Prevention through Awareness Campaigns

Attorney general offices are often at the forefront of leading and coordinating awareness campaigns in their states. Awareness campaigns provide a first tangible step towards educating the public, law enforcement, and event and hospitality industries to recognize the signs and perpetrators of modern day slavery. The nature and type of trafficking can vary greatly from state to state, based on factors such as the presence of an international airport, proximity to international borders, and state industry demands. Launching and facilitating state specific awareness campaigns, allows attorney general offices to prevent trafficking before it before it starts.

The examples below highlight some recent awareness campaigns conducted by state and territory attorneys general:

• Florida's Statewide Council on Human Trafficking
• Guam “Stop the Evil” Campaign
• Ohio Human Trafficking Initiative

Protection of Victims

Attorneys general work to protect victims in myriad ways.  They collaborate with federal and local officials on complex and inter-and intra-border human trafficking cases.  Attorneys general often work with state, federal, and local task forces to ensure community outreach and victim protection and identification to receive services, recognize human trafficking, and report cases.  They also work directly with law enforcement officials and non-governmental organizations to have improved investigations and effective prosecutions.

Prosecution

Trafficking in persons cases often span across several different state agencies and jurisdictions. As states work to combat human trafficking, many attorney general offices lead the charge in creating Human Trafficking Task Forces, to work across agencies more effectively. Attorneys general prosecute human trafficking utilizing their criminal and civil authority to hold traffickers accountable.  These efforts include innovative approaches to utilize statutes that allow for traffickers to pay restitution directly to victims, civil and criminal forfeiture of assets, and terms of incarceration as punishment and deterrence for their crimes.

Learn more about creating a task force with the Human Trafficking Task Force Guide, developed by the Office of Victims of Crime at the Department of Justice.