Tennessee Human Sex Trafficking

09/12/2012
Tennessee Human
Sex Trafficking
Human Sex Trafficking
• Victim is over 18 years of age and
engages in a commercial sex act by
means of force, fraud, or coercion.
• Victim is under 18 years of age and
engages in a commercial sex act.
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The Game
• Slang for the environment and established
rules of trafficking/pimping- handed down
through a variety of means, including:
– Books
– Videos
– Pimp to Pimp training
– Internet exchange through
“ho-lines.”
Terms of the Trade
• “Daddy” – Women and girls under a pimp’s control must never
know his real name or identity, and refer to him exclusively as
“daddy.”
• “Eyeballing” – A women or girl may not ever make eye contact
with another pimp. If this rule is broken, the woman or girl suffers
serious physical violence.
• Sidewalks and Streets – As indicated by the phrase, “PIMPs
up, HOs down,” women and girls must always exist in “lower”
ways than the pimp, including by standing only on the street
during street prostitution. A woman or girl who ventures onto the
sidewalk is severely reprimanded or forced into what is known as
the “pimp circle.”
• “Out of Pocket” – a term used to describe when a woman or girl
breaks “the rules” by making eye contact with another pimp.
• “Stable” – refers to the group of women or girls under a pimp’s
control (i.e. a pimp’s stable).
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Terms of the Trade
• “Lot Lizard” – Derogatory term for prostituted children at truck
stops.
• “Onetime” – The police or vice.
• “Peel a Trick” – Phrase used to describe the act when a
prostitute steals something from her client.
• “Seasoning” – The process of breaking a victim’s spirit and
gaining control over her, by raping, beating, manipulating, and
intimidating. There is actually a manual for pimps on how to
season victims.
• “Wife-in-Law” – The name each prostitute in a pimp’s stable call
each other. A prostitute can only be a wife-in-law to another
prostitute if they have the same pimp.
• “Coming Home” – Bringing a girl into the stable.
• “Bottom Bitch” – Pimp’s top girl or sometimes the oldest girl in
the stable.
The Game
“She’ll develop a feeling of accomplishment. The
shopping after a month will be replaced with
cash. The love making turns into raw sex. She’ll
start to crave the intimacy and be willing to get
back into your good graces. After you have
broken her spirit, she has no sense of self value.
Now pimp, put a price tag on the item you have
manufactured.”
Excerpt from “The Pimp Game”
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The Predators
• Three types of customers of commercially
exploited children:
– Preferential – pedophile & ephebophile
– Situational – having sex with a
prostitute/escort regardless of age
– Opportunistic – seeks sex with a
child/teenager as often as possible but not
restrictive.
The Stakes – Our Children
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Domestic Trafficking Victims
• 13 Years
– Average age of entry by a child into the
commercial sex industry.
• 7 Years
– Life expectancy after becoming a
commercially sexually exploited child.
• 48 Hours
– Average time it takes for a runaway to be
picked up by a pimp.
Who was she? Who is she?
Who could she have been?
• These girls are chosen because they are
already vulnerable.
• Profile:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Runaway, throwaway
Dysfunctional home
History of sexual, emotional, and/or physical abuse
History of witnessing domestic violence
Criminal history
Drug abuse and/or witnessing parental drug abuse
Low self-esteem
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The Impact
• Exploited youth typically have a quota of
10 to 15 buyers a night.
• Conservative approach:
– A 14 year old girl
– Who is rented for sex with 5 different men
– For 5 nights a week
– For 5 years
– WOULD BE RAPED 6,000 TIMES!
Tennessee Code Annotated
• Public Chapter 354 amends:
– 39-11- parts 7 & 3 – Judicial Forfeiture for promoting
the prostitution of a minor
• Public Chapter 435 creates:
– Human Trafficking Resource Hotline @ TBI
• Public Chapter 377 amends:
– 39-13-513 – decriminalizes prostitution for minors
– 39-13-514 – Patronizing minor prostitute Class E
felony
– 39-13-512 – Promoting the prostitution of a minor
Class E felony
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Three-Pronged
Measurement Approach
The first initiative was to use a survey/questionnaire sent
to law enforcement, court, and social service agencies
in all 95 counties.
The second initiative was conducted through focus
group meetings held in West, Middle and East
Tennessee.
The third initiative was to provide case studies profiling
victims of human sex trafficking in Tennessee.
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Agencies Invited to Participate
371 Law Enforcement Representatives
134 Court Representatives
47 Group Home Representatives
2,412 DCS Representatives
1,497 Guardian Ad Litem Representatives
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“Even if you are on the right
track, you will get run over if
you don’t move.” – Will Rogers
ASAC Margie Quin
615.744.4264 or [email protected]
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