Vermont Bar Journal, Vol. 40, No. 2 Vermont Bar Journal, Fall 2017, Vol. 48, No. 3 | Page 37

Sex Trafficking: The Basics
Youth in Vermont may be trafficked for
sex online or on the streets. Vulnerable
populations include runaway and homeless
youth, LGBTQ youth, and those involved
with the child welfare system. These
youth may be induced into commercial
sex through a third party - including fam-
ily, friends, and relationship partners.  They
may also engage on their own – a situation
more commonly referred to as survival sex.
Often the root cause that enables traffick-
ing to occur is an unmet need, with the un-
derlying issue being vulnerability, which
can be physical, emotional, financial or any
other circumstance that allows a trafficker
to gain leverage over a youth.
Sex Trafficking: Important Nuances and
Considerations
An important consideration for any re-
sponse, program, or policy is the differ-
ence between youth trading sex for surviv-
al reasons, and youth under the control of
a third party. Under both VT law and fed-
eral law anyone under the age of 18 en-
gaged in commercial sex is a victim of traf-
ficking, regardless of the presence of force,
fraud, or coercion, and regardless of the in-
volvement of a perpetrator. 17 While there
are important reasons and good intentions
driving this framework, such a blanket defi-
nition can also result in misguided policies
and wasted resources that fail to recognize
and/or address root causes and apply an
approach inspired by victimization when
the youth does not share that narrative.
For example - it is well known that youth
that run away or are cast out of their homes
sometimes trade sex for food, a place to
stay, drugs, or money – all in an effort to
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survive without the basic supports most
of people take for granted. It is not un-
common for youth to support each other
in such situations, sharing information and
resources to help one another in their day-
to-day needs for basic survival. This sort
of transaction – better known as surviv-
al sex – is considered to be trafficking just
as much as the case where an individual is
lured and controlled by a third party and
unable to leave out of fear of consequenc-
es. The difference is critical, however, with
respect to policy considerations. Cases of
survival sex call for better social supports
and opportunities for marginalized youth,
whereas cases involving control by a third
party call for involvement of law enforce-
ment. The risk, therefore, in conflating sur-
vival sex and trafficking is that policies and
resources end up focusing on and prioritiz-
ing criminal justice solutions and overlook-
ing social and systemic concerns.
In Vermont, the Department of
Children and Families provides ser-
vices to any youth under the age of
18 that has been involved in trading
sex – whether through the control of
a third party or for survival reasons.
Labor Trafficking: The Basics
Youth in Vermont may also be trafficked
for labor (servitude) in a variety of indus-
tries including, but not limited to including
agriculture, street peddling, and construc-
tion. Although no cases have been pros-
ecuted to-date in Vermont, there are cases
from other jurisdictions that demonstrate
just some of the venues where such exploi-
tation may occur.
In 2015, three individuals were found
guilty of labor trafficking in a case involv-
ing minors on a farm in Ohio. “[T]he defen-
dants and their associates recruited work-
ers from Guatemala, some as young as
14 or 15 years old, falsely promising them
good jobs and a chance to attend school
in the United States.” Instead, the victims
were forced to work up to 12 hours a day
on a farm, living in unsuitable trailers, and
were threatened with physical violence and
withheld paychecks in order to compel
their labor.
Trafficking for labor is not confined to the
formal economy, and individuals may be
forced to engage in criminalized and stig-
matized labor such as selling or transport-
ing drugs or begging.
Labor Trafficking: Important Nuances
and Considerations
A notable contrast between sex traffick-
ing and labor trafficking of youth under 18
relates to illegal labor and the scope of
what are known as Safe Harbor laws. As
THE VERMONT BAR JOURNAL • FALL 2017
previously noted, youth under 18 engaged
in commercial sex are considered victims,
even without the presence of a third party
exercising control through force, fraud, or
coercion. This view has been further codi-
fied in many places through so-called Safe
Harbor laws, which prevent the arrest and
detention of youth engaged in commercial
sex because they are considered victims.
In contrast, youth under 18 compelled
into other forms of illegal labor are rare-
ly viewed as victims and rarely receive
the same treatment. An example of this
would be children forced to sell or trans-
port drugs. In the study mentioned above,
nearly all of the youth that experienced la-
bor trafficking were forced to sell drugs.
tion given to sex should not leave the im-
pression that labor trafficking of youth un-
der 18 does not occur or is any less impor-
tant to address or traumatic for those in-
volved. According to the Office of Juve-
nile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
(OJJDP), the same populations vulnerable
to sex trafficking – including, but not lim-
ited to, runaway and homeless youth, LG-
BTQ youth, and those involved with the
child welfare system – are also vulnerable
to labor trafficking. 14 One recent study that
interviewed runaway and homeless youth
found that 14% of the 641 participants ex-
perienced sex trafficking, and 8% experi-
enced labor trafficking. Three percent ex-
perienced both. 15
Moreover, although there is a difference
in the elements of the crime, with labor
trafficking of youth under 18 still requir-
ing evidence of force, fraud, or coercion,
the definition of coercion is expansive and
takes into consideration circumstances and
special vulnerabilities of the victims, includ-
ing age. 16
In 2014, the Vermont Depart-
ment for Children and Families,
Family Services Division (DCF-
FSD), began collecting data with
regards to Commercial Sexual Ex-
ploitation of Children (CSEC) vic-
tims. Since 2014, FSD has tracked
76 reports of suspected human
trafficking with most of the iden-
tified victims being female. Many
of the victims are placed with
their families under DCF support
and supervision. DCF is a mem-
ber of the state-wide task force
which includes representation
from Vermont State Police, FBI,
Homeland Security, Victim Ad-
vocates, the Vermont Network,
US Attorney’s office and Attor-
ney General’s office. There is
also a DCF- Family Services Di-
vision Human Trafficking work-
ing group which has partnered
with the state-wide task force to
train all the SIU’s around the state
on this topic. As the State con-
tinues to build awareness in local
communities around the signs of
human trafficking, more people
have been able to identify poten-
tial victims. –- Family Services Di-
vision of the Vermont DCF.
LEGAL NEEDS
Child victims of trafficking have diverse
needs, often including legal needs. These
legal needs may require criminal, civil, or
immigration assistance. For example, a
child might need help with emancipation
or name and gender changes. They might
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