HUMAN TRAFFICKING

If you have been the victim of human trafficking, help is here for you. We will be with you throughout the court process so you’ll feel safe and cared for by people who are committed to your safety.

Remember, you are not alone. Our victim advocates are here to be at your side and make sure you have all the information you need, and your questions are answered.

RESOURCES

LIFE AWAITS YOU.

Your life will get better once you’re free from the hands of your captors.

There are so many people who are ready to help you get out of your situation.

Give us a chance. It will work.

NATIONAL HUMAN TRAFFICKING HOTLINE (888) 373-7888

RESOURCES

  • National Human Trafficking Hotline
    (888) 373-7888
  • National Runaway Switchboard
    (800) 786-2929 or (800) RUNAWAY
  • Coalition Against Sexual Exploitation

VICTIM SERVICES CENTERS

San Bernardino
Victim Services Center
303 W. 3rd Street
San Bernardino, CA 92415
(909) 382-3846

Rancho Cucamonga
Victim Services Center

8303 Haven Avenue, 4th Floor
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
(909) 945-4241

Joshua Tree
Victim Services Center

6527 White Feather Road
Joshua Tree, CA 92252
(760) 366-5740

Victorville
Victim Services Center

15371 Civic Dr., 1st Floor
Victorville, CA 92392
(760) 552-6947

Arrowhead Regional Medical Center
400 North Pepper Avenue
Colton, CA 92424
(909) 580-1443

ORGANIZATIONS

Forgotten Children, Inc. (Rachel’s House)
An organization that provides not only street ministry to victims of trafficking, but awareness and training workshops. The organization just recently opened up Rachel’s House in San Bernardino County, which provides residential housing for young ladies who have been trafficked into prostitution.

Operation Safe House
Works with Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force. Provides shelter, education, therapy, and employment assistance for male and female victims under the age of 21.

Million Kids
Million Kids is a 501(c)(3) public benefit nonprofit that combats human trafficking. Locally, they serve on the Riverside County Anti-Trafficking Task Force (RCAHT). They help activists and communities develop effective anti-trafficking programs in their locales.

Project Sister Family Services
Educational and prevention services to sexual assault victims in the Eastern Los Angeles and western San Bernardino County.

National Women’s Coalition Against Violence & Exploitation (NWCAVE)
NWCAVE helps to inform, educate and prevent violence and exploitation against women and children nationally and internationally. Whether human trafficking, domestic violence, sexual assault, sexual violence, stalking, bullying, hate crimes and all other forms of violence and exploitation against women and children, NWCAVE strives to keep the public informed and educated on how we can live in a more civilized society free of violence.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Human Trafficking is modern day slavery, and it is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world where people profit from the control and exploitation of others. Ultimately, it deprives people of their human rights and freedoms by controlling them through force, fraud or coercion to exploit them through forced labor, sexual exploitation, or both.

It is important to make the distinction between Human Smuggling and Human Trafficking. Human Smuggling is a form of illegal migration involving the transport of a person across an international border, usually in exchange for a sum of money. It is generally a transaction between two willing parties who go their separate ways once their business is complete.

Unlike smuggling, though, Human Trafficking involves the recruitment, transportation or harboring of persons for the purpose of exploitation–typically in the sex industry or for forced labor–through fraud, force or coercion.

One of the difficult aspects of identifying victims of human trafficking is the underground nature of the crime itself fueled in part by the prevalence of the Internet and social media. For example, in 2012, 336 prostitution-related cases were filed in San Bernardino County, the majority of which were the result of proactive sting operations conducted by those agencies with known prostitution tracks in their jurisdiction (San Bernardino, Ontario and Montclair Police Departments).

This number includes those soliciting sex and those offering sexual services, but it’s important to point out that it only denotes those who were caught and subsequently arrested. The number of pimping cases is even smaller. in 2012, only 16 cases related to pimping and pandering were filed.


According to a 2009 National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking by Shared Hope International, children exploited through prostitution report they typically are given a quota by their trafficker/pimp of 10 to 15 buyers per night. Utilizing a conservative estimate, a domestic minor sex trafficking victim would be raped by 6,000 buyers during the course of her victimization through prostitution. The problem is bigger, though–much bigger.

The low risks and potential for high profits associated with trafficking are now steering criminals away from smuggling drugs and guns, which are generally riskier pursuits. According to California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris, domestic and transnational gangs have expanded from trafficking guns and drugs to trafficking human beings. The perpetrators of human trafficking have become more sophisticated and organized, requiring an equally sophisticated law enforcement response to disrupt and dismantle their networks.

If you are the victim of human trafficking or know someone who needs help, please call your local law enforcement agency, or the National Human Trafficking hotline at (888) 373-7888.

Victims of human trafficking are forced to walk the streets and work in motels and private residences, as well as work in the oftentimes horrific conditions of sweatshops for little or no pay. In doing so, they are robbed of their dignity and forced to live in fear and silence.

While the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office will continue to prosecute traffickers and “johns”–those who solicit sex for money–to the fullest extent of the law, in order to properly serve trafficking victims, it is important to employ a victim-centered approach.

Ultimately, the goal is to ensure that a victim should not have to suffer further trauma after the crime but rather be connected with the appropriate social services so they can move on with their lives.

Doing so will also increase the likelihood that they will be more receptive to helping with the investigation and prosecution of their trafficker who should be held accountable their criminal actions.

You only have to testify in court if you receive a subpoena from the District Attorney ordering you to appear in court to testify in a trial. But at least 90% of Domestic Violence cases are resolved without going to trial. This is how it works:

The San Bernardino County Coalition Against Sexual Exploitation (C.A.S.E.) is a partnership of public and private entities who have joined together to develop resources in the county to educate, prevent, intervene and treat victims of sexual exploitation. The CASE goal is to coordinate services tailored to the characteristics and circumstances of these children, train law enforcement on investigation and detection, educate the public and create awareness to protect children from abuse and exploitation.

Since that initial meeting in March 2009, much has been accomplished. The Department of Behavioral Health obtained state funding under the Mental Health Act and CASE now has four paid full time staff providing direct services to these children. There is a funded coordinator, social worker, probation officer and behavioral health clinician all working with sexually exploited minors in the dependency and delinquency courts. CASE team leaders from the Sheriff’s Department, District Attorney, Public Defender, Children’s Network, Children & Family Services, Behavioral Health, Probation Department and County Schools meet monthly to determine how best to utilize existing resources to maximize the provision of services across the county.

Since the inception of CASE in 2009, approximately 4,000 law enforcement and community members have been trained about the plight of trafficking in San Bernardino County. CASE team members have also provided services and resources to approximately 75 young people who were victims of sexual exploitation.

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