Human trafficking is a serious problem in the United States and throughout the world. It involves victims who are forced, defrauded or coerced into labor or sexual exploitation. Human traffickers most often prey on women and children, forcing them to work as prostitutes, in sweatshops, bars, agricultural fields, or as domestic laborers. In the U.S. Annually, an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people—mostly women and children—are trafficked across national borders. Approximately 14,500 to 17,500 of these victims are believed to enter the U.S. each year. This figure does not include the estimated 200,000 incidents of sexually exploited U.S. children within our borders. According to the U.S. Department of State, human trafficking deprives people of their human rights and freedoms, creates a global health risk, and it fuels the growth of organized crime. It has a devastating impact on individual victims, who suffer physical and emotional abuse, rape, threats against themselves and their families, and even death.

With the passage of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in 2000 and the reauthorizations in 2003 and 2005, law enforcement, prosecutors, and service agencies have more tools at their disposal to combat trafficking in persons, both domestically and internationally. Agencies are working together across the U.S. to increase the number of trafficking victims rescued and the number of prosecutions and convictions of traffickers. Still more needs to be done to address this heinous crime against humanity. Local, State, and federal law enforcement agencies need to continue to work collaboratively and share information to aid in the investigation and prosecution of these cases. Additionally, collaboration needs to involve the governmental and non-governmental agencies providing needed services to the victims of this crime. More training and education is needed of law enforcement officers, including local and State officers who are most likely to be the ones to come across the teenagers being prostituted at truck stops or the homeless men being forced to work in the orchards or the illegal immigrant being held as a domestic servant through a domestic violence call for help. Efforts need to continue at the federal and State level to ensure legislation is in place to punish pimps and traffickers and that adequate resources are available to help restore the lives of victims.

Federal Efforts to Combat Interstate Sex Trafficking of Minors

It has been a federal crime to transport minors over state lines for the purpose of committing illegal sex acts since 1910. The most recent initiative to combat this crime has been sponsored by the FBI Crimes Against Children Division in conjunction with CEOS and with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Operation Innocence Lost, announced in early 2003, is a nationwide initiative to focus on child victims of interstate sex trafficking in the United States.

Four primary statutes, 18 U.S.C. § 1591 and 18 U.S.C. §§ 2421-2423, criminalize prostituting minors in interstate commerce.

In summary, 18 U.S.C. § 1591 makes it illegal to recruit, entice, obtain, provide, move or harbor a person or to benefit from such activities knowing that the person will be caused to engage in commercial sex acts where the person is under 18 or where force, fraud or coercion exists. This statute does not require that either the defendant or the victim actually travel.

The statute defines "Commercial Sex Act" as any sexual act for which something of value is given or received. 18 U.S.C. § 1591(c)(1). "Coercion" is defined as: 1) Actual threats of harm; 2) scheme intended to cause the victim to believe harm would result; or 3) threats of legal repercussions against the victim 18 U.S.C. § 1591(c)(2). Statutory penalties for violating section 1591 are quite severe. In instances where no force, fraud or coercion is used and in which the victim is between 14 and18 years of age, the statutory maximum penalty is up to 40 years imprisonment. If the victim has not attained the age of 14, or in instances when force, fraud or coercion can be proved, the statutory maximum penalty is any term of years or life imprisonment. 

An individual who engages in interstate sex trafficking of minors may also be charged with violations of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2421-2423.  In order to obtain federal jurisdiction, the statues require proof of actual travel in interstate commerce, or a specific use of the channels of interstate commerce for illegal sexual activity. 

Eighteen United States Code, Section 2421 criminalizes the knowing transportation of any individual in interstate or foreign commerce, or in any Territory or Possession of the United States, with the intent that such individual engage in prostitution, or in any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense. The maximum term of imprisonment under this statute is 10 years.

Eighteen United States Code, section 2422 applies to defendants who coerce or entice either adults or minors to engage in illegal sexual activity:

(a) Whoever knowingly persuades, induces, entices or coerces any individual to travel in interstate or foreign commerce, or in any Territory or Possession of the United States, to engage in prostitution or in any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense, or attempts to do so, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both,

(b) Whoever, using the mail or any facility or means of interstate or foreign commerce or within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States knowingly persuades, induces, entices, or coerces any individual who has not attained the age of 18 years, to engage in prostitution or any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense, or attempts to do so, shall be fined under this title and imprisoned not less than 5 years and not more than 30 years.

18 U.S.C. § 2422. The PROTECT Act, passed in April 2003, raised the maximum sentence under section 2422(a), and both established a mandatory minimum sentence and raised the maximum sentence under section 2422(b).

The statute criminalizing interstate or international transportation of minors for illegal sexual activity is 18 U.S.C. § 2423. This statute, too, was recently amended in the PROTECT Act. The newly revised statute provides:

(a) Transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. – A person who knowingly transports an individual who has not attained the age of 18 years in interstate or foreign commerce, or in any commonwealth, territory or possession of the United States, with the intent that the individual engage in prostitution, or in any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense, shall be fined under this title and imprisoned not less than 5 years and not more than 30 years.

(b) Travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. – A person who travels in interstate commerce or travels into the United States, or a United States citizen or alien admitted for permanent residence in the United States who travels in foreign commerce, for the purpose of engaging in any illicit sexual conduct with another person shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 30 years, or both.

(c) Engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places. – Any United States citizen or alien admitted for permanent residence who travels in foreign commerce, and engages in any illicit sexual conduct with another person shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 30 years, or both.

(d) Ancillary offenses. – Whoever, for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain, arranges, induces, procures, or facilitates the travel of a person knowing that such a person is traveling in interstate commerce or foreign commerce for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 30 years, or both.

(e) Attempt and Conspiracy. – Whoever attempts or conspires to violate subsection (a), (b), ©), or (d) shall be punishable in that same manner as a completed violation of that subsection.

(f) Definition. – As used in this section the term "illicit sexual conduct" means (1) a sexual act (as defined in section 2246) with a person under 18 years of age that would be in violation of chapter 109A if the sexual act occurred in the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States; or (2) any commercial sex act (as defined in section 1591) with a person under 18 years of age.

(g) Defense. – In a prosecution based on illicit sexual conduct ad defined in subsection (f)(2), it is a defense which the defendant must establish by a preponderance of the evidence, that the defendant reasonably believed that the person with whom the defendant engaged in the commercial sex act had attained the age of 18 years.

The PROTECT Act specifically implemented several amendments in connection with sex tourism and commercial sexual exploitation: (1) in the area of sex tourism, new provision 2423(c) makes it sufficient to show that a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident traveled abroad and engaged in any illicit sexual conduct with a minor, regardless of what his intentions may have been when he left the United States; (2) the addition of 2423(d) specifically reaches any person who knowingly "arranges, induces, procures, or facilitates the travel" of an individual they know is traveling for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct, when they engage in facilitating the travel for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain; (3) new provision 2423(e) punishes an attempt or conspiracy to violate any of the provisions in 2423; (4) the definitions contained in 2423(f) broaden the prohibited conduct under the statute to include commercial sex acts (as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 1591(c)(1)) with persons under 18; and (5) for defendants charged under the sex tourism provision, 2423(c) an affirmative defense was added for defendant who "reasonably believed" that person who had engaged in the commercial sex act was 18. The defendant bears the burden of proving the affirmative defense by a preponderance of the evidence.

The PROTECT Act also changed the sentencing scheme for 18 U.S.C. § 2423. For 18 U.S.C. § 2423(a)(traveling for criminal sex act) the maximum sentence was upgraded to 30 years imprisonment. Formerly, the equivalent provision had a maximum sentence of 15 years. A mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years was also enacted. In the revision to section 2423(b), the maximum sentence was also upgraded from 15 to 30 years imprisonment.

Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: Las Vegas, Nevada, August 2007

Shared Hope International (SHI) details the access and delivery of services to victims of domestic sex trafficking, in Las Vegas, NV. Data collected from June 1-July 1, 2007 was used to create this assessment. The goal of this report is to provide first responders in the Las Vegas and Clark County areas with a detailed plan of action to build upon successful existing practices. Several key findings are presented, including: the misidentification of prostituted children, the need for increased prosecution, and the lack of safe and appropriate services and programs for victims.