Shared Hope International, an organization dedicated to the fight against sex trafficking, released its third annual "Report Card" for the 50 states regarding legislation on minor sex trafficking – part of the Protected Innocence Challenge – and while a few states are still failing, each has shown marked improvement.
"This year, we only have six states that have an F, while last year 26 states were failing," Taryn Offenbacher, communications director for Shared Hope, told The Christian Post in an interview on Wednesday. For the first time, three states have actually scored an "A" on their list. "Tennessee, Louisiana, and Washington all have legislators who have been working very actively in 2013," Offenbacher explained.
The communications director shed light on the six major criteria Shared Hope uses to judge states on sex trafficking. First of all, states must have laws specifically against it, criminalizing the selling of minors for sex and having specific punishments for those who enslave and sell people, those who buy them, and those who facilitate the industry. Offenbacher specifically insisted that traffickers should be required to file as sex offenders and that their "financial penalty should match their property ownership."
But laws must also acknowledge that the girls trafficked are not prostitutes – they must be protected from legal prosecution and "should never have a criminal record" for being victimized, Offenbacher added. Finally, "you can have wonderful strong laws for child victims, but if you don't have law enforcement who are able to enforce them, to recognize trafficking, and to provide evidence to a prosecutor," they do no good. Keep reading
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