Fact check/Rep. Mia Love on human trafficking

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Fact check: Rep. Mia Love on human trafficking

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Representative Mia Love

April 27, 2017
By Sara Reynolds

Representative Mia Love (R-Utah) recently briefed state lawmakers on her priorities in Congress, including her efforts to stem human trafficking. According to Love, the threat of human trafficking has become “epidemic.”[1]

Is that true? Has the threat of human trafficking become epidemic?

Estimates of human trafficking incidents range from thousands to millions worldwide. According to government data, human trafficking rates are much lower than those of other violent crimes.[2][3][4][5] Researchers say that the low numbers may be the result of underreporting or difficulties distinguishing cases of human trafficking from other crimes, such as prostitution.[6][7]

Background

The Department of State defines human trafficking (also known as trafficking in persons) as "recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining a person for compelled labor or commercial sex acts through the use of force, fraud, or coercion." Trafficking often involves movement across state or international borders.[8]

There are six federal laws authorizing programs to combat human trafficking or to assist victims. Among these is the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (reauthorized in 2003, 2005, and 2008, and 2013). In addition, the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 expanded federal anti-trafficking efforts and victim assistance programs.[9] Anti-trafficking laws also exist in some form in all 50 states and in the District of Columbia.[7]

Human Trafficking Data

Estimates on incidents of human trafficking are limited and dissimilar. The United Nations reports that there is "no methodologically sound available estimate" of human trafficking, and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) notes that "identifying and distinguishing human trafficking from other crimes such as prostitution can be challenging."[6][7]

The International Labor Organization (ILO), a UN agency that describes itself as "devoted to promoting social justice and internationally recognized human and labour rights," estimated that 20.9 million people worldwide (11.4 million females and 9.5 million males) were victims of human trafficking between 2002 and 2011—or an average of 2.09 million a year. Of those, 1.5 million cases occurred in what the ILO calls "Developed Economies and European Union."[10][11][12]

The National Human Trafficking Hotline, funded by the Department of Health and Human Services, collects data on human trafficking via phone calls, emails, and online tips.[7][13] According to hotline figures, 7,572 cases of human trafficking in the U.S. were reported in 2016. Of these, 73.3 percent (5,551 cases) involved sex trafficking; 14 percent (1,057) involved labor trafficking; 3.5 percent (268) involved both sex and labor; and 9.2 percent (696) did not specify a type.[13]

The investigative arm of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), called Homeland Security Investigations, reported 9,000 trafficking-related arrests leading to 4,000 convictions between 2011 and 2016. [14][15]

GAO Report

In a June 2016 report, the GAO compiled trafficking crime data from several federal agencies for fiscal years (FY) 2013 to 2015. The GAO noted the difficulty in estimating the number of trafficking crimes due to the various ways trafficking crimes are prosecuted, and data system limitations.[16][7]

Of the five agencies surveyed by the GAO, ICE and the FBI reported the majority of investigations and convictions for trafficking crimes. ICE reported 53.7 percent of human trafficking investigations and 64.4 percent of convictions. The FBI reported 43.8 percent of investigations and 33.1 percent of convictions.[7][17]

Table 1: GAO data
Fiscal year 2013 2014 2015 Totals
Investigations
ICE 993 974 1034 3001
FBI 763 880 802 2445
Department of Defense 42 57 38 137
Department of Labor Inspector General 1 2 0 3
Convictions
ICE 930 892 587 2409
FBI 386 429 422 1237
Department of Defense 41 19 22 82
Department of Labor Inspector General 11 2 0 13
Agency Totals
Investigations 1799 1913 1874 5586
Convictions 1368 1342 1031 3741

Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, "Human Trafficking: Agencies Have Taken Steps to Assess Prevalence, Address Victim Issues, and Avoid Grant Duplication," June 2016

Federal Bureau of Investigation

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) began collecting data from state and local law enforcement agencies on human trafficking in 2013. The FBI cautions that the data presented "should not be interpreted as a definitive statement of the level or characteristics of human trafficking as a whole," and that the data does not include unreported crimes.[3]

Table 2: FBI data
State agencies reporting human trafficking arrests and offenses Reported human trafficking offenses Reports per state agency Clearances Clearances per state agency
2015[3] 7,214 965 0.13 387 0.05
2014[4] 5,747 443 0.08 120 0.02
2013[5] 274 14 0.5 11 0.04

Note: An offense is cleared when "at least one person is (1) arrested, (2) charged with the commission of the offense, and (3) turned over to the court for prosecution."[3]


Human trafficking crimes and rates are much lower than those for violent crime nationwide as reported to the FBI from FY 2013 to 2015.[2]


Conclusion

In an update to state lawmakers on her priorities in Congress, Rep. Mia Love (R-Utah) spoke of her efforts to stem human trafficking. According to Love, the threat of human trafficking has become “epidemic.”[1]

Available statistics are limited, but most indicate that human trafficking is not epidemic.

See also

Sources and Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 KSL.com, "Love visits Legislature, talks controversial over-the-counter contraception bill," February 24, 2017
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Federal Bureau of Investigation, "Table 1: Crime in the United States by Volume and Rate per 100,000 Inhabitants, 1996–2015," accessed April 19, 2017
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Federal Bureau of Investigation, "2015 Crime in the United States: Human Trafficking, 2015," accessed March 29, 2017
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Federal Bureau of Investigation, "2014 Crime in the United States: Human Trafficking, 2014," accessed March 29, 2017
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Federal Bureau of Investigation, "Human Trafficking in the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program," accessed March 29, 2017
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, "Human Trafficking FAQs," accessed March 10, 2017
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 U.S. Government Accountability Office, "Human Trafficking: Agencies Have Taken Steps to Assess Prevalence, Address Victim Issues, and Avoid Grant Duplication," June 2016
  8. ↑ United States Department of State, "Trafficking in Persons Report," June 2016
  9. ↑ U.S. Government Accountability Office, "Human Trafficking: Actions Taken to Implement Related Statutory Provisions," May 26, 2016
  10. ↑ The estimate was based on data containing recorded information involving victims of forced labor during the 2002-2011 reference period.
  11. ↑ International Labor Organization, "Mission and impact of the ILO," accessed April 5, 2017
  12. ↑ International Labor Organization, "ILO Global Estimates of Forced Labour: Results and Methodology, page 21," accessed March 14, 2017
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 The National Human Trafficking Hotline, "Hotline Statistics," accessed March 10, 2017
  14. ↑ United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, "Homeland Security Investigations," accessed April 19, 2017
  15. ↑ United States Department of Homeland Security, "A Look Back: DHS Efforts to Combat Human Trafficking," accessed April 19, 2017
  16. ↑ The GAO noted: "The complexity of the investigations and the limitations of data systems make providing data on human trafficking a labor-intensive effort for agencies. Therefore, these data are not comparable across the agencies and it is not possible to associate arrest and indictment data with a particular case because of differences in agency data systems."
  17. ↑ FBI investigations and convictions in Table 1 reflect cases investigated by the FBI itself. Data in table 2 reflect cases reported to the FBI by state or local law enforcement agencies. Sara Reynolds, "Email communication with Gretta Goodwin, Acting Director, Justice Issues, Homeland Security and Justice Team, U.S. Government Accountability Office," April 25, 2017
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