed at domestic violence and sexual assault advocates.

• Collaborated with the FVPF in the development of a training curriculum “Building Collaboration to Address Trafficking in Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Cases.” Trainings were hosted in Alaska (2007), the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands (2008), Hawaii (2008), and San Francisco (2009).

• Funded technical assistance projects aimed at providing prosecutors, law enforcement, and victim services providers with information about the intersection of trafficking and other crimes of violence against women.

• Partnered with OVC to host a roundtable on trafficking of American Indian and Alaska Native women.

OVW Activities OVW Activities

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OVC recently released an Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force Strategy and Operations e-Guide available at https://www.ovcttac.gov/taskforceguide/

OVC will be hosting Regional Training Forums (RTF) around the country:• Northeastern RTF on March 23-24, 2011, in Hartford, CT• Midwestern RTF on June 29-30, 2011, in Chicago, IL

The report from the May 2010 National Conference on Human Trafficking will be released soon and planning is underway for the 2012 National Conference .

BJA/OVC will be releasing a solicitation very soon to fund law enforcement and victim service organizations to focus on foreign and domestic victims of sex and labor trafficking. Check www.grants.gov.

Recent Developments/Upcoming Opportunities