Category: Alabama
Alabama commended for progress in fight against human trafficking
Jul 12, 2021 | Alabama, News, Politics, Sex Traffickig, Sex Trafficking, Sexual Exploitation, Trafficking Free Zone, USIAHT
The success of the TFZ program led elected leaders in Alabama to enact public policies during the recently concluded state legislative session that will positively impact the lives of survivors of sex trafficking, crackdown on sex buyers and better identify victims of trafficking.
Read MoreCity sees positive results with ‘Human TraffickingFree Zone’
Mar 25, 2021 | Alabama, Awareness, News, Perpetrators, Politics, Sex Trafficking, Sexual Exploitation, Survivors, Trafficking Free Zone, USIAHT
In February 2020, Vestavia Hills police were able to rescue four children from trafficking and arrest the man suspected of trafficking them.
Capt. Johnny Evans with the Vestavia Hills Police Department said without the training they received as part of being named a “Human TraffickingFree Zone” in November 2019, they might not have been able to spot what was happening.
As the city continues to train its employees on how to spot and prevent human trafficking, the Police Department is seeing success in cracking down on these cases.
“Our officers now, when they’re dealing with people, know to look for certain things,” Evans said. “We’ve really been able to notice more of the signs.”
Becoming a “Human TraffickingFree Zone” is part of the Child Trafficking Solutions Project, formed in response to the passage of the state’s Safe Harbor Act, created by former state Rep. Jack Williams from Vestavia Hills.
Two Prattville women busted for allegedly facilitating sexual encounters for money at Montgomery hotel
Sep 15, 2020 | Alabama, Awareness, News, Perpetrators, Sex Trafficking, Sexual Exploitation
Two Prattville women were charged with human trafficking after they were allegedly caught encouraging other women to engage in sexual activity for money.
According to court records, a 21-year-old woman was arrested Saturday about 9:30 p.m. at a downtown Montgomery hotel after she enticed another woman to assist her in performing a sexual massage. The woman, unbeknownst to her, had coordinated a meeting with an undercover law enforcement officer by answering a message on a website, according to her arrest affidavit.
Northport police charged 2 men in human trafficking investigation
Jul 27, 2020 | Alabama, News, Sex Trafficking
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – An arrested has been made for 25-year-old Isaiah Rashaud Williams and 26-year-old Demetrius Lamonallen Wright after finding several female victims of human trafficking.
Read MoreMountain Brook, Alabama Equips City Employees to Identify & Report Human Trafficking Implements USIAHT Human TraffickingFree Zone Program
Jun 16, 2020 | Alabama, Awareness, News, Politics, Sex Traffickig
MOUNTAIN BROOK, AL., June 16, 2020 — The City Council of Mountain Brook, Alabama, recently voted...
Read MoreMore work needed to combat human trafficking along I-85, Lee County
Jun 16, 2020 | Alabama, Awareness, News, Politics, Sex Trafficking
Auburn, Alabama– Multiple agencies in Lee County have gotten together this year to discuss the growing problem of sex and human trafficking. “[There are] kids [who] don’t really have a way to make money, a lot of times they have to do things that they don’t like to do in order to get food, to get shelter,” Teresa Collier, an intelligence analyst, said. “So a lot of times what we see are those runaway kids, they’re engaging in survival sex.”
Read MoreHollywood man arrested on child solicitation charges
May 29, 2020 | Alabama, News, Perpetrators, Sexual Exploitation
Hollywood, Alabama — Police in Hollywood arrested a 78-year-old man on multiple charges related to solicitation of a child. Officers from the Hollywood Police Department received information that Lipham was contacting male juveniles via Facebook messenger soliciting them for inappropriate images and videos.
Read MoreFour Recognized for Stopping Human Trafficking Incident at HSV
At Huntsville International Airport in Huntsville, Alabama three airport employees and a Delta Airlines manager helped a 21-year-old girl from an attempted human trafficking incident. The mother of this woman was looking for her car in the parking garage after dropping her daughter off and the Airport Public Relations and Customer Service Manager approached her to help find it. A they were looking she found out that her daughter was going on the plane to meet people for a modeling job. The agent quickly knew that was suspicious, so she met the woman at the gate after her mother described her. The agent tried to get her not to get on the plane, but the 21-year-old is old enough make decisions for herself. A little after, the woman got off the plane saying the modeling agents canceled the flight.
Read MoreVestavia Hills becomes 1st ‘Human TraffickingFree Zone’ in state
In order to be designated as such a zone, there are three steps the city must take: passing a proclamation declaring the city to be a Human TraffickingFree Zone, undergoing training for city personnel, in particular first responders, as well as businesses in the city, and lastly, a zero tolerance policy for city employees caught purchasing sex at work. The program is managed at the local level by the project, but is an initiative of the U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking.
Read MoreJanuary dubbed Human Trafficking Awareness Month in Alabaster
Alabaster, AL. Mayor Marty Handlon declared January 2020 as Human Trafficking Awareness Month in the city of Alabaster during a City Council meeting on Monday, Dec. 16.
Read MoreCouncil approves resolution declaring Birmingham nation’s largest Trafficking Free Zone
According to the U.S Institute Against Human Trafficking, “The (TFZ) Trafficking Free Zone program is a community-based initiative to reduce the number of buyers, whose continuous financial investments create an illicit market for traffickers to exploit young victims in Alabama.
Read MoreCullman to proclaim Trafficking Free Zone
The Trafficking Free Zone is a nation-wide program of the U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking and local anti-trafficking coalition, the Child Trafficking Solutions Project, an initiative of Alabama’s Children’s Policy Council and the Jefferson Family Court.
Read More‘A’: Alabama near top of states in response to human trafficking
Alabama recently received an A on its “report card” from Shared Hope International (SHI) for the state’s positive response to the issue of human sex trafficking. Its overall score landed Alabama at the sixth position in the country; neighboring Tennessee took the top spot.
Read MoreVestavia Hills first city in the state to proclaim community a “sex trafficking free zone”
At Monday night’s council meeting in Vestavia Hills, AL, Mayor Ashley Curry signed a proclamation – an initiative of U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking that will require all city staff to be trained on how to spot sex trafficking.
Read MoreMontgomery human trafficking suspect indicted
Aug 22, 2019 | Alabama, News, Perpetrators
Sergio Webb, 29 Montgomery, AL. has been indicted on charges of capital murder, murder, and human trafficking first degree. The murder counts stem from the death of Melissa Metcalf, Webb is charged with human trafficking for a different victim.
Read MoreSelling Kids: Human Trafficking in Alabama
“Most of our kids identify as bisexual. And, that’s because they’ve been sold to this person or that person, males and females. So, they don’t know what their gender is,” said Lynn Caffery, Executive Director of the shelter Safe Harbor Youth in Huntsville.
Read MoreAlabama to require mandatory human trafficking training for new CDL holders
This law will require any new CDL applicant to undergo industry-specific training to spot human trafficking. The group Truckers Against Trafficking will work with truck driver training schools and trade colleges to facilitate the training.
Read MoreTuscaloosa County teacher out on bail faces 3 more sex-related charges
May 24, 2019 | Alabama, News, Perpetrators
Kenneth Alan Pierce – already charged with three counts of transmitting obscene material to a child and four counts of possession of child porn – was arrested again Wednesday night on two more counts of transmitting obscene material and one count of promoting prostitution.
Read MoreNATIONAL CENTER ON SEXUAL EXPLOITATION IDENTIFIES ‘DIRTY DOZEN’
The NCOSE is the leading organization exposing the links between all forms of sexual exploitation such as child sexual abuse, prostitution, sex trafficking and the public health crisis of pornography. The mission includes any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power or trust, for sexual purposes.
Read MoreMALONE, KEVIN – U.S. INSTITUTE AGAINST HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Former Los Angeles Dodgers General Manager Kevin Malone, Co-Founder and President of the U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking, shared his response to a major law enforcement operation in South Florida involving human trafficking and prostitution. Learn more about his organization at www.usiaht.org.
Read MoreBirmingham Police train to identify victims of human trafficking
The job of identifying victims often falls on hospital workers and police officers. All patrol officers in the Birmingham, Alabama Police Department underwent training in January to learn how to recognize victims who often are taught to avoid being noticed.
Read MoreAdvocates say the fight against human trafficking is progressing, but more work is ahead
“We need to address the issues of childhood sexual abuse that causes a victim to become vulnerable to trafficking, and we need to address the issue of demand,” Carolyn Potter said. “Make it really hard on the people who think it is OK to buy another human being, and that needs to be taken care of in our state.”
Read MoreNew stats & new law in AL to combat human trafficking
She revealed that Alabama continues to crack down on illicit massage parlors across the state. A number of them are under investigation for human trafficking, according to McCay. In many cases, she says workers have been found living at the business.
Read MoreBirmingham man arrested for trafficking meth; could face human trafficking charges
Jul 16, 2018 | Alabama, News, Perpetrators
40-year-old Chico Allen, of Birmingham, was arrested on July 5, 2018 for trafficking methamphetamine and other drug related charges. Additionally, authorities say Allen could face human trafficking charges.
Read More