When survivors of human trafficking face criminal charges, their status as victims and their resulting needs often go unidentified. In addition, the criminal legal system lacks the capacity to respond to survivors’ needs with crucial social, legal, and health services. A strong working relationship and cross-educational partnership between the criminal courts and direct service providers can help survivors facing criminal charges access critical assistance they may need and potentially reduce the negative consequences of court involvement.  Join us for a webinar panel presentation with colleagues from your field to learn strategies for making these cross-system partnerships work.

Presented by Mónica Arenas, Marissa MacTurk, and Judge John J. Romero, Jr.

Over the past decade, there has been increased public awareness that sex trafficking survivors are often arrested and prosecuted for prostitution. The reality is that many survivors of both sex and labor trafficking are at increased risk of being arrested for a range of crimes related to the circumstances of their trafficking. As a result, justice system stakeholders should consider ways to reduce further victimization and the collateral consequences caused by justice system involvement. This webinar to details how criminal legal system actors can respond to questions of culpability, develop a range of case resolutions, leverage safe harbor laws, assert affirmative defenses, and provide retroactive remedies for survivors with criminal records. 

Presented by Dalia Racine and Kate Mogulescu

Despite our best intentions and efforts to be procedurally fair and humane, court proceedings are often traumatic events for human trafficking survivors, especially those survivors who are arrested and charged with criminal offenses. By learning more about the genesis and manifestations of trauma, justice professionals can reduce the harm inflicted on survivors and increase trust. Watch this MOSAICS online learning course to explore how you can incorporate trauma responsive practices into your courtroom.

Presented by Miriam Goodman and Charlotte Weber

The intersection of narcotic drugs and human trafficking is complex and multidimensional. Those with pre-existing substance use disorders are at increased risk for victimization, drug use can be a means of coping with the trauma of trafficking, and it is not uncommon for exploiters to involve their victims in the sale and transport of drugs. Learn more about these points of intersection, and how court programs and service providers can better understand them in order to effectively support survivors’ recovery from substance use disorders. 

Presented by: Allison Franklin, Megan Lundstrom, and Charlotte Weber

An estimated 25 million people are labor trafficked worldwide. Despite the prevalence of labor trafficking, survivors are often overlooked and misidentified. Many are trafficked in common industries like housekeeping, restaurant services, and farm labor, and are thus hidden in plain sight. In criminal court settings survivors of sex trafficking are increasingly identified among those facing criminal charges but anecdotal reports suggest that labor trafficking survivors are prosecuted without being identified as victims. Watch to increase your knowledge of the dynamics of labor trafficking, and what criminal courts need to know to respond to it. 

Presented by Colleen Owens and Evelyn Chumbow

Because of the unique dynamics of human trafficking, survivors of trafficking often defy the rigid eligibility criteria for traditional victim services. As a result, survivors often fall through the cracks and are denied the services they so urgently need. The Avery Center (Avery) and the National Survivor Law Collective (NSL Collective) contacted 550 U.S. organizations that claim to offer legal services to survivors to explore the quality of services available to survivors. The resulting data, summarized in The Legal Deserts Report, showcase the dramatic gaps in providers’ ability to assist survivors.

In Part 1 of the Legal Needs workshop series, presenters Megan Lundstrom of Avery and Marianna Kosharovsky of ALIGHT (Alliance to Lead Impact in Global Human Trafficking), a co-founder of the NSL Collective, discuss the findings of The Legal Deserts Report and what it reveals about the landscape of legal services available to human trafficking survivors. Megan and Marianna will discuss specific case studies of how the lack of services harms individual survivors, as well as opportunities for legal professionals to shift the tide and provide meaningful assistance to survivors.

Presented by Megan Lundstrom and Marianna Kosharovsky

Due to the complexity of human trafficking, survivors often have multiple interlocking legal needs that negatively affect their ability to achieve stability and escape the trafficking cycle. “[S]urvivors need specialized services that can assist with expungement, vacatur, and record sealing. Beyond criminal records, survivors also face other legal obstacles” such as debt, identity theft and lack of child custody.

In Part 2 of the Legal Needs workshop series, presenters Megan Lundstrom of The Avery Center for Research and Services and Marianna Kosharovsky of ALIGHT (Alliance to Lead Impact in Global Human Trafficking) continue to discuss the findings of The Legal Deserts Report, namely specific areas of survivors’ legal needs, gaps in the provision of appropriate legal services, and additional opportunities for legal services organizations to meet the needs or survivors.

Presented by Megan Lundstrom and Marianna Kosharovsky