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VERSION:2.0
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X-WR-CALNAME:Human trafficking more widespread in Indiana than available da
 ta indicates\, new report says
X-WR-TIMEZONE:Indiana (East)
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTAMP:20260717T143650Z
UID:tag:localist.com\,2008:EventInstance_35590108828075
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210105
DESCRIPTION:A new report from the Office of the Attorney General and Indian
 a Coalition to End Sexual Assault and Human Trafficking shows that\, while
  human trafficking remains a pervasive problem in Indiana\, the state has 
 improved its strategies to reduce human trafficking and assist trafficking
  survivors.\n\nHuman trafficking is the use or threat of force\, fraud or 
 coercion to compel an individual to engage in commercial sex\, marriage\, 
 labor or services. In 2019\, 157 Indiana human trafficking cases were repo
 rted to the National Human Trafficking Hotline – a 19% increase from 201
 8. Of the 157 cases reported in 2019 in Indiana\, 40 of those involved min
 ors\, according to the report. \n\nHowever\, those numbers only reflect re
 ports to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. Because Indiana does not 
 have a centralized reporting mechanism\, there is no data that comprehensi
 vely illustrates the scope of human trafficking in the state. \n\nReports 
 from service providers indicate that the scope of human trafficking in Ind
 iana is far greater than data from the national hotline indicates. Ascent 
 121\, an Indiana agency that specializes in working with survivors of sex 
 trafficking\, provided services for 117 minors in Indiana in 2019. \n\n“
 It is reasonable to suspect that human trafficking in Indiana is a much mo
 re widespread problem than available data demonstrates\,” Attorney Gener
 al Curtis Hill said. “While our partners in combatting this scourge have
  made noticeable progress in serving trafficking victims and holding traff
 ickers accountable\, there is clearly more we can do.” \n\nAttorney Gene
 ral Hill also commends the Indiana General Assembly for passing legislatio
 n that supports trafficking survivors and addresses trafficking in other w
 ays. Since the 2016 report about human trafficking in Indiana was released
 \, the General Assembly has passed five key pieces of anti-trafficking leg
 islation. \n\nAttorney General Hill also applauds the law enforcement offi
 cials who have had success in holding traffickers accountable for their cr
 imes. In October 2019\, for example\, Krisean Porter was convicted of huma
 n trafficking\, promoting prostitution\, and sexual misconduct with a mino
 r in Marion County. According to Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears\, Por
 ter “physically and emotionally abused a vulnerable child for his person
 al gain.” \n\n“The 2020 Indiana State Report on Human Trafficking show
 s good progress made by hundreds of partners across the state in addressin
 g human trafficking. The priority now is to continue the momentum\,” sai
 d Tracey Horth Krueger\, Chief Executive Officer of the Indiana Coalition 
 to End Sexual Assault and Human Trafficking. “We must ensure that surviv
 ors have access to services while we increase our knowledge about the root
  causes of trafficking so we can end it.” \n\nThe full report summarizes
  national and state laws regarding human trafficking\, efforts Indiana is 
 taking to combat human trafficking\, warning signs that someone is engaged
  in human trafficking\, legal remedies available to human trafficking vict
 ims\, successful criminal prosecutions around Indiana\, and additional act
 ions the state can take to reduce human trafficking. The full report is be
 low.
LOCATION:
SUMMARY:Human trafficking more widespread in Indiana than available data in
 dicates\, new report says
URL;VALUE=URI:https://events.in.gov/event/human_trafficking_more_widespread
 _in_indiana_than_available_data_indicates_new_report_says
CATEGORIES:Press Releases
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