II. Assessment of U.S. Government Activities in FY 2008
III. FY 2009 Recommendations
IV. Benefits and Services Given Domestically to Trafficking Victims
A. Department of Health and Human Services
B. Department of Justice
C. Department of Homeland Security
D. Department of Labor
E. Department of State
F. Department of Education
G. Legal Services Corporation
V. Immigration Benefits for Trafficking Victims
A. Continued Presence
B. T-Visa Non-Immigrant Status
VI. Investigations, Prosecutions and Sentences
A. Investigations
B. Prosecutions
C. Sentences
D. Estimating the Number of Victims
VII. International Funding to Combat Trafficking
VIII. Training and Outreach
A. Domestic Law Enforcement Training
B. International Outreach and Law Enforcement Training
C. Outreach to Non-governmental Organizations and the Media
D. Department of State’s Outreach to Foreign Governments
E. Department of State’s Multilateral Affairs
X. President’s Interagency Trafficking Task Force & Senior Policy Operating Group
XI. Conclusion
Appendices:
Appendix A - BJA/OVC Human Trafficking Task Forces
Appendix B - Examples of Criminal Cases
Appendix C - HHS Victim Services Network
Appendix D - Funds Obligated in FY 2008 for Anti-Trafficking in Persons Projects
Sadly, there are thousands who are trapped in various forms of enslavement, here in our country….It is a debasement of our common humanity. ~ President Barack Obama
Trafficking in persons (TIP), or human trafficking, is a widespread form of modern-day slavery. Traffickers often prey on individuals who are poor, frequently unemployed, or underemployed, and who may lack access to social safety nets. Victims are often lured by traffickers with false promises of good jobs and better lives, and then forced to work under brutal and inhumane conditions. Due to the lengths to which perpetrators go to keep their crimes hidden, it is difficult to accurately estimate the extent of victimization. Nonetheless, the United States has led the world in the fight against this terrible crime both at home and overseas.
The centerpiece of U.S. Government efforts to eliminate human trafficking is the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA), Pub. L. 106-386. The TVPA defines trafficking in persons as “sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age” or “the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.” 22 U.S.C. § 7102(8). This definition applies to both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals.
The TVPA enhanced three aspects of federal government activity to combat TIP: protection, prosecution, and prevention. The TVPA, which was designed to address the needs of foreign victims of trafficking, provided for a range of new protections and assistance for victims of trafficking; it expanded the crimes and enhanced the penalties available to federal investigators and prosecutors pursuing traffickers; and it expanded the U.S. Government’s international activities to prevent victims from being trafficked.
Specifically, the TVPA:
The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003 (TVPRA 2003), Pub. L. 108-193, reauthorized the TVPA and added responsibilities to the U.S. Government’s anti-trafficking portfolio. In particular, the TVPRA 2003 mandated new information campaigns to combat sex tourism, added refinements to the federal criminal law provisions, and created a new civil action that allows trafficking victims to sue their traffickers in federal district court. In addition, the TVPRA 2003 required an annual report from the Attorney General to Congress. This report was mandated to provide information on the following U.S. Government activities to combat TIP:
The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (TVPRA 2005), Pub. L. 109-164, reauthorized the TVPA and authorized new anti-trafficking resources, including (1) grant programs to assist state and local law enforcement efforts in combating TIP and to expand victim assistance programs to U.S. citizens or resident aliens subjected to trafficking; (2) pilot programs to establish residential rehabilitative facilities for trafficking victims, including one program aimed at juveniles; and (3) extraterritorial jurisdiction over trafficking offenses committed overseas by persons employed by or accompanying the federal government. The TVPRA 2005 also expanded the reporting requirements of the TVPRA 2003, providing for the inclusion of information in the Attorney General’s annual report to Congress on the amount, recipient, and purpose of each grant under sections 202 and 204 of the TVPRA 2005.
The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRA 2008), Pub. L. 110-457, reauthorized the TVPA for four years and authorized new measures to combat human trafficking, including efforts to increase effectiveness of anti-TIP programs, providing interim assistance for potential child victims of trafficking, and enhancing the ability criminally punish traffickers.
For example, the TVPRA 2008:
This report, the sixth submitted to Congress since 2004, details U.S. Government activities to combat TIP during Fiscal Year 2008 (FY 2008).[1] In addition to reporting this information, the report includes an assessment of U.S. government activities based on improvements since the last annual report and recommendations for further improvement.
II. Assessment of U.S. Government Activities in FY 2008
In the May 2008 annual report, the U.S. Government made eight recommendations for improving its efforts to combat TIP:
Recommendation #1: Create a pathway to citizenship for qualified T visa holders through publication of a regulation for the adjustment of status for T visa holders.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #2: Ensure that U.S. citizen victims are as vigorously identified, protected, and assisted as foreign nationals, including sufficient case management.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #3: Increase inter-agency efforts to combat trafficking for labor exploitation, in addition to sex trafficking.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #4: Ensure that law enforcement agents and service grantees, subcontractors, and partners collaborate expeditiously to identify victims, provide care, and secure immigration relief.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #5: Develop educational materials on U.S. TIP for dissemination through education and community based entities.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #6: Continue to expand inter-agency coordination of TIP efforts including international funding.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #7: Ensure child victims of severe forms of human trafficking (both foreign and U.S. citizen) are provided access to services and benefits regardless of their ability to assist law enforcement.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
Recommendation #8: Expand media campaigns.
FY 2008 Measures to Implement this Recommendation:
To effectively rescue victims and alleviate the problem of human trafficking both in the United States and abroad, the U.S. Government recognizes that it should take the following additional actions:
IV. Benefits and Services Given Domestically to Trafficking Victims
The success of U.S. Government efforts to combat TIP domestically hinges on pursuing a victim-centered approach. All U.S. Government agencies are committed to providing victims with access to the services and benefits provided by the TVPA. Because the ability of aliens to access government benefits had been curtailed in 1996, the TVPA created a mechanism for allowing certain non-citizen trafficking victims access to benefits and services from which they might otherwise be barred. The funds provided under the TVPA by the federal government for direct services to victims are dedicated to assist non-U.S. citizen victims and may not currently be used to assist U.S. citizen victims. While U.S. citizen victims are statutorily eligible for other federal crime victim benefits, there is currently little data to assess the extent to which U.S. citizen trafficking victims are accessing the benefits for which they are eligible. Accordingly, the TVPRA 2008 has directed studies to determine the existence and extent of any “service gap” between foreign nationals and U.S. victims. Under sections 107(b)(1) and (b)(2) of the TVPA, various federal agencies must extend some existing benefits to trafficking victims and are authorized to provide grants to effectuate such assistance. This section reviews the activities of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of State (DOS), the Department of Education, the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) to implement sections 107(b) and 107(c) of the TVPA.
A. Department of Health and Human Services
The TVPA designates the HHS as the agency responsible for raising public awareness in the U.S. regarding human trafficking, and helping trafficking victims become eligible to receive benefits and services so they can rebuild their lives safely in the U.S.
The HHS Anti-Trafficking in Persons division (ATIP) in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), performs the following activities under the TVPA: (1) issue certifications to non-U.S. citizen, non-Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) adult victims of human trafficking who are willing to assist in the investigation and prosecution of a trafficking crime and received Continued Presence or a T Visa or made a bona fide application for a T Visa that was not denied; (2) issue Eligibility Letters to non-U.S. citizen, non-LPR minor victims of human trafficking; (3) provide services and case management to foreign victims of trafficking through a network of service providers across the U.S.; (4) administer a national public awareness campaign designed to rescue and restore victims of trafficking to safety; (5) build capacity at the regional level through the award of discretionary grants and contracts throughout the country and the establishment of regional anti-trafficking coalitions; and (6) build capacity nationally through training and technical assistance and operation of the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC).
In FY 2008, HHS’s new Rescue and Restore Victims of Human Trafficking Regional program continued to promote greater local responsibility for anti-trafficking efforts. The Rescue and Restore Regional program employed an intermediary model to conduct outreach, identification, and service activities for victims of human trafficking. The Rescue and Restore Regional program reinforces and is strengthened by other ATIP program activity, including Street Outreach grants, the Per Capita Services contract, the public awareness campaign, the NHTRC, and the voluntary Rescue and Restore coalitions.
1. Certifications and Letters of Eligibility
Section 107(b)(1)(E) of the TVPA states that the Secretary of HHS, after consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security, may certify an adult victim of a severe form of trafficking who: (1) is willing to assist in every reasonable way in the investigation and prosecution of severe forms of TIP; and (2) has made a bona fide application for a visa under Section 101(a)(15)(T) of the Immigration and Nationality Act that has not been denied; or is a person whose continued presence in the U.S. the Attorney General is ensuring in order to effectuate prosecution of traffickers in persons. The TVPA authorizes the “certification” of adult victims to receive certain federally funded benefits and services, such as cash assistance, medical care, food stamps, and housing. Though not required to receive certification, minors who are found to be victims receive “Eligibility Letters” from HHS to obtain the same types of benefits and services.
On March 28, 2001, the Secretary of HHS delegated the authority to conduct human trafficking victim certification activities to the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, who in turn re-delegated this authority on April 18, 2002, to the Director of ORR. In FY 2008, ORR issued 286 certification letters to adults and 31 Eligibility Letters to children, for a total of 317 letters issued.
Of the victims certified in FY 2008, 45 percent were male, compared to 30 percent in FY 2007 and six percent in FY 2006. Overall, 76 percent of all victims certified in FY 2008 were victims of labor trafficking, 17 percent were exploited through sex trafficking, and five percent were victims of both labor and sex trafficking.
In comparison, 77 percent of minor victims who received Eligibility Letters in FY 2008 were female. Fifty-five percent of minor victims who received Eligibility Letters were victims of sex trafficking, 26 percent were victims of labor trafficking, and six percent were victims of both labor and sex trafficking.
| Fiscal Year | Minors | Adults | Total |
| 2001 | 4 | 194 | 198 |
| 2002 | 18 | 81 | 99 |
| 2003 | 6 | 145 | 151 |
| 2004 | 16 | 147 | 163 |
| 2005 | 34 | 197 | 231 |
| 2006 | 20 | 214 | 234 |
| 2007 | 33 | 270 | 303 |
| 2008 | 31 | 286 | 317 |
| TOTAL | 162 | 1534 | 1696 |
In FY 2008, letters were provided to victims or their representatives in 28 States, the District of Columbia, and Saipan. Certified victims came from 40 countries in the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Europe. The following list depicts the top seven countries of origin, the number of certified victims from those countries, and the percentage of the total from each:
| Country of Origin | # of victims | % of total |
| Mexico | 66 | 23 |
| Thailand | 56 | 20 |
| Philippines | 46 | 16 |
| Korea[2] | 12 | 4 |
| China | 8 | 3 |
| India | 8 | 3 |
| Togo | 8 | 3 |
Certification should not be equated with victim identification. HHS grantees and contractors work with trafficking victims at every stage of the victim identification process, from initial contact with suspected victims who might not be ready to work with law enforcement or fully relate their experiences to service providers, to helping certified victims rebuild their lives with the help of the federally funded benefits. Language barriers, safety concerns, and trauma present significant barriers to victims coming forward. Once they do, these individuals rely on highly trained social service providers, attorneys, and law enforcement agents to help them navigate through the certification process. Still other foreign-born victims may elect to return to their country of origin without seeking any benefits in the U.S. HHS provides victims identified by its non-governmental partners with an array of services that will assist them in the pursuit of certification, should they choose to cooperate with law enforcement and receive the full benefits available to them under the TVPA.
2. Per Capita Services and Case Management
ORR has used both contracts and grants to create a network of service organizations available to assist victims of a severe form of TIP. In FY 2008, ORR continued a contract with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to provide comprehensive support services to foreign victims of human trafficking. Through this contract, ORR has streamlined support services to help victims gain access to shelter, job training, and health care, and provided a mechanism for victims to receive vital emergency services prior to receiving certification. USCCB provides case management services to pre-certified and certified victims on a per capita reimbursement basis. At the end of FY 2008, USCCB had 80 subcontracts with service providers in 93 locations to provide services to trafficking victims in their communities.
During FY 2008, a total of 644 clients received case management services through the Per Capita Services and Case Management contract. This number included 215 pre-certified victims, 270 certified victims, and 159 family derivatives (spouse, children, or other dependents) who received services. Over the course of FY 2008, 16 clients transferred from pre-certified to certified status.
3. Minor Foreign Trafficking Victims
a. HHS Service Provision
Unaccompanied children (those without a parent or legal guardian in the U.S. who is willing or able to provide care) who are victims of trafficking may be referred to HHS’s Unaccompanied Refugee Minors (URM) program. The URM program establishes legal responsibility for these children, under State law, to ensure that unaccompanied children receive the full range of assistance, care, and services available to all foster children in the State; a legal authority is designated to act in place of the child’s unavailable parent(s). Safe reunification of children with their parents or other appropriate adult relatives is encouraged. The program offers a variety of care levels to meet children’s individual needs: licensed foster care homes, therapeutic group homes, residential treatment centers, and independent living programs. Additional services provided include food, clothing, and medical care; independent living skills training; educational support; English language training; career/college counseling and training; mental health services; assistance adjusting immigration status; cultural activities; recreational opportunities; support for social integration; and cultural and religious preservation.
HHS’s Division of Unaccompanied Children’s Services (DUCS) program funds a network of shelters, group homes, and foster care programs to provide services for unaccompanied alien children who are in immigration proceedings. DUCS care provider facilities are State-licensed and must meet HHS requirements to ensure a high level of quality of care. The facilities, which operate under cooperative agreements and contracts, provide children with classroom education, health care, socialization/recreation, vocational training, mental health services, family reunification, access to legal services, and case management. Children referred to the DUCS program are screened for potential trafficking concerns and, where credible information is found, assessed for eligibility for benefits and referred to federal law enforcement for possible investigation of the case. Identified trafficking victims who have no family reunification options in the U.S., and are in need of safe, long-term placement, may be referred to the URM program.
b. Office of Refugee Resettlement Associate Director for Child Welfare
In FY 2008, ORR brought on an Associate Director for Child Welfare to oversee and promote child welfare practices in ORR’s child-serving programs, including efforts by ATIP to increase identification of child trafficking victims and improve capacity to care for unaccompanied children. The Associate Director for Child Welfare coordinates with the HHS Children’s Bureau on efforts to better integrate State and county child protective service systems in the response to both foreign national and U.S. citizen child trafficking victims.
c. Child Protection Specialist
Also in FY 2008, the DUCS and ATIP divisions jointly hired a Child Protection Specialist to provide specialized victim identification and victim care training to DUCS shelter staff, working to increase DUCS’s capacity to conduct thorough, timely victim screening and crisis care. During FY 2008, the Child Protection Specialist conducted eight workshops for DUCS care providers in Los Fresno, Houston, Corpus Christi, and El Paso, Texas; and San Francisco, Fullerton, El Cajon, and San Diego, California. The workshops trained over 300 direct-care staff on (1) the federal definition of human trafficking; (2) overcoming barriers to identifying child victims; (3) accessing benefits and services for victims; and (4) providing specialized care and safety planning for trafficked children. As a result, the number of trafficked children who were identified in DUCS and issued Eligibility Letters more than doubled from the previous fiscal year. Plans for FY 2009 include additional workshops to ensure that 100 percent of DUCS facilities receive this specialized training, as well as ongoing technical assistance regarding screening and case management.
The Child Protection Specialist also plays a key role in facilitating the issuance of all Eligibility Letters, regularly coordinating with service providers, HHS leadership, and federal law enforcement and other stakeholders to obtain crucial information and develop time-sensitive crisis care plans. HHS created a new Fact Sheet for outlining the process of obtaining an Eligibility Letter for a child victim and encouraging the field to contact the ATIP Child Protection Specialist for technical assistance. This enhanced focus on the special needs of child trafficking victims has improved interagency communication on children’s cases and facilitated an increase in the number of child trafficking victims referred to the URM program.
d. Interagency Coordination
During FY 2008, HHS, DHS, and DOJ convened three meetings of an Interagency Coordination Minor Victims Working Group, which is designed to improve interagency policies, procedures, and communication regarding minor victims.
HHS also continues to participate in the Innocence Lost Working Group, chaired by the Innocence Lost National Initiative to coordinate prevention, education, and response to commercial sexual exploitation of children in the U.S.
4. Rescue and Restore Victims of Human Trafficking Coalitions
The Rescue and Restore coalitions consist of dedicated social service providers, local government officials, health care professionals, leaders of faith-based and ethnic organizations, and law enforcement personnel. The goal of the coalitions is to increase the number of trafficking victims who are identified, assisted in leaving the circumstances of their servitude, and connected to qualified service agencies and to the HHS certification process so that they may receive the benefits and services for which they are eligible. Along with identifying and assisting victims, coalition members use the Rescue and Restore campaign messages to educate the general public about human trafficking.
In FY 2008, HHS worked with anti-trafficking Rescue and Restore coalitions in 25 areas: Houston, Texas; Las Vegas, Nevada; New York, New York; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Newark, New Jersey; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Phoenix, Arizona; Portland, Oregon; St. Louis, Missouri; San Francisco, California; Sacramento, California; Louisville, Kentucky; Nashville, Tennessee; Columbus, Ohio; Cincinnati, Ohio; San Diego, Los Angeles, and Orange Counties in California; and statewide in Colorado, Idaho, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Minnesota, and North Carolina.
During FY 2008, HHS’s public awareness contractor sub-awarded nearly $350,000 to support local organizations’ coalition management activities. In addition to facilitating local and regional communication between NGOs, law enforcement, and other anti-trafficking stakeholders, HHS-funded and independent Rescue and Restore coalitions mounted a number of innovative public awareness events.
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5. Building Anti-Trafficking Capacity at the Regional Level
a. Intermediaries
Building capacity to identify and serve victims at the regional level is the heart of the HHS anti-trafficking program. HHS requires the recipients of its funding who are intermediary contractors and regional grantees to sub-award at least 60 percent of these funds to create anti-trafficking networks and bring more advocates and service providers into the Rescue and Restore anti-trafficking movement. In this way, HHS builds infrastructure by providing financial assistance to existing programs of direct outreach and services to populations among which victims of human trafficking could be found in order to support and expand these programs’ capacity to identify, serve, and seek certification for trafficking victims in their communities.
In FY 2008, HHS funded three contracts to “intermediary” organizations to foster connections between the Rescue and Restore national campaign and local awareness-building and service provision. These intermediaries serve as the focal points for regional public awareness campaign activities and the intensification of local victim identification, encouraging a cohesive, collaborative approach in the fight against modern-day slavery. Each Rescue and Restore intermediary oversees and builds the capacity of a local anti-trafficking network.
In FY 2008, intermediaries made contact with at least 568 victims or suspected victims, including 210 foreign citizens, 319 U.S. citizens, and 39 persons whose citizenship could not be determined. Of the 210 foreign citizens with whom intermediaries interacted, over 60 percent (130) were referred to law enforcement for possible case investigations and 20 percent (42) received HHS certification. Intermediaries use a Victim Identification Pipeline to track interactions with vulnerable persons, chronicling the slow-building relationships of trust that often result in certification and, where possible, prosecution of a trafficker.
Examples of the work of the Rescue and Restore intermediaries in FY 2008 include the following:
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b. Rescue and Restore Regional Awardees
HHS’s Rescue and Restore Victims of Human Trafficking Regional program reinforces and is strengthened by many other ATIP program activities, including street outreach and regional coalition building. Like HHS intermediaries, each Rescue and Restore Regional Program award recipient sub-awards 60 percent of the funds it receives under the grant to local organizations whose efforts to identify TIP victims it manages and develops. Rescue and Restore Regional grantees work with victims of any nationality, so the numbers of suspected and confirmed victims they assist include both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals. In FY 2008, Rescue and Restore Regional grantees made contact with nearly 70 victims or suspected victims, including 54 foreign citizens, 12 U.S. citizens, and 3 persons whose citizenship could not be determined. Of the 54 foreign citizens with which Rescue and Restore Regional grantees interacted, 18 were referred to law enforcement for possible case investigations and 12 received Certification.
Examples of the work of HHS’s five FY 2008 Rescue and Restore Regional Program awardees include the following:
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Rescue and Restore Regional Awardees Houston Rescue and Restore Archdiocese of Louisville: Catholic Charities Colorado Legal Services Catholic Social Services Archdiocese of Philadelphia Legal Aid of North Carolina |
c. Street Outreach Grants
In FY 2008, ORR provided continued funding to 18 organizations to conduct street outreach services to help identify victims of trafficking among populations they already serve. The grants support direct, person-to-person contact, information sharing, counseling, and other communication between agents of the grant recipient and members of a specified target population. Grantees include public, private for-profit (although HHS funds may not be paid as profit), and private nonprofit organizations, including community- and faith-based organizations. Some of the vulnerable populations to whom grantees provide outreach are homeless, runaway, and at-risk youth; women and girls exploited through the commercial sex industry; migrant farm workers; people in prostitution; and women forced to work in beauty parlors and nail salons. Grantees were eligible for these grants regardless of whether they had previously participated in anti-trafficking efforts.
Because these organizations are already engaged in outreach to specified vulnerable populations, these grantees are able to capitalize on their existing expertise working with these populations and the accompanying trust that has been built. Grantees are evaluated on their ability to connect identified victims to services, and achieve certification by building strong relationships with law enforcement. Suspected victims were identified through a variety of means, including mobile feeding programs that target immigrant populations, single women’s shelters, known areas of street prostitution, and youth centers. Additionally, street outreach grantees provided training on identifying trafficking victims to local law enforcement agencies, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and health providers.
Like intermediary contractors and Regional Program grantees, Street Outreach grantees use a Victim Identification Pipeline to track interactions with vulnerable persons that chronicles the slow-building relationships of trust that often result in certification and, as possible, prosecution of a trafficker. The numbers of suspected or confirmed victims tracked in the pipeline include both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals.
In FY 2008, Street Outreach grantees made contact with approximately 1660 victims or suspected victims, including 373 foreign citizens, 1209 U.S. citizens, and 78 persons whose citizenship could not be determined. Of the 373 foreign citizens with whom street outreach grantees interacted, approximately 46 percent (170) were referred to law enforcement for possible case investigations and 24 individuals received certification.
Examples of the work of the Street Outreach grantees in FY 2008 include the following:
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Street Outreach Grantees Alternatives for Girls, MI Breaking Free, St. Paul, MN Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Camden, NJ Catholic Charities Community Services, Phoenix, AZ Center for Social Advocacy, San Diego, CA Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking of California Farmworker Legal Services of New York Girls Educational and Mentoring Services, New York City, NY International Rescue Committee, AZ Mosaic Family Services, Dallas, TX Polaris Project, NJ Positive Options, Referrals and Alternatives, IL SAGE Project, San Francisco, CA Salvation Army, IL Southeastern Network of Youth and Family Services of Alabama Southeastern Network of Youth and Family Services of Florida Tapestri, GA Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid |
6. In-Reach Campaign
HHS’s ATIP In-Reach Campaign is an educational public awareness outreach within the HHS community. Formally launched in April 2007, the HHS ATIP In-Reach Campaign aims to:
The Campaign’s work has included quarterly meetings open to HHS staff on issues such as victim identification, street outreach, and victim services. In FY 2008, HHS hosted agency-wide In-Reach meetings focused on topics related to anti-trafficking programming and research. As a part of this series, the Campaign featured Free the Slaves, an international anti-trafficking NGO; Polaris Project, HHS’s NHTRC grantee; Shared Hope International, an NGO addressing child sex trafficking in the U.S. and other countries; and Dr. Jay Silverman, Harvard School of Public Health, who presented his recent research on the connection between sex trafficking and vulnerability to HIV infection.
The ATIP In-Reach Campaign also facilitates leadership and program-level education and training meetings between the HHS ATIP Division and HHS offices serving populations vulnerable to trafficking. Programs ready to move to the next level of strategic involvement have the opportunity to receive targeted assistance from the Polaris Project, HHS’s training and technical assistance grantee.
7. The National Human Trafficking Resource Center
During FY 2008, HHS strategically revamped its hotline to create the NHTRC. Re-launched in the fall of 2007, the Resource Center has emerged as a highly respected 24/7 trafficking victim referral crisis line: (888) 373-7888. The NHTRC is also the premier U.S. Government source for anti-trafficking educational materials, promising practices, and training opportunities. Under the management of the Polaris Project, a leading anti-trafficking NGO that holds HHS’s Training and Technical Assistance program cooperative agreement, the Resource Center’s call volume has increased substantially and remains consistently high—averaging, since December 2007, approximately 400 calls per month regarding trafficking tips, service needs, and training requests. NHTRC also provides 24/7 responses to email tips and inquiries.
a. Incident Reports and Requests for Referrals
From December 2007 through the end of FY 2008, NHTRC received a total of 4147 calls, including 553 tips regarding possible human trafficking incidents, 398 requests for victim care referrals, 949 calls seeking general human trafficking information, and 167 requests for training and technical assistance. Of calls referencing potential trafficking situations, 40 percent referenced trafficking of foreign nationals, while nearly 18 percent referenced trafficking of U.S. citizens or LPRs.
The majority of NHTRC calls originated in Texas, California, Florida, New York, and Illinois. NHTRC conducted 80 percent of calls in English and 10 percent of calls in Spanish. Other callers included those speaking Korean, Ukrainian, Polish, Mandarin, Tagalog, Russian, Cantonese, Armenian, Portuguese, and French, who received translation services via NHTRC interpreters or AT&T Language Line services.
One of NHTRC’s central functions is to facilitate timely referrals to appropriate law enforcement and social services entities. Of the 185 calls that required law enforcement referrals, NHTRC reported callers’ information to DOJ’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, DHS/ICE Investigations Headquarters, the Innocence Lost Task Force, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Of the 412 calls requiring social services referrals, NHTRC connected callers with organizations providing a variety of specifically requested services, including emergency shelter, mental health care, substance abuse treatment, employment services, ESL/language training, and general case management.
NHTRC also responds to email inquiries. From December 2007 through the end of FY 2008, NHTRC received 316 emails providing tips or requesting general information, training and technical assistance, or victim care referrals.
b. Training and Technical Assistance
NHTRC provided over 70 training and technical assistance consultations to more than 200 U.S. and international organizations, educating more than 4,500 public health officials, social service providers, ethnic organizations, foreign government agents, and United Nations representatives. Consultations focused on issues including victim identification, victim care and case management, street outreach strategies, NGO-law enforcement collaboration, and the role of civil society in U.S. federal anti-trafficking initiatives.
B. Department of Justice
1. Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance
The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) in the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) began the Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force Initiative in 2004. There are a total of 41 Human Trafficking Task Forces currently funded through this initiative (see Appendix A). In 2004, BJA made 18 awards to law enforcement agencies to form victim centered human trafficking task forces, followed by an additional 14 awards for a three-year period in 2005 and ten additional awards for a three-year period in 2006. The awards were for a three-year period. The first 18 awards were originally due to expire on November 30, 2007. During 2007, BJA provided supplemental funding to six of these human trafficking task forces: Harris County, Texas; Los Angeles, California; Seattle, Washington; Oakland, California; Collier County, Florida; and Austin, Texas. BJA offered no-cost extensions to the other twelve BJA Task Forces that were formed in 2004. As a result, all of the task forces that were originally funded in 2004 had sufficient funding to continue into 2008.
All 14 of the awards made in 2005 were due to expire on September 30, 2008. During 2008, BJA provided supplemental funding to 11 of these human trafficking task forces: San Jose, California; Washington, DC; Lee County, Florida; Hawaii; Boston, Massachusetts; Saint Paul, Minnesota; New Jersey; Suffolk County, New York; Nassau County, New York; Multnomah County, Oregon; and, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Three task forces declined to accept BJA funding to extend their human trafficking task force efforts: Atlanta, Georgia; Cobb County, Georgia; and El Paso, Texas. These three task forces did not provide any official reason for declining additional funds.
BJA continues to work collaboratively with the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) and the Civil Rights Division to identify and rescue victims of human trafficking. Working collaboratively, BJA and OVC partnered with the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys (EOUSA) and the Civil Rights Division to announce the release of a competitive funding opportunity for up to three new human trafficking task forces. On May 14, 2008, EOUSA contacted all U.S. Attorneys to determine their interest in working with local law enforcement and victim service providers to form a Human Trafficking Task Force. A total of 12 U.S. Attorneys responded with letters identifying law enforcement agencies in their respective regions as well as victim service providers that would partner with the task force. BJA and OVC invited the law enforcement agencies and victim service providers to apply for competitive funding, and, as a result of this outreach, twenty applications (ten law enforcement and ten victim service providers) were received by the application deadline. The twenty applications were jointly peer reviewed. Through this competitive process three applicants, Westminster, California (Orange County); Homestead, Florida; and, Pitt County, North Carolina, were funded to create task forces.
Also in FY 2008, BJA, through its cooperative agreement with the Upper Midwest Community Policing Institute (headquartered in Woodbury, Minnesota), developed a task force immersion learning program that offered Human Trafficking Task Forces the opportunity to work on-site with the most successful task forces, modeling best practices and lessons learned. BJA provided additional funding to three successful task forces—Clearwater, Florida; Harris County, Texas; and Seattle, Washington—to serve as mentor task forces that will deliver the specialized training to their peers. In August 2008, the Seattle Human Trafficking Task Force hosted the Las Vegas, Nevada, task force for the first immersion training session.
In July 2008, DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released the results of an audit performed to (1) assess the effectiveness of OJP’s design and management of TIP grant programs; (2) measure the grantees’ compliance with laws, regulations, guidelines, terms, and conditions in administering grants; and (3) determine the effectiveness of the grant programs in aiding TIP victims. OIG found that OJP’s grant programs needed improvement in (1) identifying and assisting significant numbers of alien TIP victims; (2) ensuring that grant award amounts reflected the anticipated number of victims to be assisted; and (3) ensuring that task forces and service providers reported accurate information on identified and served TIP victims.
In response to these findings as well as issues raised by BJA grantees, OJP worked to develop and implement procedures to ensure that the BJA task forces report accurate information as required by the OJP performance measures. In addition, OJP revised the performance measures based on the findings of the OIG Audit Report. OJP is also implementing a reporting system based on the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ efforts to collect investigation and arrest data with regard to human trafficking. This system requires task forces to report data on a monthly basis and will tie the number of victims identified to the case data collected by BJS and will assist task forces by being a case-management tool.
2. Office for Victims of Crime
OJP’s OVC has administered the Services for Trafficking Victims Discretionary Grant Program since January 2003. The overall goals of this program are to address the effect of the 1996 Welfare Reform Act’s restriction of access to federal benefits, by (1) providing timely, high-quality comprehensive services to non-U.S. citizen, non-LPR status victims of sex and labor trafficking who have not yet been “certified” by HHS; and (2) enhancing interagency collaboration and coordinated responses to victims of severe forms of trafficking. OVC grantees provide, either directly or indirectly through local partnerships, a comprehensive array of culturally and linguistically appropriate services, including case management, interpretation, food, clothing, shelter, legal/immigration assistance, mental health treatment, medical and dental care, transportation and other necessary services. Multi-disciplinary, cross-agency collaboration is necessary to ensure that victims have access to the services they need from the time they are encountered.
As of the end of December 2008, OVC had 36 active grants to victim service organizations working in collaboration with BJA-funded task forces across the U.S. All but one victim service organization, Project REACH, is funded to provide comprehensive services directly to victims. Project REACH, a program of the Justice Resource Institute in Boston, MA, provides rapid response mental health consultations for trafficking victims and training and technical assistance for service providers across the U.S. regarding mental health needs of trafficking victims.
A list of OVC grantees with open grants in FY 2008 is included below:
|
OVC Services to Victims of Human Trafficking Grantees - 2008 Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach. San Francisco, CA Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition, San Diego County, CA Boat People S.O.S., Inc, Washington, DC Breaking Free, St. Paul, MN (grant will be de-obligated in FY09) Catholic Charities Archdiocese of San Antonio, San Antonio, TX Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice, Lee County, FL Catholic Charities of Oregon, Portland, OR Catholic Charities of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, City of Indianapolis / Julian Center, Indianapolis, IN **** Civil Society, St. Paul, MN **** Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking, Los Angeles, CA Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance, Denver, CO Guma’Esperansa-Karidat, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights, Chicago, IL Hope House, Independence, MO International Institute of Boston International Institute of Buffalo International Institute of Connecticut, Stamford, CT International Institute of Metropolitan St. Louis International Rescue Committee, Miami, FL International Rescue Committee, Phoenix, AZ International Rescue Committee, Seattle, WA Justice Resource Institute / Project REACH, Brookline, MA- National scope project Metropolitan Battered Women’s Program, New Orleans, LA Mosaic Family Services, Dallas, TX North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Raleigh, NC Refugee Services of Texas, Austin, TX Safe Horizon, New York, NY Salvation Army Alaska Division, Anchorage, AK Salvation Army Hawaiian and Pacific Island Division, Honolulu, HI Salvation Army Clark County Command, Las Vegas, NV Salvation Army Southern California Division, Los Angeles, CA (for site in Orange Co.) Salvation Army Western Territory, Long Beach, CA Tapestri, Inc., Tucker, GA Tides Center/ Utah Health & Human Rights Project, Salt Lake City, UT **** U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Inc., Mid Atlantic Region **** **** U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Inc., Portland, OR **** World Relief Corporation, Baltimore, MD (for site in Lee County, FL) World Relief Corporation, Baltimore, MD (for Tampa/ Clearwater, FL) YMCA of the Greater Houston Area **** indicates that grant ended in 2008 |
OVC continues to work in partnership with BJA to ensure that wherever there is an Anti-Human Trafficking Law Enforcement Task Force, there is an OVC-funded service provider available to coordinate services on behalf of victims. In FY 2008, OVC awarded a total of $5,489,999 in funding to 21 organizations to provide services in new and existing anti-trafficking task forces regions. As previously noted, in FY 2008, OVC and BJA selected three new law enforcement organizations and three victim service organizations to form three new anti-trafficking task forces. Each of the victim service providers associated with the new task forces received grants up to $460,000 for three years. Within the OVC FY 2008 competitive solicitation, OVC announced the opportunity for victim service providers to apply competitively for up to $230,000 to work collaboratively with existing task forces in the states of Alaska and Colorado.
In FY 2008, OVC and BJA convened a federal working group of key stakeholders that provide the federal response to human trafficking to address the training and technical assistance (T & TA) needs of both agencies’ trafficking grantees. The working group provided input to BJA and OVC regarding the development of collaborative T & TA strategies for the task forces. OVC and BJA decided that the T & TA could best be coordinated under the auspices of the OVC Training and Technical Assistance Center (OVC TTAC). The funding dedicated to the first 12-18 months of this initiative is $1,040,000. As of December 31, 2008, OVC TTAC was working on an implementation plan to support T & TA activities that will be responding to the needs of all task forces and will be cost effective. Continued involvement by key stakeholders to serve in an advisory capacity will be critical to the success of the strategy. Wherever possible, OVC TTAC will utilize and expand existing TA resources that are currently available to the field. It will also contract with a broad range of expert practitioners who have strong credibility with victim service providers and law enforcement, as opposed to relying solely on “in-house” personnel. OVC TTAC will be responsible for coordinating the delivery of individualized T & TA resources on site, via telephone, via email, through regional meetings, and through the development of stand alone products and deliverables, such as a web-based Anti-Trafficking Task Force Development and Operation Guide that can be updated easily and continually. This resource will be made available nationwide to ensure that all communities have access to “lessons learned,” protocols, and other resources to assist them in implementing anti-trafficking initiatives.
In response to issues raised by OVC grantees and OIG’s July 2008 findings regarding the effectiveness of OJP’s grant programs (summarized above), OVC, in coordination with Office of General Counsel within OJP, provided specific written guidance to OVC grantees to clarify client eligibility for OVC funded services. While the program continues to support victims of severe forms of trafficking as defined by the TVPA, the guidance refines and slightly broadens OVC policy on client eligibility to provide greater flexibility, consistent with the program’s statutory authorization and changes to the annual appropriation. Because each trafficking case is unique, the guidance outlines requirements for the grantee to seek prior written approval from the OVC Program Specialist before grant funds may be used to provide services to trafficking victims who do not clearly fall within eligibility criteria. A draft of the guidance was first disseminated to grantees during the September 2008 DOJ Trafficking Conference and was the subject of several monthly technical assistance calls between OVC grantees and OVC Program Specialists. The document was finalized and disseminated to grantees in December 2008. Several grantees have commented that the revised guidance provides the flexibility needed when working with victims of trafficking who are recently “rescued” and reflects an understanding of the needs of the field.
Also in response to the DOJ OIG audit, OVC initiated several actions to improve the reliability and validity of performance reports and the numbers of victims identified and served through the OVC grants. OVC increased the amount of technical assistance to all OVC grantees on the use of the Trafficking Information Management System (TIMS), which is now used by most of the OVC grantees to collect and report data related to the performance measures of the OVC grant. OVC Program Specialists communicate with the grantee to confirm that the data reported in the progress report is correct. Reports are sent back to the grantee for correction if the report is not clear. In January 2009, OVC provided grantees with an enhanced TIMS database which is more “user friendly” and which will improve the efficiency and reliability of the data collection process. This “enhanced” TIMS was used by many grantees to submit data in January 2009 for the progress report period ending December 31, 2008.
From the inception of the program in January of 2003 through June 30, 2008, OVC grantees provided services to 2,238 pre-certified potential victims of trafficking. Data collected from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008 (the last full 12-month period for which data has not been previously reported in this Report to the Attorney General) indicate that 357 victims were enrolled as new clients by the OVC-funded grantees and were provided comprehensive services. (OVC trafficking victim services grantees report semi-annually, in January and July of each year.) Grantees also report providing ongoing case management and other services to victims enrolled in the program in previous report periods. For example, in the 6-month period from January 1, 2008 to June 30, 2008, grantees reported 208 clients who were enrolled in the grant program during the previous report period (July to December 2007).
In addition to providing direct services, OVC grantees work to improve the capacity of organizations within the community to identify and respond appropriately to victims of trafficking. During the 12-month period from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008, grantees trained over 29,054 professionals representing law enforcement, immigration attorneys, victim service providers, medical and mental health professionals, faith-based organizations, and other community-based organizations.
The OVC grant program is designed to help foreign national victims of trafficking obtain access to benefits and services and ultimately help them achieve self-sufficiency in the U.S. OVC believes that “certification” through ORR is one of the most expedient ways for non-U.S. citizen victims to access public benefits and attain self-sufficiency; therefore, OVC encourages grantees to assist victims with immigration relief options that lead to certification. Unfortunately, grantees still report many barriers to helping a victim achieve certification; therefore, there is a disparity between the numbers of victims served through the grant program and the number of victims who achieve certification through HHS. While barriers related to safety concerns and trauma of victims are real, so are barriers related to confusion about law enforcement roles in requesting continued presence and completion of the I-914 Supplement B forms that provide local, state, or federal law enforcement endorsement of the victim for the purpose of a T-visa. In cases where certification is not possible, OVC encourages grantees to act in the best interest of the victim and supports victim self-determination and the victim’s right to apply for the various forms of immigration relief for which he or she may be eligible.
OVC service providers expend a great effort in the development of close collaborative relationships among a broad range of professionals within the community, such as other social service providers and local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. The International Institute of Buffalo, for example, was contacted by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent to help investigate a possible labor trafficking case involving approximately 20 workers who were detained in various ways in several New York counties. The case was initially being investigated as a labor violation case; however, with the support of the staff of the International Institute of Buffalo and its legal service provider, Farm Workers Legal Services of New York, the ICE agent was able to obtain enough information through interviews to identify 18 victims of human trafficking. ICE requested continued presence on behalf of many of the victims, three of whom were minors.
OVC grantees are responsible for coordinating a variety of services to address individual needs of trafficking victims. One OVC grantee, Safe Horizon, has noted that there is a significant amount of stigma attached to mental health therapy, particularly in immigrant communities. Safe Horizon has responded to this stigma by developing a program that is used as a segue to introducing the idea of therapy to survivors of human trafficking. The Safe Horizon Empowerment Support Group is facilitated by Safe Horizon’s Intensive Case Managers within their trafficking program. Groups are conducted over six to eight weeks and are composed of practical skills-building sessions as well as therapeutic-based sessions (e.g., learning relaxation methods). The group concentrates on helping clients move forward with their lives, as opposed to re-visiting their traumatic experiences. The program has been successful in generating referrals to therapists upon completion of the group.
C. Department of Homeland Security
After rescuing victims of human trafficking, ICE agents make every effort to treat victims with respect and compassion. When large numbers of potential victims are rescued from a location, it is very difficult to determine who is a victim and which individuals may be traffickers. This is especially true in cases where warrants have been simultaneously served on several locations used as brothels. Until determination of victim status can be made, ICE employs various options for housing and interviews to ensure the safety of victims. The temporary location may include a hotel or other suitable location. Investigators, federal prosecutors, federal victim assistance staff, and NGOs work in these locations to interview any potential victims. Medical and social services are also provided. Victims are transferred to the care of an NGO as soon as possible.
NGOs receiving federal funds provide the majority of direct services to victims of trafficking. The fact remains, however, that the vast majority of victims of trafficking receive their first victim assistance from federal agents and victim assistance staff assigned to federal agencies. Federal agencies are required by statute to provide statutory rights and services to all crime victims, including victims of trafficking. This first response can strongly influence victims’ subsequent participation in the investigation and prosecution of the crime. Therefore, the ICE Victim Assistance Program (VAP) administers a Federal Crime Victim Assistance Fund for Victims of Crime. The fund is available to assist Special Agents in Charge (SAC) with emergency services for victims of crime. This includes victims of slavery, peonage, involuntary servitude, and trafficking. The fund is provided by DOJ’s OVC to assist crime victims when local resources are not available. These funds are essential to fill a current gap in services for victims of trafficking until the victims can be safely transferred to NGOs.
ICE has four full time staff members in its Washington, DC, headquarters that are dedicated to the provision of victims’ rights and assistance in all ICE investigations with crime victims. In addition, the VAP has 350 Victim Assistance Coordinators in the field who work at the local level to provide assistance, resources, and referrals as a collateral duty of their full-time responsibilities. ICE has Victim Assistance Coordinators in its Office of Investigations, Office of Detention and Removal Operations, Office of Professional Responsibility, Office of International Affairs, Federal Protective Service, and Office of the Principal Legal Advisor. Widespread assignment of coordinators in diverse offices ensures that the field has the knowledge and resources it needs to respond swiftly and effectively to any victim-related issue. Recognizing the high degree of specialization needed to serve crime victims as well as the resource-intensive nature of these cases, several SACs have created full-time Victim Specialist positions to support local investigations. These subject matter experts serve as a liaison between the SAC office and other partners and first responders and also provide direct victim assistance in ICE investigations, including trafficking cases.
Since law enforcement representatives may be the first to encounter a trafficking victim in the immediate aftermath of an escape or rescue, ICE ensures that its coordinators, both full-time and collateral duty, receive critical training on issues such as victims’ rights and immigration relief provisions in the VTVPA and its reauthorizations, as well as knowledge and capacity building in victim-sensitive interviewing, provision of emergency assistance, and the roles of partner agencies such as non-governmental service providers. They provide investigative support, services associated with statutory requirements of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act and other relevant legislation, and emergency assistance and referrals for victims of trafficking. They participate on human trafficking task forces and often serve as the primary point of contact between ICE and victim service providers. ICE coordinators are also trained on special issues related to minor victims, including referrals to Child Advocacy Centers for child forensic interviews, requests for eligibility from ORR, and facilitation of placements in the Unaccompanied Refugee Minor program.
Although the VAP does not receive appropriated funding through the TVPA, ICE leverages other resources to ensure that non-U.S. citizen human trafficking victims encountered in ICE investigations receive the support and emergency assistance they need for their immediate physical, emotional, and psychological safety. If a U.S. Citizen victim is encountered in an ICE investigation, he or she is provided with a referral to a victim service provider. While the long-term care and support for trafficking survivors remains the responsibility of HHS- and DOJ-funded victim service providers, ICE provides funding to secure emergency shelter, medical and dental care, and other basic needs until other forms of assistance become available. Recognizing the importance of victim-sensitive interviewing, when possible during large operations, ICE also provides funding and arranges for space to interview victims in a non-detention setting. The majority of the funding for this type of response is provided by OVC through an interagency agreement with the ICE Office of Investigations. The funding supports SAC offices by providing them with the ability to obtain emergency services for victims of crime, including human trafficking, when local resources are not available. The funds are essential to fill a gap for victims of trafficking until victims can be safely transferred to NGOs.
In FY 2008, the ICE VAP provided funding for emergency medical care for victims of forced prostitution in Guam, emergency housing and food for Chinese workers in a coerced labor case in Wisconsin, and emergency housing for a woman and her two children in a sex trafficking case in New York.
D. Department of Labor
DOL’s One Stop Career Centers provide employment and training services—including job search assistance, career counseling, and access to occupational skills training—to victims of trafficking. These services are provided in accordance with the Training and Employment Guidance Letter No. 19-01, change 1, which was reissued by DOL’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) in 2008. In addition to informing the state and local workforce systems about Federal resources for victims of trafficking, the guidance letter notes that no state or U.S. territory may deny services available to victims of severe forms of trafficking based on their immigration status. Any such services are provided directly by state and local grantees to trafficking victims, and ETA does not collect information on the extent to which such services are offered or utilized by trafficking victims.
Available in the One Stop Career Center’s Resource Room or accessed remotely on the Internet, the National Electronic Tools provide self-service access to career and workforce information. These tools include: America’s Career InfoNet (ACINet); America’s Service Locator (ASL); Toll-Free Help Line (TFHL); and the Occupational Information Network.
The Job Corps program provides basic literacy training and other academic and vocational services to victims of trafficking. Job Corps assists eligible youths in achieving a high school diploma or GED; provides vocational skill training and an array of life-success skills to assist the youths in becoming employable and independent; and helps youths secure meaningful jobs or opportunities for further education. Job Corps does not collect information on the extent to which these services are offered or utilized by trafficking victims.
E. Department of State
In 2008, DOS’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) supported the Return, Reintegration, and Family Reunification Program for Victims of Trafficking, which reunites eligible family members with trafficked persons identified in the United States. PRM’s implementing partner, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), works collaboratively with NGOs and U.S. Government agencies to assist the families of identified trafficking victims. After receiving a T visa (discussed in Section III below), trafficked persons can bring their eligible family members to the United States as provided for by the TVPA. Through this program, IOM may provide financial and logistical support for travel of immediate family members through pre-departure assistance with travel documents, transportation arrangements, airport assistance, and escorts for children. For trafficked persons who do not wish to avail themselves of the T visa benefits in the United States, the program also works to ensure safe return and reintegration assistance in home communities. This may include pre-departure assistance, travel documentation, transportation, and reception upon arrival by IOM partners on the ground, when possible. Reintegration assistance may be provided through NGO partners to reduce the likelihood of re-trafficking and may include: temporary shelter, health care, training and education, and small grants for income-generating activities. In 2008, this U.S.-funded program assisted 105 cases: of the cases assisted, 103 family members were reunited with trafficking survivors in the United States, and two victims of trafficking in persons elected to return to their country of origin. Since it started in 2005, this program has facilitated the reunification of 231 family members with victims of trafficking in the United States, and assisted 13 trafficking victims who wished to return to their country of origin. In total some 35 countries of origin were involved.
F. Department of Education
The Department of Education is involved in outreach efforts to combat trafficking in persons that include collaboration with Federal partners on policy and outreach activities; publication review and development; and information dissemination to school districts nationwide. Specifically:
G. Legal Services Corporation
LSC is a private, non-profit corporation established by Congress to fund legal aid programs throughout the nation to assist low-income persons with gaining access to the civil justice system. Under section 107(b) of the TVPA, LSC must make legal assistance available to trafficking victims, who often need assistance with immigration and other matters. LSC has issued guidance to all LSC program directors describing LSC’s obligations to provide legal services to trafficking victims. The current guidance is available at: https://grants.lsc.gov/Easygrants_Web_LSC/Implementation/Modules/Login/Controls/PDFs/Progltr05-2.pdf.
In FY 2008, 8 LSC grantees assisted 74 trafficking victims, as shown in the chart below.
|
LSC Grantees |
# of Persons Served[3] |
| Utah Legal Services | 42 |
| Micronesian Legal Services | 13 |
| Legal Services of the Virgin Islands | 5 |
| Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid | 5 |
| Legal Aid Foundation of Metro Chicago | 3 |
| South Jersey Legal Services | 3 |
| Florida Rural Legal Services | 2 |
| Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles | 1 |
| TOTAL | 74 |
A. Continued Presence
Pursuant to 28 CFR §1103, only DHS has the authority to grant Continued Presence (CP) to victims of severe forms of human trafficking who are potential witnesses in the investigation or prosecution. The term CP refers to short-term immigration relief granted to trafficking victims in accordance with Section 107(c)(3) of the TVPA, P.L. 106-386. CP must be requested by a federal law enforcement agency on behalf of the potential witness. CP requests are reviewed and, when warranted, authorized by the Law Enforcement Parole Branch (LEPB), pursuant to the delegated authority from the Secretary of Homeland Security. The LEPB is a component of ICE’s Office of International Affairs.
When the LEPB authorizes CP, the approved application is forwarded to the Vermont Service Center (VSC) within CIS, for production of an employment authorization document (EAD) and I-94, Arrival/Departure Record. CP is initially authorized for a period of one year; however, an extension of CP may be authorized for a longer period if the investigation is ongoing.
In FY 2008, the LEPB received 239 requests for CP. Of these, 225 requests were authorized and 13 requests were either withdrawn by the requesting federal law enforcement agencies or denied because there was insufficient evidence to substantiate that the individual was a victim of a severe form of human trafficking as defined by statute; one request was withdrawn because the victim was already a legal permanent resident. ICE also authorized 101 requests for extensions to existing CP. In addition, the LEPB received eight requests for termination of CP status either because the victim received a T Visa or the victim departed the United States and returned to their home country. See the chart below for numbers of persons who applied for, who were granted, and who were denied CP in FYs 2005-2008.
| FY | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| Requests for CP | 160 | 117 | 125 | 239 |
| Number Awarded | 158 | 112 | 122 | 225 |
| Number Withdrawn or Denied | 2 | 5 | 3 | 14 |
| Extensions Authorized | 92 | 80 | 5 | 101 |
| Countries Represented | 29 | 24 | 24 | 31 |
| Countries with the Highest Number of Victims | Korea, Peru, and Honduras |
Mexico, El Salvador, and South Korea |
Mexico, El Salvador, and China |
Mexico, Philippines, and South Korea |
| Cities with the Most CP Requests | New York, San Francisco, and Newark | Houston, Newark, and New York | Los Angeles, Newark, Houston, and New York | Miami, Newark, Atlanta, San Francisco, and Los Angeles |
Through the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) Human Trafficking Task Forces, more than 24,821 law enforcement officers and other persons likely to come into contact with victims of human trafficking have been trained from July 1, 2007 through June 20, 2008, on the identification of trafficking and its victims. The total number of law enforcement and other persons trained by the task forces since the inception of the program is 85,448. In addition, through a cooperative agreement with the Upper Midwest Regional Community Policing Institute (UMRCPI), 1,268 law enforcement officers and other persons likely to come into contact with victims of human trafficking have been trained in 2008. The total number of persons trained by UMRCPI is 5,314.
From July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008, the BJA Human Trafficking Task Forces identified 1,360 potential victims of human trafficking. Continued presence was requested on behalf of 188 of these victims. The cumulative total of potential victims that have been identified by BJA-funded task forces during three years of operation is now 3336 with 397 persons having had continued presence requested on their behalf by federal law enforcement.[4]
B. T-Visa Non-Immigrant Status
Victims of trafficking may also apply with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to receive a nonimmigrant T visa, which is available to an alien who (1) is a victim of a severe form of trafficking in persons; (2) is physically present in or at a port-of-entry to the United States (as defined in the immigration laws), American Samoa, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands on account of human trafficking; (3) has complied with reasonable requests for assistance in the investigation and prosecution of acts of trafficking or is less than 18 years old; and (4) would suffer extreme hardship involving unusual and severe harm upon removal. Victims who receive T nonimmigrant status are eligible to remain in the United States for up to four years, and their status may be extended if the law enforcement authority investigating or persecuting activity related to human trafficking certifies that the presence of the alien in the United States is necessary to assist in the investigation or prosecution of such activity. After three years, T non-immigrants are eligible to apply for adjustment of status to lawful permanent residence subject to certain statutory criteria.
See the chart below for numbers of persons who applied for, who were granted, and who were denied T visas in FYs 2005-2008.
|
Applications for T visas |
FY 2005 |
FY 2006 |
FY 2007 |
FY 2008 |
|
Victims |
|
|
|
|
|
Applied |
229 |
346 |
230 |
394 |
|
Approved* |
112 |
182 |
279 |
247 |
|
Denied** |
213 |
46 |
70 |
64 |
|
Family of Victims |
|
|
|
|
|
Applied |
124 |
301 |
149 |
290 |
|
Approved* |
114 |
106 |
261 |
171 |
|
Denied** |
18 |
39 |
52 |
19 |
* Some approvals are from prior fiscal year(s) filings.
** Some applicants have been denied twice (i.e., filed once and were denied, filed again).Since 2001, the United States government has granted more than 2,300 T visas to victims of human trafficking and their immediate family members.
VI. Investigations, Prosecutions, and Sentences
A. Investigations
Several federal agencies conduct investigations of TIP, with the majority of investigations undertaken by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
1. Federal Bureau of Investigation
Special agents in the Civil Rights Unit (CRU) at FBI Headquarters and in field offices around the country investigate trafficking in the United States. FBI Legal Attachés at U.S. embassies around the world support investigations with international links. In addition, FBI agents in the CRU coordinate with agents in the Organized Crime and Crimes Against Children Units to ensure that cases initially identified as smuggling cases, Internet crimes against children, and/or sex tourism are also identified for potential human trafficking elements.
On August 30, 2005, the FBI began its Human Trafficking Initiative. The initiative involved the FBI's field offices determining, via a threat assessment, the existence and scope of the trafficking problem in their region; participating in an anti-trafficking task force; establishing and maintaining relationships with local NGOs and community organizations; conducting victim-centered investigations; and reporting significant case developments to the CRU. To date, the FBI participates in a significant majority of the BJA-funded human trafficking task forces as well as other human trafficking task forces and/or working groups. In 2006, the CRU requested the 56 field offices complete a Civil Rights Program Threat Assessment. A review and analysis of those assessments formed the basis for the National Human Trafficking Threat Assessment which has been forwarded to all FBI field offices.
In FY 2008, the FBI opened 132 human trafficking investigations, made 139 arrests, and filed 60 complaints. In FY 2008, 129 informations/indictments were filed in FBI human trafficking cases and 94 convictions were obtained. These numbers are different from the prosecutions detailed elsewhere in this report, as the FBI does not participate in every human trafficking investigation.
TIP Investigations by FBI’s CRU
| FY | Cases Opened |
Complaints/ Indictments/ Informations |
Arrests | Convictions |
| 2001 | 54 | 29 | 67 | 15 |
| 2002 | 58 | 26 | 65 | 15 |
| 2003 | 65 | 40 | 32 | 18 |
| 2004 | 86 | 32 | 16 | 22 |
| 2005 | 146 | 45 | 51 | 14 |
| 2006 | 126 | 97 | 146 | 70 |
| 2007 | 120 | 87 | 159 | 60 |
| 2008 | 132 | 129 | 139 | 94 |
| Total | 787 | 485 | 675 | 308 |
In June 2003, the FBI, DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), and NCMEC launched the Innocence Lost National Initiative. Their combined efforts are aimed at addressing the growing problem of domestic sex trafficking of children in the United States.
The Innocence Lost Initiative brings together state and federal law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and social service providers. In the five years since its inception, the Initiative has resulted in the development of 28 dedicated task forces and working groups throughout the U.S.
In June 2008, to mark the fifth anniversary of the Innocence Lost Initiative, the FBI Crimes Against Children Unit coordinated a national sting entitled Operation Cross Country to combat domestic sex trafficking in children. From June 18 to June 23, 2008, Innocence Lost Task Forces in 16 cities, ranging from Boston to Miami to San Francisco, participated in the operation by targeting venues where children are trafficked, such as street tracks, truck stops, motels, casinos, and the Internet. The operation involved over 350 law enforcement officers from over 50 state, local, and federal law enforcement agencies who joined together to rescue child victims and arrest the criminals who victimize them. This operation resulted in the arrest of 356 individuals and the recovery of 21 children.
In October 2008, Operation Cross Country II took place. A total of 630 law enforcement personnel participated in the operation, which resulted in 642 arrests[5] (including 73 pimps and 518 adult prostitutes),[6] the disruption of 12 large-scale prostitution operations, and, most importantly, the rescue of 49 children—ages 13 to 17 years old—from the sex trade. Ten of those children had been reported as “missing” to NCMEC.
From the inception of the Innocence Lost program in June 2003 through the execution of Operation Cross Country II in October 2008, these groups worked successfully to rescue over 575 children. The investigations have uncovered schemes that run the gamut from prostituting children at truck stops to promoting their services on the Internet. Over 350 pimps, madams, and their associates who exploit children through prostitution have been convicted at the state and federal levels.[7] These convictions have resulted in lengthy sentences, including multiple 25-year-to-life sentences and the seizure of over $3 million of real property, vehicles, and monetary assets. Forty-six criminal enterprises have been disrupted, and 36 have been dismantled.
In addition to the Innocence Lost Task Forces, there is also the Innocence Lost Working Group, which is comprised of representatives from numerous government and non-governmental agencies, including DOJ, DOS, HHS, ICE, FBI, NCMEC, Polaris Project, the American Prosecutors Research Institute, Salvation Army, and Catholic Charities. These agencies dedicate resources to combating domestic sex trafficking of children and meet quarterly to share information, develop strategies, and coordinate efforts.
2. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
The ICE goal regarding human trafficking is straightforward: to disrupt and dismantle domestic and international criminal organizations that engage in human trafficking by utilizing all ICE authorities and resources in a cohesive global enforcement response. Within ICE, oversight of the enforcement of the TVPA lies with the Human Smuggling and Trafficking Unit (HSTU), ICE Office of Investigations. The responsibility for human trafficking investigations within DHS is under the purview of ICE domestic field offices and Attaché offices overseas. The ICE Cyber Crimes Center is responsible for worldwide oversight and management of ICE child sex tourism investigations. The responsibility for ensuring victim assistance lies with the 350 collateral-duty ICE Victim Coordinators. ICE agents coordinate cases with DOJ’s Civil Rights Division and CEOS as appropriate.
The ICE Financial, Narcotics and Public Safety Division systematically follows the trail of illicit monies of organizations that traffic in humans. The ICE Asset Identification Removal Group (AIRG) targets the finances and assets of trafficking organizations and focuses on civil asset forfeiture. The ICE Law Enforcement Support Center (LESC) serves as a national enforcement operations center and provides timely information on the status and identities of aliens. This allows ICE to rapidly arrest and maintain custody of potential traffickers under immigration charges while further investigations are being completed.
The ability to arrest and hold traffickers under immigration charges is often critical to an investigation. Trafficking cases are extremely resource intensive and often rely on the testimony of frightened and abused victims. It takes time for victims to feel comfortable enough with the U.S. criminal justice system to tell their stories. ICE human trafficking investigations are closely linked to victim assistance services.
In FY 2008, ICE opened 432 human trafficking investigations, which consisted of 170 investigations of forced labor and 262 investigations of commercial sexual exploitation (see case examples in Appendix B). ICE made 189 criminal arrests for offenses related to human trafficking. Of the 189 arrests, 128 were for crimes involving sexual exploitation and 61 were for forced labor related violations.
In FY 2008, ICE initiated 108 cases involving sex tourism, which occurs when an American citizen or legal permanent resident sexually exploits a child abroad. In 2008, nine sex tourists were convicted after being identified through ICE investigations. In addition to those numbers, an ICE undercover operation targeting sex tourists caught seven sex tourists alone in 2008, as well as three convictions. This operation, as well as undercover operations being conducted by the FBI, is ongoing.
ICE Cyber Crimes Center
ICE Cyber Crimes Center (C3) is actively involved in investigating the sexual exploitation of children overseas. Since the Protect Act was enacted in 2003, ICE has conducted over 495 investigations of U.S. citizens traveling abroad for the purpose of sexually exploiting children, resulting in over 65 convictions. C3 also supports Child Sex Tourism investigations through assistance provided by the Computer Forensics Program. C3 Computer Forensics Agents have assisted in the examination of numerous computers seized in conjunction with Child Sex Tourism investigations. Child sex tourism cases are among the most difficult cases to investigate. The child victims are frequently from very poor families in rural areas of underdeveloped countries. Often, ICE agents must travel for days to reach the site of the crime and then identify the victims. Investigators must then face the difficult obstacle of bringing the children back to the U.S. to testify against the perpetrator. Prior to trial, many children and their families simply disappear back to rural villages, some “paid off’ by often wealthy defendants.
Operation Predator is a comprehensive ICE initiative launched in 2003 to identify, arrest, and/or deport foreign national sex offenders, international sex tourists, Internet child pornographers, and human traffickers. Through FY 2008, this initiative has accounted for over 11,654 arrests of sexual predators, over 9,693 of which have been removed from the United States. Under Operation Predator, child exploitation takes many forms. ICE targets child pornographers, child sex tourists and facilitators, human smugglers and traffickers of minors, criminal aliens convicted of offenses against minors, and those deported for child exploitation offenses who have returned illegally. Those who prey on children are often trusted members of the victims’ families or communities. Among the over 11,654 predators arrested by ICE were relatives of victims, clergymen, doctors, athletic coaches, daycare and camp directors, teachers, janitors, babysitters, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and military officers.
Operation Predator has an important international component as leads developed by domestic ICE offices are shared with ICE Attaché offices overseas and foreign law enforcement for action.
Operation Predator
| FY | Arrests |
| 2005 | 2388 |
| 2006 | 2380 |
| 2007 | 1630 |
| 2008 | 1140 |
3. Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center
The Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center (HSTC) serves as the federal government’s intelligence fusion center and information clearinghouse for all federal agencies addressing illicit travel, specifically, human trafficking, human smuggling, and the facilitation of terrorist mobility. By co-locating subject matter experts from the participating federal agencies, the HSTC facilitates the exchange of strategic and tactical information in a coordinated manner that supports the U.S. strategy to investigate and prosecute criminals involved in domestic and international TIP.
During 2008, the HSTC supported anti-trafficking efforts by monitoring the internal communication and case management systems of its participating agencies, researching and analyzing intelligence reports in classified and unclassified systems to develop leads, and disseminating information relative to the identification of major international trafficking networks. Daily, the HSTC reviews information for potential human trafficking indicators, performs preliminary checks to follow-up on that information, and, when warranted, ensures the information is delivered to the appropriate parties for further investigation. This comprehensive review of law enforcement data and collected intelligence assists not only in the identification of domestic and foreign trafficking victims, but also in coordinating international efforts to disrupt trafficking networks. In addition to providing specific case assistance, disseminating intelligence to the appropriate operational components, and assisting domestic and foreign law enforcement, the HSTC analyzes all-source information to identify trafficking trends and identify ongoing international trafficking events.
The HSTC conducts studies and prepares strategic reports for U.S. law enforcement and U.S. policy-makers. For instance, in April 2008, the HSTC published a special report titled U.S. Law Enforcement and Forced Child Labor and another report, in December 2008, titled Domestic Human Trafficking – An Internal Issue. The HSTC also serves a vital de-confliction role for the various agencies that share jurisdiction over TIP investigations.
4. Bureau of Justice Statistics – Reports on Federally Funded Task Forces
The TVPRA 2005 requires biennial reporting on human trafficking, using available data from state and local authorities. In response to this requirement, DOJ funded the creation of the Human Trafficking Reporting System (HTRS). The system, designed by the Institute of Race and Justice at Northeastern University and the Justice Policy Center at the Urban Institute, was designed to describe the number and characteristics of suspected human trafficking investigations and their outcomes as reported by federally-funded human trafficking task forces. In addition, many task forces are using the HTRS as a case management tool to track ongoing investigations, including suspect and victim information.
The HTRS provides data on human trafficking incidents on a regular basis; the most recent analyses were conducted on those incidents investigated between January 1, 2007 and September 30, 2008. The analyses conducted to date provide a snapshot of the investigations opened by 38 federally funded human trafficking task forces and are not intended to represent all incidents of human trafficking nationwide.
During the 21-month analysis period, the task forces reported investigations of 1,229 suspected incidents of human trafficking, including both U.S. citizen and foreign national victims. Nearly 83 percent of the reported incidents involved sex trafficking, 12 percent involved labor trafficking, and 5 percent involved other or unknown types of human trafficking. Of the 1,018 alleged sex trafficking incidents reported by the task forces, 391 (38 percent) involved allegations of child sex trafficking. The other 627 (62 percent) incidents involved allegations of adult sex trafficking, such as forced prostitution or other sex trafficking crimes.[8]
At the time of the most recent analyses, only a small subset of all reported investigations (9 percent) had reached a point of review to determine whether the case involved a confirmed human trafficking violation. Even fewer investigations yielded information about whether an arrest had been made, the case was prosecuted, or the suspect was convicted. This is a new data system that is currently being populated. Future analyses will provide a more complete picture of the types of cases that are confirmed human trafficking and the demographics of human trafficking victims and suspects.
5. Department of Labor
Law enforcement efforts to investigate human trafficking also include those of DOL, which continues to increase its emphasis on compliance with labor standards laws, such as the Fair Labor Standards Act and Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, in industries with vulnerable workers like restaurants, garment manufacturing, and agriculture. DOL civil law enforcement responsibilities relating to trafficking are carried out by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) with the support of the Office of the Solicitor. WHD investigators interview workers and assess situations where workers may have been intimidated, threatened, or held against their will. WHD investigators also review payroll records and inspect migrant farm worker housing. WHD coordinates with other law enforcement agencies, such as the FBI, offices of AUSAs, and ICE, to ensure restitution on behalf of victims of trafficking. Additionally, criminal enforcement agents from DOL’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) have worked with their FBI and ICE counterparts on a growing number of criminal investigations, particularly those involving organized crime groups. To those ends, DOL-OIG has joined the Attorney General’s International Organized Crime Council wherein through its partnership with the Council’s other members it seeks to identify and help prosecute international organized crime groups that violate U.S. laws or threaten the safety and well-being of the American worker, as well as the nation’s security.
B. Prosecutions
The Criminal Section of DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, in collaboration with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices nationwide, has principal responsibility for prosecuting human trafficking crimes, except for cases involving sex trafficking of children. Within DOJ’s Criminal Division, the Child Exploitation Obscenity Section (CEOS) are the subject matter experts on the prosecution of sex trafficking of minors and child sex tourism (see Appendix B for case examples from FY 2008).
Since the Attorney General created the Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit (HTPU) within the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division in January 2007, the HTPU has played a significant role in coordinating DOJ’s human trafficking prosecution programs. The HTPU’s mission is to focus the Division’s human trafficking expertise and expand its anti-trafficking enforcement programs to further increase human trafficking investigations and prosecutions throughout the nation. The HTPU works to enhance DOJ’s investigation and prosecution of significant human trafficking and slavery cases, such as multi-jurisdictional and multi-agency cases and those involving financial crimes. The HTPU also provides training, technical assistance, and outreach initiatives to federal, state, and local law enforcement and NGOs.
In FY 2008, the Civil Rights Division’s anti-trafficking efforts resulted in a record number of cases filed in a single year since the passage of the TVPA, including a record number of both labor trafficking and sex trafficking cases. Collectively, the Civil Rights Division and United States Attorneys’ Offices initiated 183 investigations, charged 82 defendants in 40 cases and obtained 77 convictions involving human trafficking. Traffickers were ordered to pay restitution awards totaling approximately $4.2 million.
The chart below lists the numbers of defendants charged, prosecuted, and convicted of trafficking offenses and offenses under the TVPA since its passage in FY 2001. Defendants charged in FY 2008 with a trafficking offense are not necessarily the same defendants convicted and sentenced in FY 2008. These figures do not include CEOS prosecutions of child trafficking and child sex tourism.
| All Trafficking Prosecutions |
FY 2001 |
FY 2002 |
FY 2003
|
FY 2004 |
FY 2005 |
FY 2006 |
FY 2007 |
FY 2008 |
| Cases Filed |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Labor | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 13 |
| Sex | 4 | 7 | 8 | 23 | 26 | 22 | 20 | 27 |
| Total | 10 | 10 | 11 | 26 | 35 | 32 | 32 | 40 |
| Defendants Charged |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Labor | 12 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 21 | 26 | 29 | 34 |
| Sex | 26 | 27 | 21 | 40 | 75 | 85 | 60 | 48 |
| Total | 38 | 41 | 27 | 47 | 96 | 111 | 89 | 82 |
| Convictions |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Labor | 8 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 38 | 17 | 27 |
| Sex | 15 | 23 | 16 | 30 | 25 | 61 | 86 | 50 |
| Total | 23 | 28 | 21 | 33 | 35 | 99 | 103 | 77 |
In the eight fiscal years since the enactment of the TVPA, FYs 2001-2008, the Division and United States Attorneys’ Offices have prosecuted 531 defendants, secured 419 convictions and guilty pleas, and opened 998 new investigations.
As noted earlier, the Innocence Lost Initiative has resulted in the conviction of over 350 pimps, madams, and their associates who exploit children through prostitution. Also as noted, in 2008, 9 sex tourists were convicted after being identified through ICE investigations.
C. Sentences
In order to present data regarding sentences, DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Statistics reviewed the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AOUSC) criminal case database to make a preliminary calculation of the average length of sentence for cases completed in FY 2008 that involved the trafficking offenses under sections 1581 (peonage), 1583 (enticement for slavery), 1584 (sale into involuntary servitude), 1589 (forced labor), 1590 (trafficking with respect to peonage/slavery/involuntary servitude/forced labor), 1591 (sex trafficking of children or by force, fraud or coercion), 1592 (unlawful conduct with respect to documents in furtherance of trafficking), and 1594 (general provisions) of title 18, United States Code. This calculation differs from the case statistics presented in the preceding charts, because the AOUSC database tracks the statutes involved in a court case rather than the underlying facts of each case. As a result, the AOUSC database search was unable to determine sentences in trafficking prosecutions in which defendants pleaded guilty to non-trafficking offenses such as immigration violations or visa fraud. In addition, the AOUSC database chronicles only the top five offenses charged, and not the full scope of charges brought.
Of the 79 defendants convicted where one of the statutes listed in the TVPA was charged, as required to be reported by the Attorney General, 67 defendants received a prison-only sentence, two received a probation-only sentence, two received a fine only, seven defendants received a suspended sentence, and the sentence for one defendant was unknown. The average prison term for those defendants sentenced to prison was 112 months, and prison terms ranged from 12 to 600 months. The length of the prison term for one defendant was unknown. Twenty-six defendants received a prison sentence from 1-5 years, 19 received terms from five to ten years, and 21 defendants received a prison term of more than ten years. Among defendants receiving a probation-only sentence, one defendant received a probation term of 60 months and one received a probation term of 72 months.
D. Estimating the Number of Victims
The TVPRA 2005 requires DOJ to produce biennial reports to Congress on the number and demographic characteristics of persons engaged in severe forms of human trafficking and the number of investigations, arrests, prosecutions, and incarcerations of persons engaged in this activity by states and their political subdivisions. In response to this requirement, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) funded the development of a web-based Human Trafficking Reporting System (HTRS) that collects incident, victim, and suspect data from the Task Forces. Using data from 2007 and the first three quarters of 2008, BJS published Characteristics of Suspected Human Trafficking Incidents, 2007-08 (available online at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/cshti08.pdf). Findings in this publication will be included in the first report to Congress (see section IV.A.4 above for a summary of the report’s findings).
A study funded by OJP’s National Institute of Justice examined 60 sites in 30 states to determine the prevalence, context, and characteristics of human trafficking cases and victims in areas without task forces. The study provided a thorough analysis by conducting in-depth interviews with law enforcement and victims’ services at the 60 sites and making four site visits to law enforcement agencies to review cases that may constitute trafficking but were not prosecuted as such. This study has three principal findings. First, the study outlines the demographic characteristics of those engaged in sex trafficking and unlawful commercial sex acts. Specifically, the report found that while no one demographic profile existed for purchasers, perpetrators and prostitutes, that few differences existed between the purchasers and perpetrators of sex trafficking on the one hand and unlawful commercial sex acts on the other. Second, the study attempted to provide an estimate of the value of the commercial sex economy in the U.S. While the study was unable to derive a full national estimate, it did use data drawn from a county in the first quartile of population and income per capita in the U.S. and arrived at an estimate of $12.1 million per annum for that county. Last, the study demonstrates that localities vary in how they enforce laws related to unlawful commercial sex acts across the United States.
VII. International Grants to Combat Trafficking
Through DOS, DOL’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB), and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Government provides a substantial amount of international assistance aimed at preventing TIP, protecting victims, and prosecuting traffickers abroad. In FY 2008, the U.S. Government supported 140 international anti-trafficking programs, totaling approximately $76 million and benefiting over 70 countries.
In awarding funds, DOS and USAID focus primarily on countries identified in the annual Trafficking in Persons Report as needing to improve their efforts to combat TIP, while DOL uses the TIP Report as one of several criteria when awarding funds.
In FY 2008, DOS Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP) awarded approximately $12.6 million for anti-human trafficking programs: 44 projects in 35 countries totaling approximately $9.8 million, eight regional projects totaling $1.8 million, and four global projects totaling roughly $1 million. Nearly all of these awards were funded through the office’s annual competitive grant process. A complete list of G/TIP awarded projects and descriptions can be found here: http://2001-2009.state.gov/g/tip/rls/rpt/111540.htm. In FY 2008, DOS Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) funded approximately $4.3 million in support of anti-trafficking activities implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The 25 projects were carried out in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America and the Caribbean (see Appendix D for details). In FY 2008, USAID provided approximately $11.6 million in anti-trafficking assistance. Most USAID anti-trafficking activities are designed and funded by USAID field missions.
Examples of FY 2008 DOS and USAID projects include:
DOL provided $42,101,000 in FY 2008 to fund 9 new projects in 11 countries that will address trafficking of human beings (1) as a central focus of the project; (2) as one component of the project; or (3) through capacity building, awareness-raising and research. These projects, which were funded in Botswana, Brazil, Cambodia, Guinea, India, Madagascar, Namibia, Nicaragua, South Africa, Uganda and Yemen, include:
Highlights of two FY 2008 projects:
DOL funded a new project in Yemen that will withdraw and prevent children from the worst forms of child labor (WFCL) through the provision of direct educational services, institutional capacity building at the national and local levels, and awareness-raising activities. The project intends to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children and to target children working in agriculture and fisheries in the governorates of Al Hudaydah, Taiz and Aden. In the governorate of Hajjah, the project will focus on the prevention of child trafficking to neighboring countries for the purpose of smuggling qat (leaves of a shrub that are chewed or made into a tea for its stimulant qualities), begging, and domestic servitude.
In Guinea, DOL funded a project to prevent children at-risk of being trafficked and withdraw children who have been trafficked, through providing education, training and other services. The project takes into account the link between child labor and education in addressing exploitative child labor and trafficking, and aims to provide innovative approaches to ensure that victims of child labor and trafficking gain access to vocational skills training opportunities. The project will also implement other trafficking-related activities such as strengthening country capacity to combat child trafficking; strengthening the capacity of key stakeholders to undertake actions in support of the National Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons; developing a coordinated and integrated child trafficking monitoring system; raising awareness of child trafficking and exploitative child labor; and supporting research and data collection.
Forced Labor
The TVPRA 2005 directs DOL to monitor and combat forced labor and child labor in foreign countries. While DOL has been conducting research and administering technical assistance funding in the area of international child labor since 1995, the law’s mandates in the area of forced labor and trafficking require new activities. To meet these mandates, DOL conducted research in order to develop and maintain a list of goods from countries that it has reason to believe are produced with forced labor or child labor in violation of international standards. Once the process for compilation of the initial list is completed, it will be made available to the public, and DOL will work with persons who are involved in the production of goods on the list to create a standard set of practices that will reduce the likelihood that such persons will produce goods using such labor. In 2008, DOL also provided $1,249,715 to conduct research on forced labor in the supply chains of selected goods in eight countries: Argentina, Bangladesh, Bolivia, China, Dominican Republic, Liberia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
DOL also plays a key role in the implementation of Executive Order 13126 (E.O. 13126), Prohibition of Acquisition of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor, which was issued in June 1999. E.O. 13126 directs all federal agencies to ensure that U.S. government purchases do not include any products made with forced or indentured child labor. E.O. 13126 requires DOL, in consultation with DOS and DHS, to publish and maintain a list of products, by country of origin, which the three Departments have a reasonable basis to believe may have been mined, produced, or manufactured by forced or indentured child labor. A current E.O. list can be found on the DOL website at http://www.dol.gov/ILAB/regs/eo13126/main.htm, and includes 11 products from Burma and one from Pakistan. The list can be updated through DOL’s own research as well as through public submissions of information.
VIII. Training and Outreach
A. Domestic Law Enforcement Training
1. Department of Justice
a. Office of Justice Programs
In September 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia, DOJ held its fourth annual conference on human trafficking. The event was an opportunity for anti-trafficking task force members from across the country to meet and exchange ideas and best practices. The event featured workshops and discussions led by practitioners in the field, fellow task force members, and DOJ and other U.S. Government officials. Topics included child exploitation, forced labor and sex trafficking cases, and task force coordination and cooperation. The Atlanta conference marked the last annual DOJ trafficking conference; subsequent conferences will be held on a biennial basis, beginning in 2010.
b. Civil Rights Division
Civil Rights Division attorneys and victim-witness staff conducted over seventy-five training programs for federal and local law enforcement agencies, DOJ-funded task forces, non-governmental and health care organizations, business leaders, academia and legal practitioners in Birmingham, Alabama; Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona; Anaheim, Oakland, Sacramento, and South Lake Tahoe, California; Fairfield, Connecticut; Washington, DC; Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Fort Walton, Miami and Orlando, Florida; Atlanta and Glynco, Georgia; Honolulu, Hawaii; Cedar Rapids and Des Moines, Iowa; Lexington, Kentucky; Boston, Massachusetts; Baltimore, Maryland; Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota; Columbia, South Carolina; Gaitlinburg, Tennessee; San Antonio, Texas; and Arlington, Crystal City, and Dunn Loring, Virginia
Division attorneys and victim-witness staff served as speakers and panelists at numerous human trafficking conferences, including September 2008 annual DOJ conference, the 2008 Freedom Network Conference in Decatur, Georgia; the 2008 Terrorism and Organized Crime Conference in Anaheim, California; the National Asian Peace Officers’ Association 2008 Annual Training Conference in Crystal City, Virginia; the South Carolina Law Enforcement and Service Providers Conference in Columbia, South Carolina; the Gerald D. Vick Human Trafficking Task Force Conference in Saint Paul, Minnesota; the Maryland State Attorney’s Office Conference in Baltimore, Maryland; and the Oakland Bureau of Justice Assistance Task Force in Oakland, California
The Civil Rights Division continues to utilize the Justice Television Network, an interactive distance-learning tool designed to deliver training via live broadcast. For example, in July 2008, a two-hour human trafficking training on non-violent coercion in human trafficking cases was conducted, focusing on labor and sex trafficking. Several Civil Rights Division attorneys participated in the broadcast.
In addition to these regional training programs, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys’ Office of Legal Education continues to host several comprehensive training sessions for federal agents and prosecutors at the DOJ’s National Advocacy Center (NAC), including an intensive three-day course for human trafficking investigators and prosecutors, as well as other courses. The Civil Rights Division also actively participates in human trafficking training at United States Attorneys’ Offices and continues to participate regularly in the training of the FBI, ICE, and DOS’s Diplomatic Security Service personnel.
DOJ continues to support the promotion of the Model State Anti-Trafficking Statute to expand anti-trafficking authority to the states to harness almost one million state and local law enforcement officers who might come into contact with trafficking victims. During FY 2008, 7 additional states passed anti-trafficking legislation. Several states have also passed laws to establish research commissions and task forces, as well as to mandate law enforcement training and to provide victim services. Currently, 43 states have enacted legislation with criminal anti-trafficking provisions.
The Civil Rights Division continues to publish anti-trafficking news bulletins with updates on the Department’s anti-trafficking efforts. Each bulletin provides a summary of recent case events and other activities of the Civil Rights Division and the Department.
c. Criminal Division
Attorneys with CEOS continued their efforts to provide training and guidance to prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and victim service providers on issues pertaining to child sex trafficking victims. These efforts include presentations at the 2nd Annual Sex Offender/Child Predator Enforcement Conference in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; the Project Safe Childhood National Conference held in September 2008, in Columbus, Ohio; the National Training Conference on the Sex Trafficking of America’s Youth held in Dallas, Texas, and sponsored by Shared Hope International, an NGO dedicated to the prevention of sex trafficking and the rescue and restoration of trafficking victims; the 20th Annual Crimes Against Children Conference in Dallas, Texas; the “Protecting Victims of Child Prostitution” course, a week-long seminar being held at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Alexandra, Virginia; and a training program conducted at the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children Community Intervention Project Training Institute in Atlantic City, New Jersey. In addition, CEOS sponsored the Project Safe Childhood Advanced Online Child Exploitation Seminar held at the National Advocacy Center in August of 2008. In addition to these efforts, CEOS distributes newsletters on a quarterly basis which provides guidance concerning numerous issues pertaining to all federal child exploitation crimes, including the sex trafficking of children.
2. Department of Homeland Security
In FY 2008, pursuant to ICE TIPS, ICE conducted frequent TIP training to law enforcement officials, consular officials, prosecutors, and social service providers, participating in and giving presentations at a number of TIP conferences and workshops. These events included the Customs and Border Protection Trafficking Symposium as well as the 2008 Human Trafficking Conference in St. Paul, MN. ICE domestic field offices conducted local outreach efforts to over 7,000 domestic law enforcement officials representing over 1000 agencies.
In August 2008, ICE sponsored an advanced training course on human trafficking for ICE special agents at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, GA. ICE Victim Assistance Program staff served as instructors for the portions of the course related to victim identification, needs of human trafficking victims, victim services, and Continued Presence. This course will be offered on a more frequent basis during FY 2009.
3. Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center
In FY 2008, the HSTC conducted frequent training to law enforcement officials, consular officials, prosecutors, and social service providers, and presented at a number of trafficking-in-persons conferences and workshops. This accounted for over 800 people being trained in the different aspects related to human trafficking. The HSTC serves on DOJ’s working group to address the training and technical assistance needs of the domestic Human Trafficking Task Forces. Additionally, the HSTC serves as a point of contact for the National District Attorneys Association on trafficking matters and regularly advises state and local law enforcement training academies and centers on developing training for investigating and prosecuting TIP crimes.
In September 2008, the HSTC partnered with the United Kingdom Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC) in creating a universal symbol or logo known as the “Blue Blindfold Campaign” that could be used globally in anti-trafficking outreach campaigns regardless of the country, agency brandings, or messages. This effort was a first attempt at establishing an international anti-human trafficking symbol that could bridge language and literacy barriers, and provide a “common thread” linking various agencies that combat human trafficking. Other European Union countries have already adopted the use of the “Blue Blindfold” logo.
4. Department of Defense
All DOD military members and civilian employees are required to take the general awareness TIP training module available since 2005. Awareness training by the DOD is given via the military services’ knowledge-on-line systems. Overseas Combatant Commands provide theater/country specific training. A general awareness Power Point presentation and Interactive multimedia modules are also available online.
DOD also provides a senior leader’s module that outlines U.S. Government and DOD responsibilities regarding TIP. A law enforcement TIP training module is mandatory for all law enforcement and investigative agencies within the Department. All training modules on the DOD website at http://www.defenselink.mil/ctip.
B. International Outreach and Law Enforcement Training
1. Department of Justice
a. Civil Rights Division
During FY 2008, the Civil Rights Division provided extensive training and technical assistance to foreign officials both here and abroad and collaborated with a variety of foreign governments to locate and prosecute human traffickers.
DOJ continued its efforts to use information from domestic trafficking cases to initiate investigations involving recruiters and other perpetrators in the country of origin. These efforts are enhanced by the Civil Rights Division’s ongoing outreach to officials from around the world who visit the United States. Building these relationships is critical to the Department’s anti-trafficking efforts, and experienced trafficking personnel regularly participate in training and strategy sessions involving key officials from foreign governments. Civil Rights Division personnel met with officials from Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, England, Indonesia, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Netherlands, Poland, Republic of Kosovo, Russia, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, and Ukraine.
In addition, Civil Rights Division personnel travel abroad to engage key anti-trafficking officials from foreign governments, including lawmakers, mid-level managers responsible for policy implementation, prosecuting attorneys, and investigators, as well as NGOs. These efforts involve both training sessions and the exchange of information on effective law enforcement anti-trafficking tactics and addressing victim needs, interviewing techniques, and the roles that NGOs, law enforcement agents, and prosecutors have with respect to victims. In FY 2008, Civil Rights Division personnel participated in outreach missions to Bulgaria, Tanzania, Singapore, Qatar, and Uzbekistan, and United Nations Conferences in Vienna, Austria, that involved delegations from multiple countries.
Additionally, Civil Rights Division victim-witness staff members have consulted with DOS on developing a victim assistance program for victims of human trafficking in Bolivia.
b. Criminal Division
Attorneys with CEOS conducted extensive outreach to its foreign counterparts, both through participation in meetings and trainings abroad, and through meetings with foreign officials in the United States. CEOS attorneys participated in trainings concerning child sex trafficking and child exploitation held in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, and Sihanouk Ville, Cambodia; and spoke at conferences in Chisinau, Moldova; Copenhagen, Denmark; and Singapore. CEOS was also extensively involved in the preparation for World Congress III against child sexual exploitation, which took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in November 2008. The delegation was led by the Department of Justice. As part of its involvement, prior to the Congress CEOS participated in expert roundtable discussions as part of a formal consultation between Canada and the United States on the topic of commercial child sexual exploitation.
In the United States, CEOS attorneys met with delegations from Japan, Tajikistan, India, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Austria, Portugal, Finland, Macedonia, Malta, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Serbia, Cyprus, Indonesia, Egypt, Turkey, Albania, Poland, Thailand, Romania, and Russia. CEOS attorneys also met with federal prosecutors who were serving as legal advisors in foreign countries, including Kosovo and Thailand. At these meetings, CEOS shared information about its efforts to combat child sex trafficking and child sex tourism. Many of these meetings were organized by OPDAT, whose efforts are described more fully below.
c. OPDAT and ICITAP
i. Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training
DOJ’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) draws on the DOJ’s resources and expertise to strengthen foreign criminal justice sector institutions and enhance the administration of justice abroad. With funding provided by the DOS and USAID, OPDAT supports the law enforcement objectives and priorities of the United States by preparing foreign counterparts to cooperate more fully and effectively with the United States in combating terrorism and transnational crime such as human trafficking. It does do by encouraging legislative and justice sector reform in countries with inadequate laws; by improving the skills of foreign prosecutors and judges; and by promoting the rule of law and regard for human rights.
Combating TIP is a top OPDAT priority. OPDAT provides substantial technical assistance throughout the world based on a holistic model encompassing the “Three Ps of TIP:” Prevention, Protection, and Prosecution. OPDAT assistance includes training and developmental projects with overseas law enforcement officials geared to strengthening its international partners’ capabilities to prevent transnational trafficking; protect victim witnesses and thereby encourage their participation in investigations and prosecutions; and effectively investigate and prosecute trafficking cases. OPDAT also works with host countries on developing evidence collection techniques which can generate evidence usable in transnational prosecutions, including those brought by DOJ in the U.S. OPDAT also does legislative reform and drafting in the area of TIP to ensure that TIP law is victim-assistance centered and compliant with Palermo Protocol of UN Organized Crime Convention.
OPDAT regularly calls upon the expertise of Department attorneys from the Civil Rights Division, CEOS, and the United States Attorneys’ Offices (USAOs) in both the design and execution of anti-TIP technical assistance and training programs overseas. Advisors regularly furnish legislative drafting and implementation assistance with the help of Departmental experts from the Civil Rights Division, CEOS, and USAOs, who are selected for their expertise in a specific area or their work on a successful TIP prosecution that they can present as a case study to their foreign counterparts. When appropriate, OPDAT collaborates on TIP programs with the International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP), its sister organization that develops and provides training to foreign police and criminal investigation institutions.
In FY 2008, OPDAT conducted 49 programs involving 20 countries – Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kosovo, Mexico, Moldova, Nicaragua, Philippines, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Tanzania, and the United Arab Emirates.
These programs include the following:
Latin America and the Caribbean:
Africa and the Middle East:
Eurasia:
Asia and Pacific:
Central and Eastern Europe:
ii. International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program
ICITAP’s assistance in developing foreign law enforcement capacity to combat human trafficking supports DOJ’s 2008 Law Enforcement Strategy to Combat International Organized Crime. According to the strategy, human trafficking and smuggling are one of eight strategic threats to U.S. borders and security, and developing the capacity of foreign law enforcement partners to investigate and interdict traffickers is essential to reducing the threat.
In FY 2008, ICITAP’s support to the international anti-human trafficking effort expanded to 19 countries worldwide. In addition to law enforcement capacity-building efforts specifically aimed at human trafficking, ICITAP conducts programs that promote human rights and human dignity, rule of law, anti-corruption, and police-community cooperation—conditions that have been identified by DOS’s G/TIP as vital for an effective anti-trafficking effort. ICITAP’s programs are primarily funded by and conducted in partnership with DOS.
ICITAP uses the following strategies to build overseas law enforcement capacity to combat trafficking in TIP:
In FY 2008, ICITAP conducted the following specific law enforcement development activities to support the global effort to end human trafficking:
Europe/Eurasia
Africa
Asia
2. Department of Homeland Security
a. International Law Enforcement Training Efforts
ICE Victim Assistance routinely supports training coordinated by ICE Office of International Affairs through the International Visitors Program as well as training for Attaché offices overseas. The training typically includes representatives from NGOs as well as foreign law enforcement agencies seeking to enhance their response to human trafficking. The goal is to show the importance of integrating victim assistance into each investigation and training is co-facilitated with an investigator from the HSTU. Presentations focus on the creation of a victim-centered investigation through inclusion of victim assistance considerations in planning of enforcement operations, victim-sensitive interview techniques including the appropriate use of interpreters, safety issues, immigration relief, and resources for meeting the diverse needs of both sex and labor trafficking victims.
ICE Victim Assistance Program staff participated with ICE’s HSTU to provide extensive training to Curacao police and customs officials in January 2008. This training covered topics such as human smuggling, human trafficking, and financial investigations.
In addition, ICE’s HSTU proactively promoted training in human smuggling and trafficking investigations to countries that are susceptible to exploitation by human smuggling and trafficking organizations. In FY 2008, training sessions were held in Argentina, Austria, Cyprus, Curacao, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, France, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Switzerland, and Taiwan. More than 12,000 law enforcement personnel received ICE training in human smuggling and trafficking investigations in FY 2008.
ICE’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) collected ICE TIPS reports for FY 2008 on outreach and training conducted by ICE’s 54 international offices in more than 42 countries. During this period, the Attaché offices provided over 12,700 individuals with anti-trafficking training and information about ICE’s activities to combat human trafficking. ICE OIA trained personnel from foreign law enforcement agencies and international organizations, and over 7,000 representatives from over 100 NGOs.
Highlights of this training include:
b. International Visitors Program
ICE provides presentations on a variety of topics to foreign law enforcement and government officials who are visiting the United States through its International Visitors Program. In FY 2008, ICE conducted 41 Human Smuggling/Trafficking briefings, six Victim Witness Assistance Program briefings, and 21 Cyber Crimes/Child Exploitation briefings for 290 foreign government officials and NGO representatives from 42 countries. ICE briefed international visitors from the following countries and the European Union: Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Guatemala, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Netherlands, People’s Republic of China, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, South Korea (ROK), Tajikistan, Thailand, United Kingdom, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
c. International Law Enforcement Academies
One of ICE’s most important international training activities is its participation in the International Law Enforcement Academies (ILEA) funded by DOS in Bangkok, Thailand; Budapest, Hungary; Gaborone, Botswana; and San Salvador, El Salvador. ICE developed the human trafficking training modules that are part of the permanent curricula at those academies, including a new course, Trafficking in Women and Children, presented in Gaborone in FY 2008. Other human trafficking training modules included: (1) investigation methodologies in human trafficking cases; (2) human trafficking indicators; (3) global networks; (4) victim interviews; (5) victim services; and (6) task force methodology. ICE trained a total of 439 law enforcement personnel from the following 56 countries: Albania, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Botswana, Bulgaria, Brazil, Brunei, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, Ghana, Guatemala, Hungary, Indonesia, Kenya, Laos, Lesotho, Macedonia, Macau, Malawi, Malaysia, Mauritania, Moldova, Montenegro, Namibia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Panama, Paraguay, People’s Republic of China, Peru, Philippines, Ukraine, Uruguay, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Venezuela, and Vietnam.
d. Forced Labor & Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. §1307)
ICE has a legislative and investigative mandate to train its cadre of agents and officers stationed internationally to recognize and conduct investigations of forced child labor. Subject to certain exceptions, section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. §1307) prohibits importation into the United States of goods made with convict, forced, or indentured labor. Pursuant to the formation of DHS, the authorities and responsibilities of Department of Treasury U.S. Customs Service, the agency possessing primary jurisdiction to investigate and enforce laws and regulations prohibiting the importation of merchandise produced by forced labor, were delegated to ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
ICE receives significant funds from Congress to investigate alleged violations of forced labor and to pursue criminal convictions against violators. CBP has been delegated the authority to issue administrative orders prohibiting the entry of goods made with forced labor into the U.S. for predetermined or indefinite periods of time. ICE is also recognized as a lead federal agency in combating human trafficking and child sex tourism. With these authorities and appropriations have come additional responsibilities. In the most recent TVPRA, ICE and CBP were given the responsibility of reporting their efforts to combat forced labor in an annual report to Congress. They are also now required to conduct training on human trafficking and are tasked with working with the Department of State to conduct outreach and build partnerships with private entities to ensure that U.S. citizens do not use any item made by victims of labor trafficking.
In order to complete the mandates above, ICE agents posted overseas must have a full understanding of all U.S. Government programs, international organizations, and NGOs available as investigative and informational resources in these areas. In FY 2008, ICE OIA conducted held two international training conferences wherein ICE Attachés, ICE Representatives, and ICE Foreign Service National Investigators were trained to effectively and efficiently investigate allegations of forced labor, forced child labor, prison labor, and child exploitation. Further, in FY 2008, every ICE Office of International Affairs employee slated for a permanent change of station from the United States to a place outside the United States attended a mandatory outbound training program which included blocks of instruction on forced labor, forced child labor, prison labor, and human trafficking investigations.
In FY 2007, the ICE Attaché Bangkok, Thailand received information alleging the use of forced labor at Thai seafood processing facilities. Further research indicated that a portion of those facilities export to the United States; the ICE Attaché Bangkok opened an investigation. Soon thereafter, local Thai media reports were supplemented by the release of a 40-page report (published by the Solidarity Center, an NGO affiliated with the AFL-CIO that promotes workers’ rights) alleging widespread labor abuses in the shrimp processing industry in Bangladesh and Thailand. The report, entitled “The Degradation of Work: The True Cost of Shrimp” alleged that in both countries, companies “use the lack of labor rights and weak labor law enforcement to exploit shrimp processing workers.” After extensive negotiations with the Government of Thailand in the latter half of 2007 and through May 2008, the ICE Attaché Bangkok, in June 2008, conducted multiple surveys of Thai shrimp processing facilities. At the end of the survey period it was concluded that, on the date and time of the individual surveys, reasonable suspicion could not be established supporting the alleged use of forced labor practices by the Thai shrimp processors.
In September 2008, in an effort again to work with and investigate the Solidarity Center’s allegations, the ICE Attaché New Delhi deployed a team to Bangladesh and surveyed 16 shrimp processing facilities representing more than $60 million in exports to the United States annually. The ICE team concluded that, on the date and time of the individual surveys, reasonable suspicion could not be established supporting the alleged use of forced labor by Bangladeshi shrimp processors.
3. Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center
In its efforts to facilitate cross-border cooperation addressing the crime of human trafficking, the HSTC participates in international outreach programs with multinational organizations and representatives of foreign law enforcement and intelligence. Because of its close ties and cooperation with EUROPOL, the HSTC is the only non-EU law enforcement organization invited to participate in the annual EUROPOL Experts Meeting on Trafficking in Human Beings. Additionally, the HSTC participated in the EU’s usually restricted Trafficking Analysis Work File meeting in September 2008. The HSTC is also the U.S. lead and head of delegation to the Pacific Rim Immigration Intelligence Conference.
The HSTC partnered with DOJ’s OPDAT in providing comprehensive training, material, and specific subject matter guidance to Russian authorities via the HSTC-sponsored U.S. – Russia Bilateral Law Enforcement Task Force on Human Trafficking (RBLETF). The RBLETF trained Russian police, prosecutors, and NGOs in Kazan, Russia, on ways to broaden their investigative capability and prosecution preparation. The RBLETF worked to promote the skill sets needed between law enforcement and NGOs in order to fully investigate the crime of human trafficking while providing protection for victims. RBLETF members provided Kazan enforcement officials and NGOs with guidance on training curriculum development and the leveraging of existing external governmental and non-governmental resources.
Through this partnership, in October 2008, the RBLETF teamed with the International Organization for Migration in providing guidance, training material, and assistance to members of the State Duma (Russian Parliament), law enforcement authorities, and NGOs in the Russian Far East. The training, held in Khabarovsk and Vladivostok, Russia, emphasized how law enforcement agencies and NGOs should coordinate their anti-TIP efforts by jointly developing training aids and establishing parallel operating procedures to assist in human trafficking investigations. The RBLETF also worked with Russian investigators in developing a case preparation checklist for use in human trafficking investigations.
During FY 2008, HSTC representatives regularly conducted trafficking training sessions at the DOS’s Foreign Service Institute at the National Foreign Affairs Training Center. At these Foreign Service Institute sessions, over 400 Consular Fraud Prevention Officers and locally hired Consular anti-fraud staff who are assigned in source and transit countries are taught: (1) to recognize and prevent human trafficking; and (2) what government resources are available to assist in investigations and prosecutions. The HSTC participated in, and gave presentations at, a number of other international law enforcement trafficking conferences and workshops, and frequently met with foreign officials visiting the United States as part of the International Visitors Program.
4. Department of Health and Human Services
HHS hosted 23 international delegations in FY 2008. Law enforcement agents, non-governmental leaders, officials from health and social service ministries, medical personnel, immigration officers, and other anti-trafficking leaders from around the globe received briefings from HHS’s ATIP division staff on HHS’s efforts to combat human trafficking and assist victims in the U.S. Officials represented agencies and organizations in 36 countries: Algeria, Argentina, Canada, Czech Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liberia, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Netherlands, Nigeria, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, and Zambia.
On January 8, 2008, former HHS Secretary Michael O. Leavitt had a roundtable lunch with NGOs fighting TIP in Hyderabad, India. Six groups were represented at the roundtable: Society to Help Rural Empowerment and Education, Prajwala, Ankuram, International Organization for Migration, M. Venkatarangaiya (M.V.) Foundation, and HELP Organization.
5. Department of Defense
The Department of Defense has been a leading participant in NATO’s TIP training and training program development.
C. Outreach to Non-governmental Organizations and the Media
1. Department of Health and Human Services
Training and technical assistance in FY 2008 was offered to over 4,000 public health officials, local law enforcement officials, social service providers, ethnic organizations, and legal assistance organizations. HHS educated professionals at national or regional conventions of the International Association of Forensic Nurses, the National Migration Conference, Latino Social Work Organization, and the Migrant Clinician Network. HHS’s popular Rescue and Restore WebEx training events educated national, regional, and grassroots organizations on a variety of crucial topics, including the role of State Refugee Coordinators in assisting trafficking victims, how to create a shelter for human trafficking victims, and how social services agencies can collaborate with federal law enforcement to apply for Continued Presence on behalf of trafficking victims.
Throughout FY 2008, HHS leveraged its public awareness mandate to lead a U.S. Domestic Trafficking in Persons Notification Pilot Program. The Notification Pilot Program aimed to increase public awareness and victim assistance for U.S. citizen and LPR—that is, U.S. domestic—trafficking victims. The pilot provided suspected U.S. domestic trafficking victims with full information regarding the benefits and services for which they may be eligible by virtue of their citizenship or immigration status. In the process, HHS collected important information to help shape future policy development with regard to U.S. domestic victims.
Under the Pilot Program, HHS/ATIP Street Outreach grantees and intermediary contractors submitted Requests for Notification on behalf of U.S. domestic TIP victims in their current caseload. Awardees maintained sole responsibility for using specially developed HHS screening materials to determine a client’s victim status; a signed Notification Request stood as proof that the organization believed the client was a U.S. domestic TIP victim. HHS/ATIP reviewed the requests and provided a notification or a denial letter.
The U.S. domestic TIP Notification Pilot Program did not confer benefits on a victim; neither did the pilot provide a determination of TIP victim status. Rather, the pilot solicited client information from NGOs that are at the forefront of U.S. domestic TIP outreach and services, and then provided those clients and their case managers with full information regarding the benefits and services for which they may be eligible. NGOs and case managers retained full responsibility for assisting victims in the benefits determination and receipt process.
In February 2008, HHS expanded participation in the Pilot Program to include five grantees from the ACF Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) Youth Development Division Street Outreach Program. The Street Outreach Program’s congressional mandate requires FYSB to serve sexually exploited runaway and homeless youth, a client base with high vulnerability to sex trafficking. HHS In-Reach Campaign meetings had suggested a significant intersection between FYSB’s runaway and homeless youth populations and U.S. domestic minor sex trafficking populations, and pointed out a lack of trafficking knowledge and victim identification capacity within FYSB. Pilot expansion provided participating FYSB sites with intensive on-site human trafficking training and ongoing technical assistance.
The Rescue and Restore Victims of Human Trafficking campaign’s fifth year increased public awareness efforts by reaching over 1.3 million persons. Besides targeting individuals or entities that are most likely to come into contact with victims (discussed in Part C(1) above), the campaign also targeted the general public to increase awareness of human trafficking. The campaign’s media outreach component continued pursuing earned media stories and launched new efforts with billboard public service announcements across markets in the U.S. Media outreach in FY 2008 included pitching and responding to key national media requests, monitoring the news daily and, when appropriate, following up with reporters to encourage additional stories incorporating the HHS perspective and writing letters to the editor and/or op-eds in response to key stories. In the spring of 2008, the campaign began its billboard media initiative with outdoor advertisements in Newark, New Jersey. Nineteen more cities, including Atlanta, Chicago, and Las Vegas, were added during the month of May.
HHS distributed over 612,000 pieces of original, branded material publicizing the NHTRC. These materials included posters, brochures, fact sheets, and cards with tips on identifying victims in eight languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Indonesian, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, and Russian. The materials can be viewed and ordered at no cost on the HHS web site, www.acf.hhs.gov/trafficking, which is incorporated into all campaign materials. HHS’s site is also accessible through the Rescue and Restore website address, www.rescueandrestore.org. In FY 2008, the web site logged 118,903 unique visitors with nearly half a million page views.
2. Department of Homeland Security
ICE staff collaborates with NGOs that provide victims with services. Many NGOs have been instrumental in helping identify trafficking cases and victims. Outreach activities include presentations to corporate associations, academic groups, and local agencies. Outreach addresses multi-jurisdictional issues, collaborative activities, and problems of distinguishing between TIP and migrant smuggling.
In FY 2008, ICE Office of Investigations participated in and provided training at domestic conferences and seminars that included large numbers of NGO attendees. Pursuant to ICE TIPS, ICE domestic field offices conducted local outreach efforts to over 8,000 NGO representatives from over 1,000 organizations. In 2008, ICE Victim Assistance staff provided speakers to the Freedom Network Conference in Atlanta and the New Mexico Attorney General’s statewide effort to promote awareness of human trafficking.
ICE Office of International Affairs (OIA) has placed an increased emphasis on providing anti-trafficking training and outreach to foreign governments and law enforcement agencies, NGOs, and international organizations. This training and outreach is conducted through a variety of formats, including formal training academies, conferences, visits with international delegations in the U.S., and informal meetings.
An integral component of ICE’s foreign training and outreach relates to victim issues. ICE continues to provide training on its direct victim assistance efforts in trafficking cases to foreign law enforcement officers, NGO representatives, and other officials through the International Visitors Program and the International Law Enforcement Academies. The victim assistance staff who provide specialized briefings and training highlight the features of the victim-centered approach to investigations, the rights of foreign victims in the United States (including immigration relief), and special considerations for appropriate response to trafficked minors and traumatized victims.
Also in FY 2008, ICE OIA Headquarters personnel testified before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Committee) hearing in Geneva, Switzerland. The Committee was examining U.S. implementation of the two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on the sale of children and child prostitution and on children in armed conflict. There were approximately 18 Committee members from as many different countries and many representatives from international and U.S.-based NGOs in attendance during the hearing. DHS’s testimony addressed human trafficking victim issues and T visas.
In May 2008, ICE launched a media and public outreach campaign focused on human trafficking in the United States. The objectives of the campaign were threefold:
On May 26, 2008, ICE launched a Billboard Campaign in the New York City area entitled In Plain Sight. The trafficking awareness postings were displayed on highway billboards, subway platforms, the exterior and interior of buses, bus shelters, urban panels, and dioramas. In June 2008, the billboard campaign was expanded to Baltimore, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington, DC. To ensure effectiveness, the postings in the Los Angeles and Miami areas were printed in both English and Spanish. The campaign encouraged viewers to report human trafficking via the ICE tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE. Reporting this crime gives the public an opportunity to be a part of the solution to this social concern. ICE is expanding this campaign to additional cities during FY 2009.
ICE Headquarters developed and produced a PSA on human trafficking in order to enhance the awareness of the general public on this serious issue. The public at large will serve as a force-multiplier toward law enforcement’s efforts in identifying and rescuing victims, thus enabling ICE to identify more cases of human trafficking. The PSA is a 60-second visual focusing on victim recognition in order to raise awareness among the public at large, thereby enabling ICE to capitalize upon its expertise, infrastructure, and investigative resources to better combat this crime of modern day slavery. The PSA was originally made available in English and Spanish. However, in 2008, translations into Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Korean were added in order to reach the widest possible audience.
3. Department of Justice
a. Civil Rights Division
DOJ closely works with NGOs that serve trafficking victims on a case-by-case basis. In FY 2008, Division staff frequently participated in outreach and training programs oriented to NGO audiences. For example, members of the Human Trafficking Prosecutions Unit in the Civil Rights Division traveled to Decatur, Georgia, to attend and participate in the Sixth Annual Freedom Network USA Conference. The Freedom Network is a consortium of over two dozen service providers who specialize in direct service provision and host training events nationally.
b. Office for Victims of Crime
As part of OVC’s mission to increase the nation’s awareness of the rights and services available to victims of all types of crimes, OVC included the issue of human trafficking in several products and public awareness initiatives that were completed in 2008. For example, in April 2008, in coordination with National Crime Victims Rights Week, OVC released a video entitled “Faith-Based Responses to Crime Victims.” This video, which included a specific segment on services provided to human trafficking victims, provides the faith community and the victim services field with examples of successful collaborations that are making a difference in victims’ lives. In addition, the 2008 National Crime Victims Rights Week Resource Guide, which was disseminated to thousands of NGOs across the U.S. to assist with public awareness activities, included general information and a statistical overview of human trafficking as well as other forms of victimization.
OVC also released a 30-minute training DVD and accompanying Resource Guide in April 2008 entitled “Responding to Victims of Human Trafficking” that is designed to educate traditional victim service providers on the dynamics of trafficking and strategies for expanding their capacity and resources to meet the comprehensive service needs of human trafficking victims. OVC worked closely with Safe Horizon, an experienced victim services grantee whose work in providing training and technical assistance to other trafficking services providers has helped to shape the content of the video.
OVC worked with agencies within DOJ and other federal agencies to ensure that the Fourth Annual Human Trafficking Conference included representation from all trafficking service providers funded by OVC. OVC staff was involved in the planning of several workshops, including sessions entitled “Special Issues With Child Victims in Forced Labor and Sex Trafficking Cases” and “Best Practices for Victim Intake by NGOs, In Light of a Prosecution.” OVC also developed a breakout session entitled “T Visas, U Visas and Other forms of Immigration Relief: The Roles of Law Enforcement, NGOs, and the Vermont Service Center.” This session generated extensive discussion between victim service providers and law enforcement regarding on-going challenges in this area.
4. Department of State
The release of the DOS 2008 TIP Report resulted in over 1.2 billion media impressions. Ambassador Mark P. Lagon, former director of G/TIP, maintained a rigorous public-speaking schedule – addressing various think-tanks and fora – including the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking, the American Bar Association, and the American Enterprise Institute, thereby broadening the TIP audience to those working on development, legal awareness, and civil society enhancement.
G/TIP distributed a variety of public awareness materials throughout the year, including the annual Trafficking in Persons Report and various fact sheets, among them two revised fact sheets focusing on forced labor and child sex tourism. In calendar year 2008, G/TIP’s director and staff conducted speeches and briefings at more than 100 events for NGOs, foreign officials, journalists, students, and the general public, reaching more than an estimated 6,200 individuals in the United States and around the world.
G/TIP also organized several briefings for Washington-based NGOs by the office director. In calendar year 2008, G/TIP conducted separate post-TIP Report briefings for NGOs and foreign diplomats (both with record number of attendees and organizations represented); the first North American trilateral TIP meeting with the United States, Mexico, and Canada; and an international symposium on Human Trafficking Aftercare, featuring 10 experienced victim service providers who discussed how best to protect and assist victims of human trafficking after they are identified and rescued. The product of this symposium is a Summary Report that identifies guiding principles, core aftercare services, capacity building strategies, and examples of promising practices for aftercare programs. G/TIP hosted its second annual Bidder’s Conference in December 2008 to inform potential grantees about priorities and procedures; approximately 125 representatives from 80 organizations attended. The presentation materials are available for all to review: http://2001-2009.state.gov/g/tip/rls/other/2008/113183.htm.
G/TIP worked closely with the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives on the October 2008 Roundtable, “Success Against Slavery, Strategies for the Future: Promising Practices in International Programming,” marking the eighth anniversary of the signing of the TVPA. The Roundtable featured six NGOs on two panels focused on both sex trafficking and trafficking for forced labor. The audience included U.S. Government officials, policymakers, business leaders, foundation representatives, philanthropists, and community leaders from religious committees and social service providers.
The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL) reports on trafficking in persons as one on many human rights issues in its annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. Through the Office of International Labor and Corporate Social Responsibility (ILCSR), DRL continued to engage with a wide range of NGOs and the media to collect information and raise awareness on forced labor and trafficking in persons. DRL has funded numerous programs with NGO partners to promote human rights and combat exploitative labor practices, which may include trafficking in persons. In 2008, DRL co-hosted with the Belgian government a multi-stakeholder forum to address the worst forms of child labor, including trafficking in persons, in the cocoa sector in West Africa. DRL co-hosted with the U.S. Institute of Peace a public forum to address issues related to children and armed conflict, touching upon issues such as the forcible recruitment and use of children, including those trafficked into soldiering. The audience included U.S. and foreign government officials, UN, NGOs, academia, journalists, and many others. DRL also hosted a roundtable to discuss private sector initiatives to combat forced and slave labor in Brazil, particularly to address labor supply chain issues. In addition to the Brazilian government, several prominent Brazilian NGOs participated in the event.
5. Department of Education
The U.S. Department of Education Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools (OSDFS) has worked with Federal agencies and school districts nationwide on combating trafficking in persons. The Secretary of Education and OSDFS Assistant Deputy Secretary and Associate Assistant Deputy Secretary have participated in the Senior Policy Operating Group, and other staff from the Department of Education are active in the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking to coordinate the U.S. Government’s anti-trafficking efforts. OSDFS also participates in the Federal Agency Task Force on Missing and Exploited Children and is a new member of the Innocence Lost Working Group. The Department of Education developed and released “Human Trafficking of Children in the United States - A Fact Sheet for Schools” and identified new listservs, organizational partners, and ways to promote this fact sheet.
D. Department of State’s Outreach to Foreign Governments
Through G/TIP,[9] DOS represents the U.S. in the global fight to address human trafficking, engaging with foreign governments, international and inter-governmental organizations, and civil society to develop and implement effective strategies for confronting this form of modern-day slavery. The director of the office also chairs the SPOG, the senior�'level interagency working group that coordinates U.S. Government’s efforts to fight trafficking and addresses interagency policy, program, and planning issues.
G/TIP issued the eighth annual Trafficking in Persons Report in June 2008. The report is the U.S. Government’s principal diplomatic tool used to engage foreign governments on the subject. It places countries in tiers according to government efforts to combat trafficking. It also includes detailed information on U.S. Government policy covering sex trafficking, child sex tourism, child soldiers, forced labor, involuntary servitude, and corruption in order to demonstrate the United States’ commitment to promoting effective change. The 2008 TIP Report marked a new watershed: it documented that over half of the world’s governments covered in the Report have since 2000 enacted legislation criminally prohibiting all forms of trafficking. Key trends seen in foreign countries outlined in the 2008 TIP Report included: (1) greater overall awareness of human trafficking issues among foreign governments; (2) less attention paid to labor trafficking crimes evidenced by law enforcement data showing labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions representing less than 10 percent of overall trafficking prosecutions and convictions; and (3) inadequate victim protection, particularly for child victims of trafficking.
Media coverage of the release of the 2008 TIP Report was extensive, from all the major domestic newspapers to hundreds of national and international news outlets across the globe. The release of the TIP Report generated approximately 400 articles in over 300 media outlets and in 73 different countries.
According to the 2008 TIP Report, 28 countries adopted new legislation or amended existing legislation to combat TIP during the reporting period of March 2007 to March 2008. Many countries made other strides in the fight against human trafficking as well. Successes include:
DOS will release the 2009 TIP Report in June 2009, and it can be accessed at http://www.state.gov/j/tip.
G/TIP staff engaged in extensive outreach to foreign counterparts in 2008. In preparation for the 2009 Report, the G/TIP Reports and Political Affairs Section traveled to 59 countries to meet with foreign government officials and international organizations and NGO representatives. G/TIP also reached out to foreign governments through regular briefing of foreign officials and other international visitors in Washington, DC. These briefings provided insight on what the U.S. Government is doing to combat TIP in the United States and around the world. The DOS Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ International Visitors Program sponsored several groups that came to the United States specifically to learn more about the U.S. experience with combating human trafficking.
G/TIP made 33 presentations to over 268 visitors from more than 120 countries in calendar year 2008. These participants in DOS’s International Visitor Leadership Program ranged from prosecutors and judges to NGO representatives to labor inspectors. G/TIP’s director and staff also participated in 8 Digital Video conferences which covered topics that included, among others, Madagascar’s Tier 1 ranking in the 2008 TIP Report, DOS and DOJ sharing best practices with the Netherlands on handling forced labor cases, and the coordinated response of NGOs and government in Bulgaria to combat TIP.
E. Department of State’s Multilateral Efforts
G/TIP remained actively engaged in multilateral meetings in 2008. The G/TIP Ambassador led an inter-agency delegation to the UN GIFT Vienna Forum in February 2008, an event organized by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). This international conference on human trafficking garnered significant media attention and drew approximately 1500 participants, including first ladies, government ministers, senior business representatives, NGOs, and celebrities. The U.S. Government was able to highlight its anti-trafficking record through a national statement, panel presentations, and media interviews, and an information booth.
In May 2008, the G/TIP Ambassador led another U.S. delegation to appear for the first time before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. The U.S. delegation presented information on federal and state efforts to implement the UN Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography and the UN Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict. The U.S. delegation included the Attorney General of New Mexico, who gave the perspective of a state official.
The UN General Assembly hosted a one-day, thematic debate focused on TIP in June 2008. The debate consisted of panels on enhancing the role of multilateral organizations, protecting victims, and encouraging cross border cooperation in prosecuting traffickers; the G/TIP Ambassador was a speaker.
In September 2008, DOS and DOJ sent representatives to an Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OCSE) conference of national TIP rapporteurs in Vienna, Austria. G/TIP highlighted the work of the U.S. Government’s President’s Interagency Task Force (PITF) and the Senior Policy Operating Group. The Bureau of Justice Statistics gave a presentation on the U.S. Human Trafficking Reporting System, which collects data from the DOJ-funded human trafficking task forces.
In October 2008, G/TIP joined a U.S. delegation to the 4th UN Conference of Parties (COP) to the Convention on Transnational Organized Crime in Vienna, Austria. During the COP’s discussion on implementation of the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, a G/TIP representative presented the U.S. Government’s victim-centered and multi-disciplinary approach to combating human trafficking.
Led by DOJ, the U.S. Government sent a multidisciplinary delegation to the World Congress III Against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents in November 2008 in Rio de Janeiro. The U.S. Government prepared and submitted to the Rapporteur of World Congress III a report reflecting the U.S. Government’s efforts to combat sexual exploitation of children and adolescents since World Congress II in Yokohama in 2001. While in Rio, the U.S. Government was an active participant in negotiating and working on the Rio Declaration and Plan of Action to Prevent and Stop Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents.
Finally, G/TIP prepared the U.S. Government’s response to three anti-trafficking questionnaires from the OSCE, NATO, and the UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons.
IX. Trafficking Studies
In FY 2008, OJP’s National Institute of Justice completed eight trafficking reports and funded another two:
COMPLETED
Understanding and Improving Law Enforcement Responses to Human Trafficking (Northeastern University, 2008). The national survey found that local law enforcement agencies perceive that human trafficking is rare or nonexistent in their communities; however, agencies that serve larger communities are more likely to view human trafficking as a pervasive problem, particularly sex trafficking. Over half of the law enforcement agencies serving large jurisdictions (defined as a population over 250,000) have investigated trafficking cases. All types of law enforcement agencies, including those serving small jurisdictions, have investigated at least one case of human trafficking. Nearly 92 percent of law enforcement agencies reported a connection between human trafficking and other criminal networks, such as drug trafficking and prostitution networks. Agencies that have identified human-trafficking cases report using proactive investigative strategies, such as collecting information on human trafficking indicators in the course of investigating other crimes. The national survey was distributed to a national random sample of approximately 3,000 state, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies in the United States. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/222752.pdf.
Data and Research on Human Trafficking: Bibliography of Research-Based Literature (Georgetown University, 2008). This project conducted a literature review and built a citation database to provide a detailed description of the state of English language research on human trafficking. The database used a taxonomy to categorize identified research-based journal articles, reports, and books. The analysis of the database revealed that there is little systematic and reliable data on the scale of the phenomenon of human trafficking; limited understanding of the characteristics of victims, their life experiences, and their trafficking trajectories; poor understanding of the modus operandi of traffickers and their networks; and lack of evaluation research on the effectiveness of governmental anti-trafficking policies and the efficacy of rescue and restore programs, among other gaps in the current state of knowledge about human trafficking. Such information is vital to helping decision makers craft effective policies, service providers develop culturally sensitive and linguistically appropriate and efficacious programs, and law enforcement enhance their ability to identify and protect victims and prosecute traffickers. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/224392.pdf.
Finding Victims of Human Trafficking (National Opinion Research Center, 2008). This study responded to a congressional mandate to (1) identify victims and potential victims of domestic trafficking; (2) determine whether victims have been identified as such by law enforcement; and (3) explore differences between sex trafficking and unlawful commercial sex. It examined human trafficking experiences among a sample of 60 counties across the country. The findings suggest that local awareness levels and enforcement approaches were associated with whether sites had state trafficking statutes. That is, law enforcement respondents in sites with state trafficking statutes were more aware of the issue and were more likely to have received training and to have implemented proactive strategies to respond to the problem. Sites with state trafficking statutes also were more likely to have collaborated and/or to be actively collaborating with federal authorities in responding to the problem. Several recommendations for policy and practice and future research are presented and discussed. Highlights of select recommendations include: (1) expand and provide training to law enforcement and prosecutors that clearly distinguishes the various trafficking offenses, such as smuggling, domestic human trafficking, and sex trafficking; and how to identify, investigate, make cases against perpetrators and find assistance for victims; (2) develop and provide technical assistance on maintaining adequate recordkeeping systems at the local level to track and monitor sex-related cases and investigations; and (3) make resources available for law enforcement and service providers to focus on human trafficking offenses. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/224393.pdf.
Final Report on the Evaluation of the First Offender Prostitution Program (Abt Associates: 2008). This report presents the methodology and findings of an evaluation of San Francisco's First Offender Prostitution Program (FOPP), which is designed to reduce the demand for commercial sex and human trafficking by educating men arrested for soliciting prostitutes ("johns") about the adverse consequences of prostitution. Findings from the outcome phase of the evaluation show that the FOPP has substantially reduced recidivism among men arrested for soliciting prostitutes. The program has been cost-effective, in that it has operated for over 12 years without any cost to taxpayers while generating nearly $1 million for recovery programs that target providers of commercial sex. The program is also transferable, as shown by its successful replication in 12 other U.S. sites and adapted in some form in just over 25 additional U.S. sites over the past decade. Suggestions for program improvement include adding curriculum elements that build skills that enable men to find ways to meet their needs more positively than through commercial sex. Other suggestions are to add aftercare and conduct Web-based reverse stings in responding to changes in the commercial sex market. Suggestions are also offered for future research and the dispensing of practical information on "john" schools to those planning or implementing such programs. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/221894.pdf.
Victims No Longer: Research on Child Survivors of Trafficking for Sexual and Labor Exploitation in the United States (Georgetown University: 2008). This report is based on findings from a 12-month study undertaken by the Institute for the Study of International Migration (ISIM) and the Migration and Refugee Services (MRS) to examine patterns of abuse of child victims of trafficking, explore the challenges faced by service providers assisting child victims, and examine ways to integrate child survivors of trafficking into society. Several emerging themes within the realm of solutions and resolutions are identified; however, the ultimate solution is related to prevention and eradication of child trafficking. Recommendations presented in working toward solutions and resolutions include: (1) the need to earmark development resources to establish high quality educational programs in order to reduce child labor and prevent child trafficking; (2) the need for continued monitoring and assessments of both national and international initiatives to reduce child labor; (3) the need to shift away from monitoring industries and workplaces employing children to the monitoring of children removed from work; and (4) the need to enhance collaboration between actors in source and destination countries interested in reducing child labor and preventing child trafficking. Human trafficking for sexual exploitation and forced labor is one of the fastest growing areas of criminal activity. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/221891.pdf.
Prosecuting Human Trafficking Cases: Lessons Learned and Promising Practices (Caliber Associates / American Prosecutor’s Research Institute: 2008). This report examined the effect of existing legislation on successful prosecution of human trafficking cases. Surveys of federal and state attorneys, interviews with key stakeholders, and analysis of legislation and legal cases inside and outside the U.S. were used to identify key issues in prosecution and lessons learned. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/223972.pdf.
Fostering Imagination in Fighting Trafficking: Comparing Strategies and Policies to Fight Sex Trafficking in the U.S. and Sweden (Dr. John T Picarelli: 2008). This project compared the responses in the U.S. and Sweden to identify synergies and divergences that impact policymaking and practice in both countries. The report discusses how sex trafficking operates in each country and then proceeds to detail their anti-trafficking efforts. The comparison goes beyond law enforcement efforts to consider how foreign policy, development aid and even security play a role in the fight against trafficking. The report concludes with a discussion of the difficulties each country continues to face when implementing anti-trafficking policies and programs. The report argues that neither country has a turnkey model that “solves” trafficking. Rather, each country has adopted an anti-trafficking strategy and the policies to implement it that reflect their value system, attitude towards prostitution, governmental capacities, historical experiences, legal codes and geopolitical outlooks. First, the similarities between each country’s anti-trafficking strategy and policies suggest “best practices” that other countries can emulate. Second, the differences between the U.S. and Sweden are the result of larger social, political, historical and geographical contexts, including attitudes towards prostitution and gender equality. Such contexts might potentially limit the transferability of U.S. and Swedish policies to other countries. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/223060.pdf.
Cross-National Collaboration to Combat Human Trafficking: Learning From the Experience of Others (Dr. Phil Reichel: 2008). This project sought to understand how Europe-based organizations are accomplishing cross-national collaboration to combat human trafficking and to use that information to develop suggestions for improving United States-Canada anti-trafficking efforts. Participants agreed that cooperation among countries is a necessary ingredient in combating transnational crime in general and trafficking in persons specifically. Yet even when political will and sufficient and domestic cooperation was present, effective cross-national cooperation was not easily achieved. Examples of impediments were problems related to corruption, competition, differing legal systems, evaluation, and approach. Aside from these impediments to cross-national cooperation, participants were able to identify a variety of techniques to promote collaboration, such as identifying common ground, establishing trust, facilitating networking, and involving the right people. In conclusion, the project notes that Europe-based participants were able to list impediments to cooperation and to provide techniques to promote cooperation, but the North American participants seemed to have given less thought to either challenges to, or strategies for, improving cross-national collaboration. In North America, the concern is more with day-to-day operations for combating human trafficking, whereas in Europe there seems a greater awareness and sensitivity to dealing with human trafficking in a broader contextual framework. The report is available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/223286.pdf.
FUNDED
A National Assessment of Sex Trafficking Demand Reduction Efforts (Abt Associates). This research study seeks to assess criminal justice strategies and collaborative programs have emerged over the past 20 years that focus on reducing the demand for commercial sex. Communities mounting demand reduction efforts have done so with little guidance from the collective experience of others who have. As a result many programs have struggled or failed when faced with problems that had been solved elsewhere. To inform those operating, or planning or sex trafficking demand reduction initiatives, the grantee will conduct a systematic description and process/formative evaluation of programs and strategies employed throughout the country. The grantee will use a sampling frame of over 435 sites that are known to have engaged in some form of sex trafficking demand reduction. Of these they will survey a sample of 150 sites, create a typology, and conduct intensive case studies of a purposive sample of 20 of these sites.
A Review and Translation of Spanish Language Literature on Sex Trafficking (San Diego State University Research Foundation). This project seeks to fill an identified gap in the research on human trafficking. The grantee notes that while a high number of sex trafficking activities in North America originate from Latin America, little is known about the work of researchers from Latin America who focus on trafficking. This gap persists even though researchers in Latin America (particularly in Mexico) have been writing about TIP for some time. This project will review and make available findings from Latin American reports to the English-speaking research and practice communities. The project will also address an important body of literature produced by researchers who know their socio-cultural practices the best. Tasks include compiling, translating, analyzing, and providing summaries of existing literature on sex trafficking produced by researchers in Mexico and Latin American countries, grouping the literature according to the basic research orientation (i.e., empirical versus non-empirical) and developing a bibliography that will allow easier access to this body of literature.
X. President’s Interagency Trafficking Task Force & Senior Policy Operating Group
In accordance with the TVPA, President Bush established the cabinet-level PITF by Executive Order 13257 in February 2002 to coordinate federal efforts to combat TIP. In 2008, the PITF met on July 11. At the meeting, the Task Force discussed on-going initiatives and progress to fight human trafficking and a path forward on priorities for future efforts. Principals signed a Declaration of Achievements summarizing the work of federal agencies to prosecute traffickers, protect victims, and prevent trafficking from 2001 to 2008. For more information on the PITF, please see the following website: http://2001-2009.state.gov/g/tip/rls/fs/08/107409.htm.
The SPOG reports to the PITF and is chaired by the director of G/TIP. Congress authorized the creation of the SPOG in the TVPRA 2003 to coordinate interagency policy, grants, research, and planning issues involving international TIP and the implementation of the TVPA.
The SPOG meets quarterly and includes representatives from DOS, DOJ, DHS, HHS, DOL, DOD, Department of Education, USAID, the DOS Office of the Geographer and Global Issues representing the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Office of Management and Budget. The National Security Council, the Domestic Policy Council, and the Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator also participate in SPOG meetings. In FY 2008, the SPOG met on December 6, February 28, May 15, and September 18.
The SPOG continued to play a prominent role in identifying challenges and priorities in the areas of victim assistance, public awareness, actionable research and reports, international efforts, and program funding. The SPOG merged the Subcommittee on Trafficking in Persons Research and the Subcommittee on U.S. TIP Statistics into one subcommittee, named the SPOG Subcommittee on Human Trafficking Research and Data. The goals of the two subcommittees have largely been the same, to enhance the U.S. government’s actionable research and data on the human trafficking issue, and to ensure that agencies’ efforts to gather and fund such information are complementary. The Subcommittee on Human Trafficking Research and Data updated the matrix of all U.S. Government-funded TIP research projects (posted on the G/TIP website at http://www.state.gov/j/tip). The SPOG Public Affairs Subcommittee worked to coordinate anti-trafficking campaigns and messaging. The SPOG established a Global TIP Coordination Subcommittee in March 2008, which met three times in FY 2008. The Subcommittee allows for consultation earlier in the program planning process and institutionalizes information-sharing to further enhance the complementarity of U.S. Government international anti-trafficking programs.
Through SPOG meetings and throughout the year, the SPOG agencies coordinated policy implementation, programs, and new initiatives. The SPOG continued the practice of all programming agencies commenting on one other’s grant proposals for anti-trafficking projects to enhance coordination and focus on U.S. Government policy priority areas. The SPOG agencies continued to work to fulfill TVPA mandates, even in the absence of appropriated funds. For example, HHS continued its U.S. Domestic TIP Notification Pilot Program to make U.S. citizens aware of services for which they may already be eligible; the SPOG gathered information on U.S. Government efforts to fight demand fueling human trafficking and produced a fact sheet to raise awareness; and DHS/USCIS published the Adjustment of Status Regulation for T and U visa holders creating a pathway to citizenship for eligible T visa recipients.
During FY 2008, the SPOG agencies continued to implement projects funded under President Bush’s $50 Million Trafficking in Persons Initiative. This multi-agency effort provided funding through DOS, DOJ, DOL, HHS, DHS, and USAID to eight foreign countries: Brazil, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Moldova, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania. The funding has supported training of local NGOs; resources and training for law enforcement units (where possible) to identify and rescue victims; emergency shelters, medical treatment, rehabilitation, reintegration services, and vocational training for those victims; and training of judges and prosecutors to prosecute and convict traffickers. For more information on the impact of certain projects under this initiative, see the following website: http://2001-2009.state.gov/g/tip/rls/fs/08/111406.htm.
The U.S. Government is committed to combating human trafficking with all the resources available to it. This fight is one of our highest priorities for ensuring justice in the United States and around the world.
As this report has detailed, U.S. Government departments and agencies provide trafficking victims with a range of social services, both directly and through grantees; vigorously investigate and prosecute trafficking cases; and provide training, outreach, and assistance to domestic and international law enforcement and non-government organizations. The United States is aided by the modern tools created by the TVPA and its reauthorizations to address trafficking in persons with a renewed and intensified vigor.
Appendix A[10]:
Examples of cases investigated or prosecuted by DOJ in FY 2008 include the following:
1. Criminal Section, Civil Rights Division, in conjunction with the USAOs:
United States v. Calimlim (Wisconsin). Two defendants were convicted of holding a Filipino woman as a domestic servant in their home outside Milwaukee for nearly 20 years by using threats of deportation and other nonviolent forms of coercion. The defendants were each sentenced to four years in prison and jointly ordered to pay the victim $960,000 in restitution. In 2008, the Seventh Circuit published an opinion affirming the convictions and ordering re-sentencing of the defendants in a manner that will likely result in lengthier prison terms.
United States v. Carreto (New York). Seven defendants entered guilty pleas for violating 18 U.S.C. § 1591 by operating a trafficking ring that smuggled young Mexican women and girls into the United States illegally and, through sexual and physical assaults and threats to harm their families in Mexico, forced the victims into prostitution in Queens and Brooklyn. Two lead defendants were sentenced to 50 years in prison and a third was sentenced to 25 years in prison. A fourth defendant was sentenced to 80 months in prison. The final and seventh defendant pled guilty in July 2008 after being extradited to the United States from Mexico, and awaits sentencing.
United States v. Djoumessi (Michigan). Two defendants were convicted of involuntary servitude for holding a 14-year-old Cameroonian girl as a domestic servant in their Michigan home by using a scheme of violence, threats, and sexual assault. One defendant was sentenced to 218 months imprisonment and the other was sentenced to 60 months imprisonment. The defendants were ordered to pay the victim $100,000 in restitution. In 2008 the Sixth Circuit published an opinion affirming the convictions and sentences.
United States v. Farrell (South Carolina). On February 22, 2008 two hotel owners were convicted in South Dakota for peonage, document servitude, and visa fraud for using threats of legal coercion and other threats to compel Filipino workers into service in the defendants' hotels. The lead defendant was sentenced to 50 months imprisonment, the second defendant was sentenced to 36 months, and they were fined $15,000.
United States v. Jones (Georgia). Defendant Jones was charged in Atlanta, Georgia, with multiple counts of sex trafficking, sex trafficking of a minor, peonage, Mann Act violations and extortionate collection of credit, for recruiting and forcing young women to engage in prostitution in the Atlanta area. Defendant Jones lured the U.S. citizen victims into signing fraudulent modeling contracts, and then used physical and sexual abuse, threats of force, and extortion to compel the young women into prostitution. On January 24, 2008, defendant Jones pled guilty on the eve of trial and was sentenced to fifteen years in prison and offered to pay restitution in the amount of $60,600 to six victims.
United States v. Mondragon (Texas). Of eight defendants convicted of forced labor in the prior year, six were sentenced in FY 2008 to imprisonment for terms of up to 180 months for their respective roles in a scheme to smuggle young Central American women into the United States, and to use threats of harm to their relatives to compel them into service in bars, restaurants and cantinas. The defendants were also ordered to pay restitution to their victims in amounts of up to $1.7 million.
United States v. Navarrete (Florida). In 2008 five defendants pled guilty to charges relating to a scheme to enslave Mexican and Guatemalan nationals and compel their labor as farm workers in an area near Ft. Myers, Florida. In particular, Cesar and Geovanni Navarrete pled guilty to beating, threatening, and restraining workers to force them to work as agricultural laborers. The two lead defendants were sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment and ordered to pay over $200,000 in restitution to the victims.
United States v. Norris et al. (Georgia). Three defendants, including former professional wrestler “Hardbody” Harrison Norris, were charged with federal conspiracy, sex trafficking, and forced labor violations for their participation in a scheme to recruit and sometimes kidnap young U.S. citizen women and then force the women into prostitution. Defendant Norris was also charged with multiple counts of witness tampering. Two of the three defendants entered guilty pleas to conspiring to commit sex trafficking, and defendant Norris was convicted at trial. In March 2008, defendant Norris was sentenced to life in prison.
United States v. Paris et al. (Connecticut). Ten defendants were criminally charged in a multi-count Indictment for operating prostitution businesses in the Hartford, Connecticut, area. The defendants recruited young, vulnerable girls and women and marketed them to perform sexual acts with males in exchange for money. Nine of the ten defendants entered guilty pleas for their involvement in this scheme, and two of those defendants pled guilty to trafficking three minor victims as well as two adults through force, fraud, and coercion. Defendant Dennis Paris was convicted at trial for violating multiple trafficking-related offenses. On October 14, 2008, Paris was sentenced to 360 months in prison.
United States v. Paulin et al. (Florida). On March 4, 2008, two defendants – Haitian-Americans Evelyn Theodore and her daughter, Maude Paulin – were found guilty at trial of forced labor and conspiracy charges in connection with the forced labor of a 14-year-old victim whom the defendants brought from Haiti to Miami to work in the defendants’ home. Between 1999 and 2005, the defendants used physical force and psychological coercion to force the victim to work 15 hours a day, seven days a week, cooking, cleaning and doing other household and yard work for the defendants. On May 20, 2008, defendant Paulin was sentenced to 87 months in prison and was ordered to pay the victim $162,765 in restitution.
United States v. Valenzuela et al. (California). On February 11, 2009, five defendants were convicted of conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, importation of aliens for purposes of prostitution, and related offenses for their role in recruiting young, vulnerable women and girls from Guatemala on false promises of legitimate jobs, smuggling them into the United States, and then compelling them into prostitution using a combination of threats, deception, rape, physical violence and witchcraft to compel the victims to perform acts of prostitution. The defendants face penalties of up to life in prison. Four defendants had previously entered guilty pleas in connection with the scheme. In 2008, four defendants pled guilty to federal charges in connection with this sex trafficking operation.
2. Cases from CEOS and USAOs:
United States v. Webster (Alaska). On February 5, 2008, Don Arthur Webster, Jr., was convicted in the District of Alaska on several counts of sex trafficking of children and adults through the use of force, fraud, and coercion, as well as numerous counts pertaining to the distribution of crack cocaine. The evidence at trial established that Webster would target children and women who were homeless, in low-paying jobs, or runaways and invite them to work for his sham “escort services.” On August 15, 2008, Webster was sentenced to 30 years in prison. The court ordered that the defendant pay over $3 million in restitution to eleven victims.
United States v. Pepe (California). In May, 2008, following a three-week trial, retired Marine Corps captain Michael Joseph Pepe, 54, of Oxnard, California, was convicted on seven counts of traveling to Cambodia for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with minors. During the trial, government prosecutors presented testimony from six of the seven girls that Pepe sexually abused. The defendant faces up to 210 years in federal prison as a result of the guilty verdicts on seven felony counts.
United States v. Corliss (New Jersey). Wayne Nelson Corliss, 59, of Union City, N.J., was arrested in May 2008 after INTERPOL released a photo to media outlets around the world and made a global appeal for information that could identify the offender depicted in the photo. The image of the offender had been cropped from photos depicting him sexually abusing young children in Southeast Asia. Within 48 hours and acting on information obtained from individuals who recognized the offender as Corliss, ICE agents, coordinating with INTERPOL, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, and CEOS located and arrested Corliss. Corliss pled guilty to a five-count information charging him with three counts of traveling in foreign commerce with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, and one count each of producing and possessing child pornography.
Examples of cases investigated by ICE in FY 2008 include the following:
United States v. Cortes-Meza (Georgia). On June 5, 2008, ICE agents arrested Raul Cortes-Meza on charges of conspiracy, child sex trafficking, importation for immoral purposes and harboring. The defendant harbored a seventeen year-old female and drove her to numerous apartments in the Atlanta metropolitan area to have sex with paying clients. Cortes-Meza would collect the money from the men engaged in the commercial sex acts with the victim. On February 5, 2009, Cortes-Meza pleaded guilty to sex trafficking. The defendant faces a minimum mandatory sentence of ten years.
United States v. Garrett (Georgia). On June 17, 2008, Malika Garrett and her husband, Russell Garrett, were indicted in the Northern District of Georgia on charges of human trafficking, alien harboring, witness tampering, and making false statements. The defendants were charged with conspiring to encourage and induce a female victim, an Indian national, to enter the United States under false pretenses for the purpose of serving as a nanny for their children. They later ceased paying the victim for her work as a nanny, significantly curtailed her freedom and ability to leave their home, and threatened to malign her to family in India if she did not work for them. The Garretts compelled the victim to work in their home for up to 16 hours a day, nearly every day. On January 23, 2009, Malika and Russell Garrett pleaded guilty to harboring an alien for private financial gain. Malika Garrett pleaded guilty to an additional count of making a false statement to federal authorities.
United States v. Dann (California). In February 2009, Mabelle De La Rosa Dann was indicted in the United States District Court, Northern District of California, for the offense of conspiracy to commit visa fraud, forced labor and attempted force labor, document servitude, and harboring an illegal alien for purpose of private financial gain. Dann is alleged to have conspired with others to commit visa fraud in order to facilitate the entry of the victim into the United States. The victim was to work for Dann as a domestic servant. Dann is further alleged to have possessed the victim’s travel documents for the purpose of exercising control over the victim and obtaining labor and services from the victim. Dann faces a maximum of twenty years confinement for forced labor, ten years confinement for visa fraud, ten years confinement for harboring an illegal alien for private gain, five years confinement for conspiracy to commit visa fraud, and five years confinement for the unlawful conduct regarding documents in furtherance of servitude.
United States v. Chacon-Roque (Maryland). On January 28, 2008, a sealed indictment was returned in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland charging Jose Hugo Chacon-Roque, Aida Pereira, Iris Martinez-Solorzano, and others with conspiracy to violate the Mann Act by helping to transport at least one hundred women from New York and New Jersey to Maryland in order to employ them as prostitutes. Chacon-Roque, Pereira, and Martinez-Solorzano received prison sentences of 18, 27, and 32 months, respectively.
Appendix C: HHS Victim Services Network
Appendix D: United States Government Funds Obligated in FY 2008 for Anti-Trafficking in Persons Projects
(click here for Appendix D)
[1] This report reflects information from various components of the Department of Justice, as well as information reported to the Department by other U.S. government agencies and departments involved in anti-human trafficking efforts.
[2] In issuing Continued Presence (CP) and T Visa approvals, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not refer to a standardized list of country names. Rather, DHS uses the country of origin as reported by a victim. Therefore, victims reporting Korea as their country of origin were disaggregated from those who reported South Korea and the Republic of Korea as their countries of origin.
