Browsing by Author "Shared Hope International"
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Item The Demanding Justice Project Benchmark Assessment Report(Shared Hope International, 2013) Shared Hope InternationalAmerica’s youth are at risk because of a simple economic principle—demand for sex acts with children drives the market of exploitation. Little has been done to address the culture of tolerance or confront the obvious conclusion that penalizing buyers is essential to protecting our youth from becoming prey. Unfortunately attempts to find answers to the problem of demand have been scarce. In a very limited number of cases a buyer has been convicted federally under a provision of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, and this needs to be developed for greater applicability at the state level. Enactment of good laws at the state and federal level are essential but just the beginning. Enforcement of these laws will be the deterrent necessary to stem demand for commercial sex acts. In order to make the case against demand, Shared Hope International performed a benchmark assessment of the criminal actions brought against buyers of sex acts with children. This report documents the outcomes of federal and state arrests, charges and prosecutions of buyers of sex acts with minors from 2008 to present. The goal of this study is to identify changes or trends, as well as forecast change stemming from recent case law holding buyers of sex acts with a minor accountable under the federal sex trafficking law. The Demanding Justice Benchmark Assessment Report captures information on the features of demand for sex acts with children, and criminal justice enforcement outcomes of the cases that are pursued as commercial sexual exploitation of children. (Author Abstract)Item Demanding Justice Report 2014(Shared Hope International, 2014) Shared Hope InternationalThe Demanding Justice Project is a research and advocacy initiative designed to promote demand deterrence through increased attention and advocacy on demand enforcement. The research report documents the outcomes of federal and state arrests, charges and prosecutions of buyers of sex acts with children. The findings of this research will inform advocacy efforts to strengthen anti-demand legislation and enforcementItem Eliminating the Third Party Control Barrier to Identifying Juvenile Sex Trafficking Victims: JuST Response Policy Paper(Shared Hope International, 2015) Shared Hope InternationalThis paper evaluates the fundamental importance of defining sex trafficking to include all instances of commercial sexual exploitation of minors. Beyond the question of whether force, fraud or coercion was used by the offender, this discussion addresses the impact of requiring that a third party, in particular a trafficker, has caused a minor victim to engage in commercial sexual activity in order for a minor to be recognized as a sex trafficking victim. While federal law states that any commercially sexually exploited minor is a victim of sex trafficking, some state statutory schemes mandate identification of a controlling third party or trafficker in order for instances of commercial sexual exploitation of children to be identified as sex trafficking. This means if a buyer directly pays a minor or offers food or shelter in return for sex acts, then this child may not be identified as a victim. Alternatively, even when a trafficker is involved, if the minor does not identify the trafficker, the exploitation will not be identified as an instance of sex trafficking. This is problematic since victims often deny the extent of their own exploitation and often experience trauma-bonding making it difficult or impossible for children to disclose their trafficker. Instead of being identified and provided protections as a trafficking victim, the child could be prosecuted for prostitution in many jurisdictions. At its core, requiring the presence of third party control ignores the fact that buyers are committing the very exploitation that the trafficking laws were enacted to punish. Failure to recognize the conduct of buyers as acts of sex trafficking ignores the definition of trafficking. (Author Introduction)Item JuST Response State System Mapping Report: A Review of Current Statutes, Systems, and Services Responses to Juvenile Sex Trafficking(Shared Hope International, 2015) Shared Hope InternationalWhile there is growing recognition at the federal, state and local levels that youth caught in the commercial sex industry are victims of exploitation rather than willing participants in criminal activity, in the 15 years since the Trafficking Victims Protection Action (TVPA) of 2000 was enacted, the majority of state prostitution laws have remained at odds with the federal definition of a juvenile sex trafficking victim. Only recently have state agencies that regularly interact with juvenile sex trafficking victims begun to screen the youth they serve for possible commercial sexual exploitation,3 and even when victims are screened, staff may lack the training to accurately identify trafficking. Yet another barrier arises when victims are identified but appropriate services are not available, leaving overburdened state agencies with an impossible task of connecting a victim to services that do not exist, or the multiple individuals and agencies working with this population are left to develop protocols in silos, resulting in victims touching multiple systems with no coordinated response. These types of barriers and challenges have both negatively and positively impacted the discussion of how states should respond to juvenile sex trafficking victims. While increased understanding of the impact of trauma on juvenile victims has generated pressure to develop solutions, there is a lack of clear agreement on best practices in responding to this population, leaving states without clear guidance on how to develop a system that avoids re-traumatization while addressing the unique needs of individual victims. This lack of guidance may prompt states to avoid developing a response until best practices are identified; however, a wait-and-see approach leaves the urgent and extensive needs of this victim population unaddressed. Enacting laws intended to protect victims without a deep understanding of the implementation challenges risks undermining the purpose of those laws, or risks establishing laws that are never put into practice. On the other hand, if states allow the complexity of the issue to deter action, vulnerable youth will continue to face the trauma of exploitation and punishment through the delinquency process instead of having access to critically needed services. (Author Introduction)Item National Colloquium 2012 Final Report: An Inventory and Evaluation of the Current Shelter and Services Response to Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking(Shared Hope International, 2013) Shared Hope InternationalSix years after the Mid-term Review on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in America for the World Congress Against CSEC, Shared Hope International, ECPAT-USA and The Protection Project at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies partnered to host the National Colloquium: Shelter and Services Evaluation for Action, an inventory and assessment of United States service response to identified domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) victims and survivors. The National Colloquium and its corresponding National Surveys brought together the primary voices on shelter and services for victims of DMST to review current provisions and set down principles for future development and delivery. This report intends to provide a snap shot of the current status of shelter and services delivery to support and guide the direction forward, properly protecting and serving America’s trafficked youth and ultimately achieving two goals: Provide policy makers, government agencies, service providers and law enforcement a clear understanding of current DMST services and shelter delivery models. Design a framework of core principles applicable to the creation and establishment of restorative shelter and services for victims of DMST. (Author Introduction)Item Protected Innocence Challenge(Shared Hope International, 2015) Shared Hope InternationalItem Protected Innocence Challenge: A Legal Framework of Protection for the Nation's Children(Shared Hope International, 2015) Shared Hope InternationalThe Demanding Justice Project is a research and advocacy initiative designed to promote demand deterrence by expanding awareness of the harm caused by demand and the importance of concerted anti-demand efforts. The Demanding Justice Report documents the outcomes of federal and state arrests, charges and prosecutions of buyers of sex acts with children. The Demanding Justice website is populated with demand-related news in each state from across the U.S. The findings of this research and website will inform advocacy efforts to strengthen anti-demand legislation and enforcement.Item Protected Innocence Challenge: A Legal Framework of Protection for the Nation’s Children(Shared Hope International, 2014) Shared Hope InternationalThe Protected Innocence Challenge is based on the Protected Innocence Legislative Framework which was informed by research performed by Shared Hope International and compiled in “The National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking.” Domestic minor sex trafficking is the exploitation of U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents under the age of 18 in the United States for purposes of prostitution, pornography, or sexual performance. Recognizing that most of the gaps in responding to domestic minor sex trafficking must be addressed at the state level, the Protected Innocence Legislative Framework sets out the basic policy principles required to create a safer environment for children. The steps necessary to create this safer environment include the following: preventing domestic minor sex trafficking through reducing demand, rescuing and restoring victims through improved training on identification, establishing protocols and facilities for victim placement, mandating appropriate services and shelter, and incorporating trauma-reducing mechanisms into the justice system. Broken systems of criminal justice and child welfare responses to victims must also be fixed to ensure that commercially sexually exploited children are treated as victims and provided with remedies through the law. (Author Introduction)Item Report from the U.S. Mid-Term Review on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in America(Shared Hope International, 2006) Shared Hope InternationalSince 2001, U.S. organizations and agencies have increased understanding of the supply and demand of CSEC victims and have developed programs to address both issues. There has been a significant call to address demand from consumers and purchasers of CSEC and to view them as child sex abusers and exploiters. The U.S. will continue to strengthen anti-demand programs and legislation, recognizing the need for better language and more services within these efforts. The U.S. will also continue to address the conditions of vulnerability and availability which lead to the supply of children. During the Mid-Term Review process, the United States child protection community of experts was able to identify their best practices, gaps in programming, and challenges faced in the field. These next steps are drawn from that information and presented as suggestions for continued action or change in action in order to more effectively work toward the elimination of CSEC in the U.S. (Author Text)Item Statutory Protective Responses to Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking Victims(Shared Hope International, 2013) Shared Hope InternationalIn 2011, Shared Hope International released the first annual Protected Innocence Challenge Report Cards that grade the states on the strength of their laws in combatting domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) and protecting youth who have been victimized. Each state grade is based on an in-depth analysis of the state’s laws under the 41 components of the Protected Innocence Challenge Legislative Framework representing six sections: criminalization of domestic minor sex trafficking, criminal provisions addressing demand, criminal provisions for traffickers, criminal provisions for facilitators, protective provisions for the child victims and criminal justice tools for investigation and prosecution. Much of section 5, Protective Provisions for the Child Victims, poses substantial challenges since it requires a thorough analysis of child protection laws, delinquency laws and any laws relating to alternative processes where a victim of DMST may be directed. This section identifies (1) whether a minor victim faces a punitive response, (2) whether there are alternatives to a punitive response through existing statutory systems, and (3) whether a DMST victim can access specialized services and placement through these existing systems. The resulting complexity of this analysis lends itself well to a flowchart comparing these existing systems, and as states look to change current systems to address the problem of domestic minor sex trafficking, the ability to compare these systems across states. These flowcharts are intended to provide an overview of the statutory structure of service and placement responses to DMST victims to contribute to the ongoing conversation regarding promising approaches, pervasive challenges and the need to establish new systems versus changing existing systems. (Author Instroduction)Item Traffic Stop: A discussion about child welfare and judicial strategies for preventing juvenile sex trafficking and helping its survivors(Shared Hope International, 2014) Shared Hope InternationalSex trafficking of children is a crime that deserves national attention. As laws and systems change to identify and recognize sex trafficking as child abuse and victimization, agencies must develop ways to respond adequately to the specialized and complex needs of this population. This report highlights the ideas that were discussed and the information and materials that were shared at the 2013 national Colloquium and in a follow-up meeting of child welfare leaders and panelists who participated in the Colloquium. Findings in this report represent the views expressed by participants in the Colloquium and follow-up meeting, and this report serves as a summary of the discussion. (Author Introduction)