Criminal Justice Sequence of Events Developed by BJS, this resource provides a visual flow map representation of the criminal justice system.
Lawyer’s Manual on Human Trafficking: Pursuing Justice for Victims (2013) This publication, developed through the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, First Department, Judicial Committee on Women in the Courts, provides information, direction, and a variety of resources for working with victims and prosecuting cases of both sex and labor trafficking.
Organized Crime-Domestic Violence (OC-DV) approach This approach combines the advantages of conducting a full organized crime investigation with the insights found in domestic violence or sex cases. This approach fully engages the victims’ needs while holding offenders accountable without building the entire criminal case upon the victim’s shoulders or “victim-centered but not victim-built.”
Reports & Studies
Clearing-the-Slate: Seeking Effective Remedies for Criminalized Trafficking Victims (2014) This report includes the novel legislation that allows victims of human trafficking to essentially erase prostitution and prostitution-related offenses from their criminal records, allowing them a clean slate to rebuild their lives and move beyond the trafficking experience. In addition, it discusses how federal and state governments must work to change laws and policies to ensure that victims of trafficking are not arrested in the first instance and that they have access to adequate and appropriate services.
RICO Prosecution & Human Trafficking Offenses Shared Hope International (2013) In many cases, human trafficking rings resemble organized criminal enterprises, and already existing criminal street gangs have begun engaging in human trafficking. The parallels between the human-trafficking problem and other forms of organized crime suggest that prosecutors should utilize the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”), intended specifically to eliminate organized crime, in conjunction with the TVPA to more successfully eradicate these human-trafficking enterprises. This document provides background and guidance on the topic.
Prosecuting Human Trafficking: Lessons Learned and Promising Practices (2008) This research paper issued by the National Institute of Justice provides results on a study that examined the effects of existing federal and state legislation from the perspective of the prosecution and identified critical challenges and barriers to successful prosecution of cases.
Prostitution Diversion & Human Trafficking Court Self-Assessment This is a useful assessment tool that evaluates current practices and areas for improvement in a court's response to
prostitution, human trafficking, and/or the commercial sexual exploitation of children.
Human Trafficking Victims as Criminal Defendants (2013) This is a one page information sheet that provides information on possible options for dealing with criminal cases in which the defendant is a victim of trafficking.