“Southern California has one of the largest sex trafficking problems in the entire world,” said a MyFoxLA’s reporter Gina Silva in an October 20, 2014 TV spot. It’s the fast-growing organized crime in California, generating over $32 billion a year, making this state one of the world’s top destinations for the trafficking of human beings.
Raising Awareness
It’s a stark reality that many Californians don’t want to acknowledge or even think about at all. But the fact is that sex trafficking is something everyone should be more aware of so victims can be helped and perpetrators brought to justice.
Long Beach Raid Yields 76 victims
Right here in Long Beach, 91 people were arrested for sex trafficking in September 2014, according to this SF Gate article. 22 children, ages 12-17, and 54 women were rescued and put in touch with child welfare agencies, nonprofit support groups, probation officials, and other groups to help them. One woman had come from China to work for what she thought would be a legitimate company, only to arrive and be forced into prostitution.
New Focus on Helping Victims, not Charging them with Crimes
In the past, many law enforcement agencies would arrest sex trafficking victims and charge them with prostitution, but there has been a dramatic policy shift towards rehabilitation, not punishment, of these women and children.
Many sex workers have already found their way into the government systems as foster children, welfare recipients, or because they’ve received other criminal charges, and just need help to get back on their feet after such a traumatizing experience. Many are runaways—in the Long Beach raid, there were some who had come from as far away as New York and Michigan.
“It is that fear of not knowing if you’re going to escape or get out of it,” said one escaped sex trafficking victim in the myFoxLA spot.
There are an estimated 20 million victims worldwide, according to the Orange County Sheriffs Department. Lita Mercado, a social worker who was interviewed by myFoxLA, said that there are, on average, eight new human trafficking victims a month who are discovered by one of thirty Orange County law enforcement agencies. If all agencies focused on proactively seeking out sex trafficking victims, perhaps that number could rise into the hundreds each month.
If you or someone you know has been a sex trafficking victim, he or she will need an experienced attorney at their side right away. Legal representation of sex trafficking victims is a very delicate matter, and the Chambers Law Firm, lead by attorney Dan Chambers, treats victims of every crime with the dignity and respect they deserve. Call or email for a free, confidential initial consultation: 714-760-4088 or dchambers@clfca.com.
Or if you’ve been accused of sex trafficking, it’s important to have a criminal defense attorney that will aptly defend you in court. Whether you’re guilty or innocent of sex trafficking charges, every American deserves to have their case duly presented in court by a top-notch attorney. Go with Southern California’s best criminal defense attorney: Dan Chambers of the Chambers Law Firm. Schedule your free, confidential initial consultation today by calling 714-760-4088 or emailing dchambers@clfca.com.
