JEFFERSON CITY–Prostitution has long been referred to as a “victimless” crime. Contrary to popular belief, it does have victims, and many of those victims have grown up in our own communities.
Prostitution is the main market for human traffickers, and it is the target of legislation being introduced in the current Missouri General Assembly.
House Bill 214 (HB 214), introduced by Rep. Anne Zerr, R-St. Charles, and co-sponsored by 30 other members of the House of Representatives, addresses the problems of those who are the real victims, the girls and boys who are coerced, forced, threatened, blackmailed, and sold into sexual slavery and are controlled by traffickers.
“Human trafficking is one of the most heinous, corrupt crimes. It is a direct violation against children,” said Zerr, who stated that girls are coerced into the sex trade at an average age of 14 and boys at an average age of 12.
The Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) is one of several organizations involved in trying to get HB 214 passed into law.
“Most human trafficking is not the CSI version of kidnapped Mexicans tied up in the back of a van being driven into Missouri,” said Kerry Messer, who lobbies for the MBC’s Christian Life Commission.
“Most of its victims are groomed or forced from a very young age into degrading behaviors and grow into a culture of abuse without even realizing that they are victims.”
He went on to say that they come to understand that they are living a criminal lifestyle, a fact which their victimizers use as a tool to keep them compliant in continuing the criminal behavior into their adult years.
The victims fear their controllers – their pimps – and become dependent on them for the necessities of life, having no means of developing skills for other work. In the case of victims imported from other countries, the pimps tell them they must work off a debt owed for bringing them into the country.
There are several things which HB 214 is attempting to rectify.
The legislation would allow affirmative defense, which eliminates the charge of prostitution if the victim has committed the crime while being a victim of human trafficking herself.
Law enforcement training would be developed that would help arresting officers detect whether the offense was just prostitution or whether trafficking was involved.
There is also a provision for civil lawsuits and restitution for victims.
Tyler McClay is general counsel for the Missouri Catholic Conference, which is working toward passage of the bill along with the MBC, Missouri Family Policy Council, Missouri Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and other groups.
McClay said that, in addition to legal definitions, proponents of the bill are trying to change people’s attitudes about the crime. Instead of seeing the girls and women as criminals, they are trying to educate law enforcement and the public to see them as victims of a more serious crime.
Two Missouri senators have also been working on a Senate bill to fine-tune the human trafficking law. Sen. Jack Goodman, R-Mt. Vernon, and Sen. John T. Lamping, R-Ladue, say that Missouri is not immune from human trafficking.
“This is an actual ongoing problem, particularly in campus towns,” Goodman said. “It’s easy for middle class Missourians to go about our existence and not know about it.”
Goodman said one important component in the proposed legislation is the addition of pornography and performance to the law.
As Zerr put it, “There are a lot of Mom and Pop things creeping up. They can produce a video in the home, show it all over the world, and profit with that.”
Lamping said the Senate version will likely give the courts more latitude on fines and fees.
He also said that whatever is passed this year is just a first step. This year’s bills propose to strengthen a law which was passed in 2001. He promised more proposals in 2012.
Whether victims of trafficking are recruited for sexual reasons or for slave labor, those who are in the battle against the practice know that it is a large undertaking.
“Trafficking is a new word,” said MClay, “but this has been going on forever.”
BARBARA SHOUN/contributing writer